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DJ Mag Top100 DJs
41
Paul van Dyk
9
Rising star DJ/producer of 2021: “Rafael Osmo."
 
 
There are only a handful of artists who come close to the level of synonymity that Paul van Dyk enjoys with trance music. The veteran German DJ and producer, much like his beloved genre, has ridden the waves of trends and fashions over decades and remained a steadfast figure playing the biggest stages to ever-renewing crowds both young and old.
 
2021 marks 30 years since the two-time Top 100 DJs poll-topper first played at Berlin’s Tresor, a sign of his ubiquity among the institutions of European dance music, and it seems fitting that the occasion has near-enough coincided with a new EP of van Dyk remixes of Energy 52’s ultimate trance classic, ‘Café del Mar’.
 
With his weekly Vonyc Sessions nearing number 800 and a triumphant return to shows at the likes of Transmission Festival and Ministry Of Sound’s 30th birthday celebrations, not to mention his upcoming 11th studio album, ‘Off The Record’, he shows no sign of slowing down yet. “This year I spent quality time with my wife and dog, and worked on lots of new music in the studio,” PvD tells us.
 
 
 
How was your first gig back after lockdown?
 
“Exciting and emotional.”

How have the last 18 months changed how you view your work/life balance?
“My view hasn’t changed. You have to work to make a living.”

What’s the best bit of tech you’ve added to your studio or DJ set-up this year? 
 
“Pioneer DJ DJM-900nxs2.”

What’s the best album you’ve heard this year?
“My upcoming album ‘Off The Record’, which is still in progress.”