Mike Williams, who’s signed at Spinnin’ Records, popped up on our radar when he released the original ‘Sweet and Sour’ through Tiësto’s label Musical Freedom. Since then his career skyrocketed and he’s clearly among the biggest future talents out there now. We had the honor to catch up with Mike at Mysteryland, so we discussed his past, highlights & what’s next. Check out the interview below!
Hi Mike, it’s a pleasure to meet you, you just finished your set at the Spinnin’ Sessions stage at Mysteryland. How did it go?
Nice to meet you too! It was awesome! I didn’t expect it to be so busy early in the afternoon already. I had never visited Mysteryland before so it was truly my first time to experience it & I must say it’s really cool!
Mysteryland is a special festival so we can imagine what it must have felt like to play here. Many of your fans probably noticed you when you released ‘Sweet and Sour’, but we’re curious about the process before that. When did you start DJ’ing & producing?
I started DJ’ing & producing at age 14. I managed to get my first gig rather quickly at Pop-podium in my home-town Hilversum. Like many people started out, I was uploading a lot of Future House bootlegs on my Soundcloud-profile. They got picked up by Spinnin’ Records in the end and I was really happy to sign there. I got to meet Tiësto at ADE 2015 and that was the start of a great connection. I finished my high-school and decided to fully focus on making music and my career and that turned out to be a great decision.
Alright! You already have a lot of highlights in a relatively short period & Mysteryland can be included in those. How did you prepare your set for today?
Well, as far as preparation goes, I just have loads of tracks on my USB. I’m always prepared to adapt my set to the audience. I just came back from EDC Las Vegas and a tour in Canada so my setlist is based on the experiences there too. Currently I really love the Curbi remix of ‘Escape From Love’ by Sidney Samson and Eva Simons, so usually I play that one.
Sounds great! EDC Las Vegas must have been an unforgettable experience! Is that also your biggest highlight so far?
Yes, it actually is! Opening the mainstage of EDC Las Vegas was something that I couldn’t have dreamed to happen. Of course it was very cool to be asked to come on stage by Tiësto at Ultra & Tomorrowland but this is something that I truly did by myself.
Awesome! For sure EDC Las Vegas has got a very special vibe so it must have been mindblowing to open the mainstage. How do you actually get inspired to create a track?
I like to listen to a lot of music, mostly dance music, and sometimes that inspires me. But seriously anything can be inspirational. If I relax by hanging out with friends or going to the gym that could also trigger inspiration for me.
Okay! Since you’ve been able to travel quite a bit of the world already, what country has been the most special you’ve played it?
Difficult question! But I believe Bulgaria. It’s just that you don’t come there too often yourself and the crowd I experienced there was amazing, their energy seemed endless!
Interesting, it’s always better if the crowd is really enthusiast of course. Let’s talk music. Can you reveal something that’s coming up for you in terms of releases or collaborations?
Of course there’s new music coming up! I played one of my unreleased tracks today actually and besides that there’s a remix I did and a collab coming out soon. Can’t reveal more than that but people should just pay attention to my socials to be the first to hear them.
We’re curious! Today you’re in the Netherlands but I bet there are more tours coming up for you right?
Yeah it’s a busy but fun summer! I’m heading to Asia for gigs in China & Taiwan soon, can’t wait!
Alright thanks very much for chatting with us & we’ll definitely keep an eye on you for the future.
Thanks!
Make sure to follow Mike Williams’ social channels:
www.facebook.com/mikewilliamsofficial
www.twitter.com/mikewilliamsdj
www.instagram.com/mikewilliamsdj
www.soundcloud.com/mikewilliamsdj
© Festivalling.com
Interviewer: Alexander Bouten