Afrojack Talks ‘Forget The World’, Sting Collab & The Rise Of Dutch EDM: Idolator Q&A

After years as music go-to remix man, Afrojack is finally releasing his debut LP Forget The World (due May 19). The much-anticipated set includes Wrabel-assisted floorfiller “Ten Feet Tall” and Spree Wilson-voiced house-monster “The Spark” as well as collaborations with Sting and Wiz Khalifa.

We caught up with the Dutch DJ recently to find about more about the album and dug a little deeper into Sting’s EDM adventure. (Afrojack describes it as “one of the coolest things I’ve done in my career”). He also talked about the inspiring success of contemporaries like Avicii and explained why the Netherlands is churning out the hottest names in dance. Read our Q&A after the jump.

1. Why did you call your album Forget The World? Forget the World is meant to be a message to my fans to not listen to negativity around you, just stick to who you are and what makes you really happy and don’t question what others think. I thought long and hard about the album title and I think it really represents the songs and the journey you go on while listening to them.

2. What can you tell us about your collaboration with Sting? It was amazing to collaborate with such a legendary artist like Sting. The track we did together has a different sound and is deep, it grabs you. We knew right away he would be the perfect fit. It’s definitely one of the coolest things I’ve done in my career so far.

3. All of the featured vocalists are men – is it just a coincidence? Yeah, you know I didn’t even really realize it until the album was mostly finished. I’m lucky to get to work with some of the most amazing and talented female artists, but it just kind of happened that the songs I chose for the album, the songs that really reflected the tone and message, happened to be heavy with male vocalists.

4. What’s your favorite song on the album? Every song means something different to me and has a different message, so it’s hard to pick one. There are tracks that will surprise you with classical instruments you’ve never heard in a dance track before, and then there are collaborations with some of the biggest names in hip-hop; so it’s really depends on what mood I’m in.

5. Does the success of Avicii and Zedd in America inspire you? We all support each other and it makes me proud to not only be their peer in the industry, but to also be their friend and see the great work they’re doing. We’re all kind of in the same boat, we’ve grown up together, worked together and supported each other, so to watch them succeed and help shape where dance music is going inspires me.

6. Why are so many great DJs/producers from the Netherlands? Music is huge where I grew up, especially EDM. It’s been popular there for a very long time. Growing up in Holland, it’s normal to go to clubs and I think experiencing it and getting to watch some of the best DJs and producers in the world made us want to do it too and make it even bigger.

7. What can you tell us about your debut at Hakkasan nightclub? What will you be playing, any new tracks? The night I kicked off my residency at Hakkasan I was really happy with the show and how the night turned out. It’s important to me that the show be a complete experience, unlike anything else in Vegas and I think the production and everyone on the team did an awesome job of making sure it was over the top and every detail was worked out. The crowd was crazy and energetic. It was a great time.

Are you excited for the arrival of Forget The World? Let us know in the comments below.

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