Arty

The Russian superstar just got Stronger


Interview by Dan Prince


Artem, a huge welcome back to DMCWORLD…where on planet earth are you today?

Heeey! I’m in Russia at the moment, taking off to my show at Echostage in Washington in a few hours.

The first question the world wants to know, how is your health? Some cancellations been made recently…?

I had to cancel one show in Puerto Rico because I got an ear infection. It’s really hard to get rid of it when you are constantly on the road. So I had to take time off to properly treat it. I feel better now!

What was the first piece of music you heard this morning after rolling out of bed?

Mmm, I woke up and was listening to the track that I’m finishing for my album. It’s 110 BPM, really emotional and airy…with almost 3 minutes of breakdown.

Well your music has had the Buzz Chart posse jumping through loops this week! This time it’s all down to the Mat Zo remix of ‘Stronger’. Clubs and festivals of the world watch out! Tell us the story behind this…

Well, at first, it was a track we’ve been working on together. We made one version, and it was cool but both of us weren’t 100 percent satisfied with it. After that Mat came with his new idea for a top line and I came with another one. Mine version became an original mix and his was supposed to be a remix before it got leaked.


Tomorrowland just passed in a blur…what were your highlights?

It’s an amazing place to see all of your friends, cause pretty much everybody from the music industry is there while the festival is happening. And it’s a great crowd and great place to test your new tracks out. Only the weather was really disappointing this year: rainy and kinda cold, but it didn’t stop me from having a lot of fun performing on the main stage.

You split your time between Russia and Los Angeles. WOW!

Los Angeles is really dope. Lifestyle, people, weather – everything is cool except for the fact that my family and friends are in Russia. I’m really-really close with them and I need to see them at least once every few months. So I’m traveling to my hometown as often as I have any free time.

What are the big 5 tunes in your box this weekend? 1.

– Years & Years – Foundation.

Opening track from their new album. It takes just a few seconds to fall in love with this record. I’ve been playing it for quite a lot on my phone.

– Mura Masa – Firefly. Just a really dope record. Really viby. That kind of music I prefer to listen to while I’m not doing any shows.

– GTA – Red Lips.

Loving the lyrics and how vocal sounds like. It’s catchy.

– Koven – Get This Right.

I love Koven music. I’ve been listening to them for a couple of years already. And I love euphoric feeling in this particular song.

– Disclosure – Bang That.

Just love it!


What is the latest on the new album, where are you at with it, what can you tell us about collabs etc.?

Album is pretty much done. There are 2 last tracks that I need to finish and I can finally breathe out afterwards.

You are a big gamer…how is the gold tier pursuit coming along?

It’s getting there! League of Legends is a type of a game where you need to invest a LOT of time to get on certain levels. And obviously I barely had any free time with busy touring and working on the debut album. But I’m finishing my album in the next 1-2 weeks and I can take care of my gold tier LOL.

How important to your life was the whole Knights of the Old Republic/Star Wars experience?

That was HUGE thing for me, cause this game was the reason why I became big fan of Star Wars universe. I actually watched the movie only after I finished playing KOTOR. After that I just started to explore the whole Sci-Fi genre in books, movies and games. And Sci-Fi can be really influential on many levels. My imagination changed a lot since then.


Every DJ loves a game of FIFA…who are the best DJs out there you’ve come across?

I didn’t play that much with other DJ’s, cause I would play with my friends for fun or ranked games, which brings a lot of stress on a high level, so I decided to stay away from it for some time. Alesso, Seb and Steve are pretty good players though.

Where are some of the clubs that have stood out for you this year?

Such a hard question! I played quite a lot of shows this year all over the world. I started my residence at XS in Vegas this year and I must say, it really is an impressive and amazing club!

What was the last great new album you heard?

The Years & Years album is amazing, I’m a big fan of their work, and even did a remix for “King”, which will come out really soon.

And finally, what is coming out next from you studio wise?

Apart from remix for “King” that I’ve just told you about, everything is focused on my album right now. It’s coming out really-really soon. Also there will be some new stuff with Anjunabeats as well, cause I love to work with them and we have some interesting ideas at the moment.