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The release takes his listeners on a journey with deep, gritty Moog bass sounds, combined with gorgeous arpeggios and lush vocals. Featuring profound lyrics, ‘Hold Me‘ resonates with those going through the motions of heartbreak, which is intensified throughout the track with the huge sounding bass and beat. After finishing the track, Grish enlisted the help of James Cayzer, better known by his stage name Jaytech (Anjunabeats/Anjunadeep), to do the final mixing and then asked Walter Coelho (Daft Punk, Above & Beyond, Deadmau5) to do the final mastering, and thus the track was born from the collective minds of these geniuses.

Born and raised in Belgium, Grish fell in love with music at a very young age and hosted his first local radio show at age 9. Later in life, Grish worked within the promotion and A&R department at the record label responsible for Technotronic’s success, was resident DJ at one of the hottest clubs in Belgium, hosted a weekly national radio show, organised and hosted some of the largest dance events in Belgium, and wrote a Belgian top 10 hit record – it’s safe to say this producer is a man of many, many talents. Grish moved to the US in 2011 and now lives in the heart of the Las Vegas valley, and his love for music is stronger than ever. In 2011, his worldwide debut release ‘After The Storm‘ hit #1 in the iTunes Trance chart in Japan and #2 on the Beatport Trance Releases chart. Grish is also the driving force behind the (soon to be rebooted) Vegas Vibes mix podcast. Grish is currently working on a number of follow up tracks including a few collaborations with New York based singer/songwriter Jaime Deraz (460,000+ monthly listeners on Spotify).

Getting To Know Grish

Artist name and location?

Grish – Las Vegas, Nevada 

Introduce yourself in one paragraph:

I was born and raised in a small town in Belgium, fell in love with music at a very young age, and hosted my first local radio show at age 9. Later in life, I did A&R and promo at the record company responsible for Technotronic’s success, was resident DJ at one of the hottest clubs in Belgium, hosted a weekly national radio show, organized and hosted large parties and events with over 10,000 party people, and wrote a Belgian top 10 hit record. I moved to the US in 2011 and now live in the heart of the Las Vegas valley, and my love for music is stronger than ever. 

Were you connected with music from a young age, or anyone in particular inspired you?

My older brother was a DJ and I really looked up to him. I wanted to be him. It just looked like he was having so much fun. Out on gigs on the weekend. Always listening to the newest tracks. Playing around with acapellas. Unfortunately, he passed away way too young 36 years ago on his way home from a gig but I’m sure he’s looking down on me and is proud of where I am today. 

How did you manage to host your own radio how at just nine-years old? Tell us about it

Back in the day, when pirate radio stations were a thing, we had a small local radio station in the tiny town I lived in. My mom and my brother already had a radio show there and after co-hosting with them for a while, one day I ended up behind the console on my own. It was a great learning experience and one that further ignited my love for music. 

What first kickstarted your musical career?

I started fooling around with computers early on and was intrigued by how accessible music production became. I think I first started fooling around with some “beats” on the Amiga 500. I think that was with Music-X. But I really only got going when I switched to a PC and got introduced to Cakewalk. I then had the opportunity to work with an amazing musician/singer/songwriter who lived close to me and we wrote a few songs together. One of which got us signed at Antler Records (of Lords of Acid / Praga Khan fame). While we had originally planned to release it under our name, a popular Belgian band (Leopold3) wanted to release it under their name.

Tell us a more about your sound and how it has evolved.

Oh I’m still evolving but I think my sound is a mixture of progressive and melodic house. I love a good vibe and a great vocalist with lyrics that speak to you. I think ‘Hold Me’ is pretty close to where I want to be but wait until you hear the next one 😉

How would you compare the club scene in Belgium to the US?

Well… that’s not really a fair comparison considering how tiny Belgium is. There also aren’t that many clubs left in Belgium. It’s definitely not like it used to be. In the US, and I guess especially here in Vegas, club goers are much more open, happy, and outgoing.

Any words you want to share to encourage other artists and producers?

No matter how hard things seem, never give up. That’s the key. And trust me, this is something I have to tell myself regularly.

Networking, consistency, character, approach… what and how do you initiate your Industry relationships?

I don’t really have a good answer for that but this is probably one of the hardest things in the music business these days. It’s hard to get noticed but you just have to keep pushing yourself and keep going. Keep sending those cold emails and DMs. Keep talking to fellow DJs and producers. You just never know when an opportunity presents itself. Just recently, I found myself in a conversation about live streaming and I showed the new setup I’m working on. One of the people in the conversation happened to be Tiesto’s ex-tourmanager. You just never know.

