Tiësto talks about his craziest week; from the Super Bowl to The Grammys and finishing up his new album
His Seahawks lost in the Super Bowl, but today he’s in the studio; his next Club Life album is nearly finished, his Balmain jacket is pressed, and his #WCW is Jessica Green. Tiësto is ready for The Grammys this weekend.
Tiësto’s friends and fans of social media may have thought he was on the sidelines for the Super Bowl, but his Instagram post was just a flashback of a previous Seattle Seahawks game. He’s a fan of Russell Wilson & Co., but he prefers to watch the game on TV. “You get to see replays and slow motion, you get to see what actually happened,” he says, “on the field you miss out on all of that, you see the one throw and that’s it.”
He’d just played shows in Las Vegas and in Phoenix, the epicenter of the party universe for Super Bowl weekend. For Tiësto, this is a relaxing weekend, and this coming Sunday will be the real excitement.
As we’re on the phone, Tijs is in the Los Angeles studio where he’s spending the week. He’s currently locked in on production, though he keeps his usual, more fun charisma that you’d expect from seeing him live or keeping up with his lifestyle online.
Through small talk about meeting Katy Perry in Australia and how her halftime show production was incredible, his focus can finally be sensed upon a unique moment; I ask him the one question you can never forget to ask Tiësto if you’re chatting with him on a Wednesday, and he realizes he’s almost forgotten the day of the week.
“Ah, it’s Wednesday… Woman Crush Wednesday, I haven’t posted yet.” He participates in #WCW and prefers to post lesser-known models. “I will find someone in the next hour I’ll put it up,” he tells me, “I think I’m going to go for Jessica Green this week.”
More interesting than his expansive knowledge of Australian supermodels and social media savviness is his ability to manage a balanced nature and be level-headed during one of his biggest weeks of the year. The Grammys are in four days. “I’m not nervous yet but I guess Sunday I’ll be nervous.”
He’s not nervous, nor is the looming award show clouding his vision as he’s putting some final touches on his next album, which he confirms should be released sometime this spring.
“I’m finishing up my next Club Life album which should be released around March or April. I’m finishing up some last collaborations I’m doing with different people, so I’m in the studio all week.”
Previous Club Life compilations have been dedicated to Las Vegas, Miami and Stockholm, and have been known to feature some the biggest collaborations and remixes of the respective year released. But Tijs is still waiting to reveal which city the next album will named after, and who will be the next Club Life collaborators. The wait, however, won’t be long.
Since getting on the phone, we’re now ten minutes closer to The Grammys, where Tijs has earned a nomination for his rendition of John Legend’s “All Of Me.” Competing in the Best Remix Recording category, I ask who he’d vote for — hypothetically, without his contention. “The competition is very heavy,” he admits, “I love the Bastille remix Audien did and of course Robin Schulz’s remix of Mr. Probz is amazing as well, I’d vote for either of those.”
As great as the remixes of “Pompeii” and “Waves” may be, Tiësto’s own Grammy calling comes with an interesting story. Go back just over one year ago, Tiësto was giving away his John Legend remix on his birthday as a reverse gift of sorts. “Very organic, how it came together.” He tells the story behind the January 17th, 2014 fans may remember very well.
“It’s a pretty simple mix, one of the most simplest mixes I’ve done, but so perfect for that song. Remixes aren’t always about making it so different, it’s more about making it more danceable but keeping original elements. I was just trying to give it a little bit of extra energy and a happier feel. Then John Legend contacted us.”
Who will be on Tij’s arm as he arrives to the big show? There’s no lucky girl. “I’ll have to take Andrew, terrible date,” he jokes about taking his manager as his date for The Grammys. “And Paul Morris,” he adds his agent, “the boys crew.”
Tiësto is up on his fashion game, so he’ll still be arriving in style. “I love Balmain, that’s my favorite brand at the moment,” he tells me what he has waiting in his closet. “So I have a very nice Balmain jacket I’m going to wear for The Grammys. It’s a little bit sparkly, it’s a classy look.”
What many of his fans today may not recall is that this isn’t the first time he’s up for Grammy gold. His third studio album Elements of Life was nominated for Best Electronic/Dance Album at the 50th Grammy Awards in 2008. The category was competitive and included albums from Justice and The Chemical Brothers, the latter who won.
Seven years later, Tiësto returns to The Grammys in another competitive field. I ask how it’d be to go home with gold this time around. “It would be a dream come true, I’d cry if I won, it’s something I’d be very proud of.”
What would he do afterwards? “I’d celebrate hard.” He says it like he means it. Enough so that I could almost smell Don Julio 1942. As for what he’ll take away from the show regardless, Tijs is looking forward to the performances. “I’m a big Kanye West fan, I’ve seen him perform a couple of times. He always comes up with something crazy so I’m sure it’ll be interesting to watch.”
Another ten minutes closer to The Grammys and he’s back at working on Club Life Volume Four. Shortly after hanging up the phone, I open Instagram to check out what Balmain fashion is all about, and there it is; Tiësto’s #WCW post, as promised.
Photo: Terry Richardson
Categories: Features