Raiding the dancefloors all summer long
Welcome to DMCWORLD young man. We were in the crowd at Ultra when Hardwell dropped your collab with Dyro ‘RAID’. Wow, well that went off. What were you thinking?
“I was watching it live on Youtube at that moment! Goosebumbs all over my body. It was amazing to see all those hands up high in the breaks and all those people jumping on the drop!”
Tell us about the tune, when did the idea and work begin on the track?
“I think it was at the end of 2011, Jordy (Dyro) and I were talking about each other’s tracks and came to the idea to start something together. We were sending our project over and over and did the final touch together in the studio. We were both very excited about the result.”
You are from the south of the Netherlands, what is your earliest musical memory – of any genre?
“My parents are very in to music, my dad plays accordion and my mom loves all kinds of percussion. So as a kid I was always surrounded by music. Inspired by my mother I joined to local drum band and became a percussionist myself.”
When did you first begin to get into EDM?
“At the end of the 90’s. I was looking for electronic music on several radio stations. From that moment I was hooked to EDM and start recording the tracks on tapes to play them again and again.”
Was the world of DJing and producing always the number one choice of career for you, were you not studying with another job in mind?
“Since I’m also passionate about teaching I did a study to become a teacher. Butyes, definitely! DJing and producing is my number one choice!”
What was the first major club and major DJ you witnessed?
“At a younger age I bought DVDs from Dutch heroes like Armin van Buuren and Tiësto. I was so thrilled by these concerts that I wanted to go there. Since I was under aged I convinced my father to join me to Sensation, which was an amazing experience.”
How would you describe your style – and what do you think makes you a great producer?
“My style ranges from hitting electro to big room progressive house, all blended with strong rhythms. I’m not the one to judge if I’m a great producer, the crowd is. Seeing the crowd go wild when Hardwell dropped our track RAID at Ultra was the greatest compliment I could wish for.”
You burst onto the scene in 2009 with ‘Star Drumz’ which smashed all of the charts. Did you know instantly you had created something special with it?
“The whole concept of ‘Star Drumz’ is based on the principle ‘less is more’. In a few hours the track was finished and I started sending out a promo to some DJs. When I got overwhelming feedback from Laidback Luke, Bart B More and others I realized I made something special.”
Your production has been supported by the likes of Tiesto, Laidback Luke and Justice. Who though are your producer heroes?
“When I was young my heroes were Tiësto, Armin van Buuren, Rank 1 and Paul van Dyk. Nowadays the EDM industry is exploded and there are so many different styles and producers I highly respect.”
What is the current top 10 you are spinning?
01. Dyro & Rene Kuppens – RAID
02. Nari & Milani – ATOM
03. Sam o Neall & Rene Kuppens – SLAP
04. Dada life – Rolling Stone t-Shirt (Original vs Chuckie remix)
05. Miike Snow – Devil’s Work (Dirty South Remix)
06. Michael Brun – Rise (Dirty South Edit)
07. Henrik B ft Rudy – Leave a Light on (NO_ID remix)
08. Thomas Gold – Sing2Me
09. Carl Tricks – Mad Dash (Bingo Players Edit)
10. Quilinez – Troll (Sick Individuals Remix)
Not many people know this, but Rene Kuppens is really good at?
“Cooking! I love good food and like to spent time in the kitchen with my family on the special days.”
What is next studio wise from you?
“There are a lot of things going on right now: I just finished two collaborations, working on several solo project, did two remixes for SHARAM and I’m also producing a song for a pop artist. If you would stay in touch keep n eye on my website www.renekuppens.com
What is your guilty pleasure record, what record do you secretly love?
“I love a lot of records but my secret love is ‘WES – Alane’. It reminds me off being a 6 years old kid and dancing with all my nephews and nieces whole day long.”
What is the greatest record you have ever played to a dancefloor?
“Dyro & Rene Kuppens – RAID is one of my favorites at the moment. The biggest I ever played must be ‘ONE’ by the Swedish House Mafia in 2010.”
Best club you have ever played at?
“CLUB NOA in the north of the Netherlands. Beautiful sound, amazing crowd and an intimate atmosphere, an honor for a DJ to play.”
Last great film you saw?
“I’m not watching much television right now but the last great movie I saw was ‘The Hangover 2’. The wolfpack is back! Haha, I love it!”
What DJ gigs are you looking forward to the most this summer?
“These are definitely the festivals. I can’t wait to play all my fresh new tracks this summer!”
What is the best piece of advice your parents gave you?
“Try to do what you love, love what you do and never give up (but firstly finish your school)!”
What is the best album in your collection?
“Tiesto’s ‘In Search of Sunrise 5: Los Angeles’. It gives me the ultimate summer vibe every year!”
What one club around the world would be your dream gig?
“I think Pacha Ibiza. It’s a great club and the best EDM acts around the world performed there in the last 10 years so fingers crossed!”
And finally, to the thousands of aspiring producers out there who want to follow in your footsteps, what advice can you give?
“In EDM there are no rules, just try to be different in all the things you do. Further, try to be on all the social media and try to find something 2.0 to share your music with the world!”