Is there anyone specific you’d like to thank that has helped you evolve and why?

There are so many people I would love to thank. So many people that keep pushing me to keep going. But recently, I got in touch with James Cayzer (aka Jaytech) and he and his business partner Walter Coelho (who masters tracks for Above & Beyond, Daft Punk, Röyksopp, …)  really helped me with getting ‘Hold Me’ to the next level. I still have a lot to learn and it’s amazing that, in this digital world we live in, you can get help from industry legends like them.

Name 3 albums that have inspired you the most.

The Gold Experience album by Prince. It was the also the first time I saw him live and I’ve been an even bigger fan of his since. I visited Paisley Park last year and it was one of the most inspiring experiences of my life. 

Reminders by Le Youth. I just have to add Le Youth to this list. Not only is Wes a super nice person but the album is full of inspiring gems. One of my next tracks may be heavily inspired by ‘Pattern’ but that’s just a rumor 😉 

Acoustic: Live at the Hollywood Bowl by Above & Beyond. Well… this one and the first Acoustic. The symphonic orchestration that Bob Bradley produced is just *chef’s kiss*. I saw both shows in person twice and, if they ever do it again, I highly highly recommend you don’t miss it.

What’s your favourite piece of studio equipment or software?

Earlier this year, I happen to find an amazing deal on a limited edition Moog Subsequent 37 CV with a low serial number. Never in my life did I think I would one day own a limited edition Moog and then… a few weeks later, I found an original and extremely rare blue Roland SH-101 at a local pawnshop. Those two have rapidly become my favorite hardware synths.

Name your favourite club or festival in the world, and how does it makes you feel?

I am really spoiled here in Las Vegas with so many amazing clubs and they’re all really great with world-class sound and crazy lighting and video setups. But I think I like the smaller and intimate clubs the most. The rooftop at Commonwealth is one that comes to mind. It really only holds maybe 150 people up there but it’s such a chill vibe. They’ve been really killing it with bookings lately as well. And umm… Quick note for Commonwealth & Elation: You have my number, right? 😉

Name an outlandish rider request?

I’m not very demanding so this is not that outlandish at all but a few years ago, I did a corporate gig in LA for my friends at Adobe. As a joke, I asked for green M&M’s and nothing but green M&M’s. And yes… they actually got them and bags of them. I love working with them so much!

Favourite clubbing memory, who or what did it involve?

That one’s easy. July 2013. It was the first time I saw Above & Beyond (Jono & Tony) play. Bart, one of my oldest and best friends, was working on a project in Downtown Las Vegas that summer. I was living in San Francisco at the time but drove down for a few days. That night really changed my life.

What quote represents you best?

Everything is impossible until it’s not.

I love a good challenge and will always say ‘yes’ to things even if I don’t know how to make it happen but then I usually just figure it out.

If you could play any venue, where would it be and why?

I really love the vibe at the Marquee Dayclub here in Vegas. Especially the Sunday afternoon Full Bloom parties with artists like Nora En Pure, Dom Dolla, and Chris Lake. One day, I hope to be on the Full Bloom calendar (I hope Pedram, Marquee’s artist booker, reads this 🙂 ) So that… and EDC in Vegas. It’s always around my birthday so that would be a pretty epic birthday celebration.

Music is….. (explain more)

… the most powerful language. Music can evoke split-second emotions like nothing else can. It can make you feel things with just a couple of notes. It can lift you up when you’re feeling down. Or it can get you energized to take on the world.

One song you really couldn’t live without?

Wow… I can only pick one?

Name drop your favourite tunes, artists or DJs (past or present)

Nora En Pure – Us 

Diamonds – Lane 8 feat. Solomon Grey 

Breathing – Ben Böhmer 

Night Blooming Jasmine (Rodriguez Jr. Remix) – Eli & Fur 

Sun & Moon – Above & Beyond 

Touch Me – Rui Da Silva 

Tell us more about your plans for the future.

I just started working with singer/songwriter Jaime Deraz on a couple of tracks. She wrote a song called ‘Press Rewind’ that I immediately fell in love with and am currently putting the finishing touches on. I’m really excited about this one! I’m also working on rebooting my ‘Vegas Vibes’ live streams. I started fooling around with Unreal Engine to make the streams more visually appealing. I did a beta test a while ago but hope to get back to a regular schedule soon. Other than that, I’m just going to keep pushing and make as much music as I can. 

Any worldly advice you’d like to share?

Do more of what makes you happy.

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