Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike — 7 minutes

 [7M] Hello! A lot of people living on our planet have to do the work that they do not like. Can we say now that you live for pleasure and your dreams have come true?

We are so privileged to be in the position we are, it really is a dream come true and one we are so lucky to be living out.

[7M] You have called 2013 the most successful and productive year for you. You are rated 6 in TOP 100 Dj and Beatport #1 with track Mammoth. Do you remember your first success which was the start point for you raising EDM Olympus?

Well it hasn’t happened overnight for us; we have been DJ-ing for the best part of 10 years now and required a lot of hard work and dedication. I think for us the moment we really became aware of our following was hosting our own stage at Tomorrowland, we have such a close affinity to that festival so it was quite the defining moment for us.

[7M] You have spent more than 7 years to let millions of people know your name and love your works. Can we say that the crucial point after which your career developed very quickly was recording anthem «Tomorrow (Give Into The Night)» together with Dada Life and Tara McDonald in 2010?

Sure that was a huge moment for us and lead to a lot of people recognizing our name and our music which was cool. The track was such a big hit with the fans and definitely built our profile worldwide,

[7M] Please, open the secret of so close cooperation with Tomorrowland coordinators. Why did they choose you?

Well we are from Belgium really close to where the festival site is actually based. Strangely it is actually in the field next to our grandparent’s house, we actually used to play football on the site when we were growing up long before it was even a festival. As such we were approached to become residents and over the years this developed into us making the official anthem each year especially for the festival. It is a great relationship and we have a really close bond with all the team.

[7M] Now I am going to ask each of you:).

— Dimitri, has the fame changed Michael’s character?
Not really he is just as annoying as he has always been (laughs)
— Michael , has the fame changed Dimitri’s character?
No not at all, because we are brothers we keep each other grounded and have a very close family around us that just wouldn’t let us get big headed. I think it helps as well that we have come from quite humble beginnings which keeps us quite grounded.
What do you appreciate in each other most of all?
Often you hear artists complain they get a bit lonely on the road, were lucky because we always have each other. And as much as brothers can annoy you more than anyone else in the world, they are also there for you no matter what, so we both really couldn’t have a better person to be working so intimately with.

[7M] Do you have different types of character and supplement each other or you have common thoughts and similar types of character?

We are quite similar in a lot of ways; Mike is perhaps a bit for of an extrovert as you can see from the way he dominates the mic and leads the party, but asides from that we are pretty similar people behind it all.

[7M] Which of you is more popular among girls and have you had any arguments about this?

I think we both think we are better than the other one ☺! But luckily we are yet to fall out over this, still time though☺!

[7M] Being producers have you understood the secret of popularity? Despite of a talent which every artist should have what other things have to be done to reach success and obtain recognition?

Certainly, it would be naive to assume that the music industry works any differently than any other. It is all very well coming up with the perfect product but these needs to be marketed and promoted and introduced to the correct audience that will respond to it best.

As there are so many producers creating music to such a high standard these days that music alone won’t get you recognition. We were lucky in the sense that we had some really big artists supporting our music like the Swedish House Mafia, which really gave us our first big introduction to the world.

[7M] I think that you have not less Russian fans than European ones. What do you know about Russia? Which names of Russian composers, musicians, DJs or just beautiful women can you name?

Ah this seems like a bit of a test? ☺! Well we of course know the famous Russian composers of classical music. As for electronic artists there is of course Arty who we are big fans of, Nina Kraviz is another Russian electronic artists with a big following and we really admire her music even if we don’t really play that style. As for beautiful women…. Natalia Vodianova, Natasha Poly… there are a lot of beautiful super models coming from Russia.

[7M] What are interested in besides music? Computer games, sport, travelling… what is important for you?

To be honest we spend so much time on the road all we really have to focus on is music. We both love traveling which really helps as that is a big part of what we do, so still to be enthusiastic about it is a massive bonus. Aside from this eating good food and trying different cuisines whilst on the road is something we both enjoy. On our recent tour of Mexico we were offered deep fried grasshoppers, which was a surreal taste experience!

[7M] You style in clothes is simple and unpretentious. What do you think about stage attributes, e.g, the ones of Daft Pank or DJs From Mars?

It’s all just part of their act, we have Mike on stage doing MC duties which some people may find a bit much during a set, but it’s all part of the performance and anyone doing things a bit different or taking it to the next level are pushing things forward for the whole scene.

Michael, how many sunglasses do you have and what is your favorite make?
I am a Ray Ban man, but I don’t always stick to one brand. As for how many pairs, you know there are actually too many to count.

[7M] And the last question is a technical one. What program sequencer do you use while recording your tracks and what make of the headphones meet all your demands?

Logic generally is our preferred option but sometimes well use Ableton to jam out ideas when on the road. Headphones have varied over the years but for the moment Beats by Dre are my go to set.

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