DANNIC: Blueprint For Success, Revealed (Artist Exploration)

Worldwide festival fan-favorite and powerhouse producer DANNIC seems to have it all figured out; After recently debuting at #74 on the DJ Mag Top 100 Poll last month, and sharing in the mass success of his releases under Revealed Recordings, things are surely falling into place for this Breda native. But don’t let his Netherlands roots fool you. Yes, there may actually be something in the water, considering the fact that he, Tiesto and Revealed’s label-head Hardwell are all from the same town. But DANNIC’s pure passion and relentless dedication to his music spans more than a decade – and he’s only getting started… [quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]I was just obsessed with all kinds of music from a young age.. My family [members] were big music fans and I would think nothing of sticking my head in the speaker and digging through their record collection to discover new tracks. That was definitely what inspired and made me take interest.[/quote]

Daan as a boy, consumed in music.

Known as Daan Romers to his family, he always had his head near a booming speaker, wanting to be fully immersed in the music, and nothing else. With the help and mentorship of a good friend, Daan started up his DJ career at an early age. Consuming all of his free time learning how to DJ, he relentlessly perfected the art, and shortly after, DJ Funkadelic, his prior alias, was born. Bookings for weddings, birthday parties and more were piling in, and eventually he landed a slot at the biggest local club in his hometown. He lost count after hundreds of gigs, but Daan wanted more. He decided to pursue his talents even further by learning more about production, eventually creating his own crowd-pleasing mashups, and making every set count.

https://soundcloud.com/djdannic/dj-funkadelic-clubbin-live

[quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]I always try to make each show something special. Whether this is by bringing new unheard edits, originals or remixes to the party, or simply dropping exclusives given to me by another DJ, each set is unique.[/quote]

The turning point for Daan was when he was crowned the winner of the Dancetour DJ contest in 2009, providing him the chance to play his productions to an audience of 10,000 people. After proving early success, Daan got the unfortunate news that he may have to change his artist name. The name “DJ Funkadelic” was all-too-similar to an existing artist’s title, but Daan didn’t let that squash his driving potential.

[quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]Rather than get locked into a dispute, I thought it would be best to create a distinct alias so as to avoid confusion at the time… “Dannic” takes a lot of letters from my real name which I feel makes it more personal. I wasn’t sure, but now I know I made the right decision… [/quote]

Dutch House Mafia: Dyro, Hardwell, & Dannic

[quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]Hardwell and I go a long way back… Originally we met in a local bar, and immediately we hit it off and began speaking about DJ-ing and music. We had similar tastes so stayed in touch and our friendship developed from there.[/quote]

It was over 10 years ago when Daan initially met Robert (Hardwell), and although their individual careers went in different directions, they remained close friends ever since. And when the timing lined up perfectly, their friendship carried over into DANNIC’s inclusion into Hardwell’s newly-formed Revealed Recordings family in 2012. Dyro also joined in the mix, and the three have become a thriving force in the music industry – expanding their talents and collaborating together on top-ranked tracks, even if they are thousands of miles apart.

https://soundcloud.com/djdannic/avicii-vs-deniz-koyu-bong-into

Fast-forward to now, and you have DANNIC as we know him: One of the biggest electronic artists in the entire world, with the perfect fit for his music: Revealed Recordings, alongside Dyro and Hardwell. Better-known today as the Dutch House Mafia of dance music, the Revealed trio have taken the future of EDM into their own hands, and it is proving to be a roaring triumph.Their Revealed Canadian Bus Tour last winter allowed these three to finally be in the same place at the same time, though they were all crammed into the same tour bus, providing them with virtually no personal space. Nevertheless, the guys made the best of their situation, and embraced their goofy, brotherly-loving sides:

[quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]Revealed Recordings is definitely based on strong ties between all the artists on the label, We are all friends, share ideas and often play the same events. It’s a real community label which is why I feel we are so strong at the moment.[/quote]

DANNIC performing inside the EMP Sky Church

This past summer was undeniably huge for DANNIC, whose festival schedule spanned the globe – including Belgium’s Tomorrowland, Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas, Electric Zoo in New York, then back to the Netherlands for Dance Valley. He even headlined Seattle’s-own Bumbershoot Music & Arts Festival for its first-ever EDM stage inside the EMP Museum. So naturally, DANNIC was thrilled to hear that his tireless efforts in providing dance music lovers with some of the best sets, mashups, and original productions hasn’t been going unnoticed when DJ Mag announced their Top 100. Even more heartwarming, however, was how excited he was for his label-mates and close pals, who also made the list:

[quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]It is great to be recognized for what we have achieved so far. When Hardwell was announced #1 DJ in the World we were all so pleased for him and it couldn’t have gone to a harder working guy. The same goes for Dyro to be the highest debuting entry in the top 100 at #30 is remarkable especially considering he is just 21! It definitely reflects the strength of Revealed Recordings and also puts an emphasis on us to continue pushing forward.[/quote]

DANNIC’s latest collaboration was with newly-signed Revealed duo Sick Individuals. Their release of Blueprint has already made itself a home at the top of the charts, with little interest in coming down.

https://soundcloud.com/djdannic/dannic-sick-individuals-blueprint-download

[quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]It was great working with Sick Individuals, they’re so talented and definitely ones to keep an eye on in the future. Revealed Recordings are great at bringing through new talent and giving them the environment in which to flourish and Sick Individuals are going to do just that.[/quote]

DANNIC did prove, however, that despite his gallaint work-ethic, he’s a true gamer at heart. Maybe more so than he even has time for.. [quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]Zedd and I do enjoy a game of Halo… I am also a big fan of the new GTA, it’s a great way to de-stress after a long flight…We [Sick Individuals] were in the studio around the time GTA V came out, so [Blueprint] almost didn’t get finished![/quote]

Before show time, it’s game time..

And most recently, USC’s annual FreakNight Festival was lucky enough to score both DANNIC and Hardwell headlining performances, providing both nights of the festival with the best Revealed has to offer. And while Hardwell may have been the most anticipated, DANNIC’s impressive set was a wild treat for both long-time-lovers of his music as well as newly-formed fans at the Festival.

Dannic at FreakNight Festival

[quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]I love playing in Seattle, it has such a great scene and the crowed is always so up for it, it is awesome. Freaknight Festival was really cool; we don’t make such a big deal of Halloween in Europe compared to the US. You guys really know how to turn it into a true spectacle![/quote]

We closed our conversation not with the usual “what’s next in the near future?” concerns, but rather, what DANNIC himself would actually like to see happen at some point, as far as collaborations, productions, and beyond..

[quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]One of my all time heroes is Fedde Le Grand, both as a producer and DJ he has been a big influence on me so if the opportunity arose [to collaborate] I would definitely take it… One guy I am keeping an eye on who I featured on the [Toolroom Knights] compilation is Alex Kenji, he has such a unique sound and really knows how to build up a crowd with his tracks![/quote]

We asked if he saw a future in music, aside from electronic dance music. Surprisingly enough, DANNIC has some goals in mind for genre expansion, as well..

[quote style=”1″ author=”DANNIC”]When I first started out DJing I played a wide variety of music including a lot of hip hop. So it would be pretty cool to make a beat for a major rapper – Jay Z, Kanye, ASAP Rocky – any of the big names would be an honor…I just want to keep releasing more music which makes people dance – that is all that I have ever really needed to motivate myself with.[/quote]

Take this, then, as our firm salute that we will never, ever stop dancing.

Follow DANNIC:
Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | Website | YouTube

Read all our Freaknight 2013 coverage here!