Ferry Corsten
Forget everything you know about the phrase “International DJ,” and allow yourself
the pleasure of meeting Ferry Corsten.
The Dutch superstar has consistently been voted one of the top 10 DJs in the world
(according to DJ magazine’s definitive Top 100 DJ chart) for five years. He’s
played for hundreds of thousands of fans – sometimes at once – in amphitheaters,
fields and nightclubs from Australia to Russia to white-hot Ibiza. He took the
party
island’s “Best Trance DJ” prize at the annual DJ Awards ceremony this year and
two years ago; got tailed by some road-tripping fans on a Southern Comfort- sponsored,
26-city bus tour of America; and had his life’s work interpreted in music, video
and décor at his annual Masquerade event “Full on Ferry”, at 12,000-capacity arena
Ahoy in his hometown, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
It’s all in a year’s work for the man who’s been called the “architect, pioneer,
and instigator” of trance music’s global dominance. But within the close-knit
international DJ community, Corsten’s regarded as something else too: A studio
auteur with a fierce sense of sonic rightness; a real-deal producer who works
solo, sans engineer, and creates the most complete, energetic, melodic records
in dance music. His style is so singular that synthesizer manufacturer Roland
commissioned a Corsten sound bank for their new SP-555 sampling unit. But it’s
so broad that it could meld with
Public Enemy’s classic cut “Bring The Noise,” on a Corsten remix that Chuck D
himself called “the ultimate concoction of pace, energy and lyrics.”
The world first experienced Corsten’s dance floor wallop
in 1999, when the young and hungry artist created aptly named track “Out Of The
Blue” (recorded under his System F moniker). It was the first of his eight Dutch
gold records, and 10 U.K. Top 40 hits, the most ever by a trance producer. He
released his debut album, “Right Of Way,” in 2003; and the groundbreaking “L.E.F.”
– containing Duran Duran collaboration “Fire” – in 2006, which debuted at No.
1 on the iTunes dance chart.
A keen sonic curator, Corsten serves as the head honcho for his record labels,
Flashover Recordings, Aleph, Boom Tsjak, and Levare. On his new XM Radio show,
“Corsten’s Countdown,” he debuts new tracks every week and lets his faithful listeners
– on the radio, and online – vote on their favourites for the month’s final chart.
The show is the first of its kind to engage fans worldwide, and give them a direct
hand in predicting and creating hits.
Corsten has also used his high profile for good, serving as an ambassador for
the KidsRights Foundation, which increases awareness of the plight of disadvantaged
children worldwide. He boasts his own clothing line, Signature F, via Washington,
D.C.-based iKY Clothing.
Is Ferry Corsten a globe-trotting, club-packing, beat-dropping superstar DJ? Most
definitely. But that's just the beginning of the story...one that's still being
written.
www.ferrycorsten.com
