Top 50 Hardwell Quotes

Before I became the No.1 DJ in the world, people came to see me – they knew my sound. They were straight-up fans. After that, you have to deal with the pressure and knowing at a certain point you’re not going to be No.1.

Back in 2008, nobody wanted to listen to or play my music. They called it trance. There was no market for it, but I just kept going.

I don’t want be an underground DJ – don’t get me wrong – I just wanna share my music with everybody.

It’s very easy to copy Swedish House Mafia, or Avicii, or Skrillex, or whatever. People listen too much to each other and are too much inspired by each other.

I love getting to travel and perform to different crowds because you’re exposing yourself to new music, new cultures and the atmosphere is always so unique.

I love the process of collaborating on music, mostly for the creativity that comes out of it.

Music is music, and we all have a spot and a place to enjoy it.

I am always grateful for what I have, and I think it is important to continue having a passion for music.

I respect it if you’re a really good DJ but you can’t produce. What I hate is those who pretend to produce when they have a guy in another room doing all the work. Don’t pretend. Everyone will figure it out at the end of the day.

I change my set every single night.

A lot of people always see the EDM DJs as button pushers, especially when deadmau5 came up with that term. Well actually I started out as a hip-hop DJ and I won several awards in Holland for my skills.

I actually listen to hip-hop to unwind, so that’s really the music I use to clear my mind. I find listening to someone like Dr Dre helps me to take a break and find a groove again.

If I doubt whether a track works, I’m just going to play the instrumental version in my set and judge where the crowd takes it.

The Indian audience is so passionate, they know all the tunes and love to party. The atmosphere is always electric.

I think the rise of electronic music as a main stage concept has been a long time coming.

I love touring and I love being in the studio making music, so that’s where my passion lies.

I really love Tiesto’s album ‘A Town Called Paradise’ and Calvin Harris’ ’18 Months’ album, he did an amazing job.

You can have the best production, the best stage in the world, but without a crowd, the festival is nothing.

In the end when we’re on stage, we push buttons, but when we’re in the studio we’re actually creating music that we play in gigs.

Every show I play, I try and make it unique. I don’t pre-plan my sets and always try and drop new music from my label or artists I am supporting. Equally, I spend countless hours making edits and adding my own touch to the music I want to play.

When I was 14, I started playing in the bigger clubs in Holland and when I was 17, I started playing all of the festivals there.

I was like 4 years old when I started playing piano, and I was like 10 years old when I saw a documentary on the Dutch MTV about Tiesto, Armin Van Buuren, and all of the Dutch DJs, and it really inspired me.

The thing that I love about India is the diversity. Every city is different and offers something unique so it’s hard to pick a favourite.

India has always held a special place in my heart, for all the love and energy the fans have given me.

Everyone has to find his own path and don’t worry about following trends.

It’s okay to be inspired by somebody else, but don’t copy somebody else.

I don’t know if it’s one particular thing that really made me popular, but I always say my music, it worked really well for me. A lot of people like my music.

To me, new friends, new genres, new person-to person chemistry is the DNA of EDM.

The more I’ve spent preparing a set, the more nervous I get. That is why I get my energy from the crowd before I step on stage.

Too many DJs today want to be the headline act without ever knowing what it takes to be the local DJ who’s busting his or her gut to perfect their craft.

The Netherlands is a country I love and am very proud to be from, and I’m definitely supportive of the music scene we have.

Dance music has become global and it’s here to stay.

I hate it when I have to disappoint my fans.

The fans have been an enormous influence on my career. Playing shows around the world and connecting with them is such a big inspiration in my life.

I think you’ve gotta stay focused if you wanna achieve something.

The moment we started DJing in Vegas, back in 2011, the crowd had no idea what dance music was.

I’ve been running my own record label and doing my weekly radio shows, but people don’t see the work. People only see your rise instead of the whole thing.

Even in my Hardwell sets I’ve been playing Drake songs and even from the beginning I’ve been in love with his tracks. I love the way he raps and sings.

I was named Hardwell by my dad when I was 12 and the name just stuck.

There are not necessarily a lot of DJs are coming to Israel, so the moment an EDM DJ is coming to Israel, you can tell that people are way more excited and are looking forward… to the show.

I’m truly grateful for every moment I’ve been able to spend doing what I love to do.

Touring life can often be so busy it makes it difficult to visit places and do all the touristy things, but I’ve had the chance to visit Tokyo a number of times and see a lot of the city. I love it!

I think the impact my music has had on dance music fans is to bring out their inner love for dancing and having a good time.

At the moment when I come on stage and I hear the excitement, I can feel the excitement of the crowd. That’s the most important thing to me.

I’m always working on new music or I’m on the road.

Whenever I’ve performed in India, I’ve been overwhelmed with the amount of love from the Indian fans. Their passion, their energy – it makes me grateful that I’m able to do what I love every single day.

India is such a great host to not just me, but so many other DJs.

To produce a proper album, you have to be in the studio and collaborate with all your singers. It takes a lot of time.

The only tip I can give is just be yourself, you don’t have to copy another song to be popular.

I was a warm-up DJ for many years so I know how to build a crowd, what record goes with the next, it’s all about understanding the dance floor and how the energy and flow should go coordinating to what the crowd want or might need.