Fedde Le Grand is a man who needs little introduction. The Dutch trailblazer shot to international fame in 2006 with the track ‘Put Your Hands Up 4 Detroit,” and has been rocking dance floors worldwide every since. Fedde Le Grand is one of the hardest working, sincere, and respected guys in the industry. Even playing an exhaustive 200 shows a year doesn’t keep him from meeting fans after his unforgettable performances. Fedde spoke about Sensation, the music industry, and a new collab with Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike.
Your latest release “Where We Belong” with DI-RECT is kind of an unusual collab because DI-RECT are a rock band. How did that track come about?
Yeah, they are but actually the funny thing is that we met for the first time at last year’s Amsterdam Dance Event. They are super famous and the biggest rock band in Holland. They are super nice guys so there was a real clique actually. We got introduced by a mutual friend and we talked about doing a track and everything but they were busy and I was busy so it actually took a year until we finally got together. It was really, really cool, they actually came down to the studio and we jammed a little bit instead of you know how so many tracks are made like you send something over the internet and someone else does a little bit then you go back and forth. That is cool, but in this case it was nice to actually jam like a band. We could sit down and change something then they would work on it and we would all get together again and I would work on it. I’m really happy with the end result!
Yeah you could really feel it. There’s a definite connection with the rock and the EDM. It just combines perfectly and works really well. So you’ve been making music for so long now and all of your productions are all very unique and the quality is always amazing. How do you always stay so fresh in the studio?
I don’t want to sound weird but I kind of follow my inner musical compass more or less and I think that’s most important. I think that by being around dance music all the time so much you already get influenced by it a little bit. I think that’s cool because you don’t lose touch with the market. But, I think that as soon as you are in your studio doing your thing it’s important that the ideas come from inside. Not like, “I like this and I like this and let’s make this track exactly just like this and put it all together and call it a new record!” Because especially now, I think that you have to be careful that your music doesn’t get too generic because there’s so much of the same. In one way it’s so easy nowadays to produce, you just need a laptop and can basically do something but it’s never easy to be original so I think that’s why it’s worth it to at least try to be original.
For sure. I really like your new track “You Got This.” It’s got this big room feel to it and sounds more like your older stuff.
Cool, yeah it does. It’s very clubby and really it’s quite tough compared to a lot of other stuff I did this year. The beat is actually very Latin-like at the same time and it works. I’m happy with the way it came out!
Yeah the drop has this awesome fist pumping vibe to it. So you have the 100th Sensation coming up. Do you have anything special planned for it?
Actually I’m very close with the guys from Sensation. We usually have one or two points in the set where we prepare something depending where in the night I play. It’s something different every time and usually we go over it as soon as I get in. We kind of agree upon like I’ll play this track around this time and this track around this time. I don’t want to be completely bound to the show elements you know but they want to have kind of an indication of what they can do where, so usually that works really well. Hopefully, because I’m still working on it, I’ll be able to drop the extended version of “Where We Belong” for the first time. I hope so if I finish it in time! It’s almost done!
Cool, you kind of are “Sensation.”
Yeah I’ve done a lot of them. I really like the fact of how they approach it like a festival, almost like a club mind. Everything builds up from the lineup to the entertainment to the lights and everything as a whole. There’s a really nice suspense over the whole evening, that’s what I really like about it. For me it doesn’t really matter if I play early or in the middle or late because I always kind of know what to do and I respect the fact where I am in the night. I think that’s very important and I think that’s why we like to work together.
What do you think about ghost producers?
I think it’s something that is really weird. It’s something I completely don’t get. I just don’t get it. To me it’s the same thinking like you are going to see a Quentin Taratino movie and finding out afterwards that it was someone else or you think you are reading a Stephen King book and finding out someone else wrote it. It’s just kinda weird and it doesn’t really work in my opinion. I mean I get it that maybe sometimes you get a bit of help or yeah maybe sometimes it’s hard to handle everything time wise. That’s sometimes sh*tty but then again it’s just weird because I know in the music industry Britney Spears for example doesn’t write her own songs but at least she still performs it live because you still need a skill to be able to sing. But, for DJing at least if your famous for it your not doing anything live so the things you do in the studio should at least be you, but that’s my humble opinion.
Yeah for sure. I don’t get how these guys can be on these massive stages playing tracks they say are theirs but they’re not. For me, when I found out some of my favorite tracks weren’t made by who I thought, it was the same feeling when I learned the tooth fairy wasn’t real.
Yeah I see what you’re saying! I think in the end people will always find out but you know even sometimes I fall for it. I was supporting someone who turned out not to be producing himself but that’s where I stopped right away. Not because I don’t like this person, more just because I couldn’t support something that’s not real.
What if you never made it big, would you ever be a ghost producer for someone else, if it was a chance for you to get your music out there?
That’s an interesting question. Yeah more or less I would understand the other side better. In one way I mean you know sometimes your people skills aren’t that great or your performing skills are not that great but you are very good at making music. So, if someone says just give it to me, actually I kind of still understand that more than pretending to be someone that you are not. The thing I don’t get is, you have some cases where everyone kind of knows who the ghost producer is. I don’t really get why people don’t all become a fan of that guy. In my opinion he’s like super talented. I think every other artist would support that but yeah it’s weird.
A few weeks ago Michael Woods was playing at a club in South Korea, and Justin Bieber was there and gate-crashed the DJ booth and demanded Michael Woods play hip-hop. When Michael refused Justin Bieber sucker punched his tour manager. What would you do in that situation if you were DJing?
I wouldn’t punch right away! I wouldn’t play the hip hop. I’ll give him two minutes to hear why I wouldn’t do it, and if he keeps annoying me I would get someone from my crew to please take him off the stage!
What collabs do you have coming up? We spoke ages ago about a collab with Tiesto?
Me and Tiesto have been talking about a collab quite a few times. That’s usually how it goes. I’ve got so many guys with who I’d love to still do a collab once, especially my fellow-Dutchies. But everyone is so busy that it’s sometimes more luck than anything else if and what you’re able to finish up! One of the collabs that will be coming up in the next year is this awesome anthem-like track together with Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike. I’m really excited about that one. And for the rest, well you’ll just have to see what happens!!
What about your solo stuff? Is “You Got This” going to be your next single?
Yeah probably, as it looks now. The thing is I made so much music at the beginning of this year. This year I made so much new music so I hardly know when to release everything, it’s a bit of a puzzle at the moment, but we’ll figure it out!
Many thanks for the chat!
Sure no problem, thanks!
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