Ace DJ Hardwell finds India ‘the next big thing'. He talks to Karan Bhardwaj about his musical influences and other interests
He comes across as a disciplined school kid, who probably never got a chance to expose himself to anything but books. But looks can be deceiving. His music has set the millions grooving and his compositions have already broken records. In short span of time, Robert van de Corput, better known as Hardwell, has become a phenomenon. He has played at almost all major festivals. This DJ from Breda, Netherlands, swept Delhi off its feet during his maiden tour to the city. He played his hits back to back that frenzied hundreds at the Buddh International Circuit.
“It’s superb to be in Delhi. This is my biggest show so far. Fans are quite excited here and I have prepared my best to enthrall them,” he told us minutes before hitting the stage. Hardwell’s last gig in India was last year as a part of his continuing tour I Am Hardwell. “It was one of the best experiences of my life. The love and affections that people bestowed upon me inspired me to come back,” he said.
The fair guy, all of 26, has just been announced as world number one DJ by a leading poll. “I think my music just hit the right chord,” he said on his massive fan following.
Over the years, a lot of international icons have performed here and Hardwell, too, finds India ‘one of the best emerging platforms’. “India and Asia in general is the next big thing. Two years from now, this market will be growing by leaps and bounds,” he said.
Though he is not much aware about Indian music, he finds Bollywood songs fascinating. “I really adore the Bollywood music. It’s really cool. I cannot take names but I would love to collaborate with artistes here. We can create some bombastic music, may be something new,” he said.
Hardwell’s much-talked about studio album is underway and he hopes to complete it by November. “It will be out by January and I am planning to take it on a world tour,” he shared.
He started learning classical piano when he was four and DJing when he was 12. He was first inspired to become a DJ at the age of 11 after watching a documentary about DJs on the Dutch MTV. At 13, he signed his first record label and by the next year, he began DJing at reputable clubs across the Netherlands. “Though I was already facing the audience as a pianist, Djing was a different game altogether. It gave a new high and I just couldn’t look back,” he said.
When off work, Hardwell leads a common man’s life by “watching movies, hanging out with friends and spending quality time with family.” He said his fans inspire him to create his music. “It’s great to see people around the world and see happiness on their faces. They inspire me and keep me going,” he said.
photos Sanjeev Kumar