Ultra Artists.
Ultra Artist.
Ferry Corsten
Forget everything you know about the phrase “international DJ,” and
allow yourself the pleasure of meeting Ferry Corsten.
The Dutch superstar has been voted one of the top 10 DJs in the world
(according to DJ magazine’s definitive Top 100 DJ chart) for five
years, hitting No. 5 in 2005. He’s played for hundreds of thousands
of fans – sometimes at once – in amphitheaters, fields and nightclubs
from Australia to Poland to white-hot Ibiza. He took the party
island’s “Best Trance DJ” prize at the annual DJ Awards ceremony this
year; 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 UDC’s Masquerade event, at
12,000-capacity arena Ahoy in 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 A&R head for his record
labels, Tsunami, Flashover and Aleph. 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
favorites 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.
Click covers for expanded view:
