Few acts in the history of dance music have built as much global anticipation for new beats as the Staten Island-born DJing and production virtuoso, ACRAZE. After setting the world ablaze with his now instantly recognizable single ‘Do It To It’, the fresh-faced superstar continues his ascent, linking up with the infectious and soothing grooves of the UK’s Goodboys for the fulfilling new single ‘Believe’. We had the pleasure of speaking with ACRAZE about his new single and a number of other topics.
Hey ACRAZE, thanks for speaking with us, how are you doing today?
I’m doing great! Just got to LA to work in the studio for a bit.
Let’s kick things off with your brand new single, ‘History’, alongside Goodboys. How happy are you with the finished product and its overwhelmingly positive response from your fans?
Extremely happy and proud of the work we’ve put in together to get this track out there. It’s been a year since I’ve released any music and I’ve missed the feeling of being able to share my records to the world.
Your first time working alongside Goodboys, can you tell me how this single came about and what made you work with them for the first time?
I like to have creative synergy with the artists I work with, and Goodboys and I had it immediately. They’re such great dudes, very talented, and smooth to work with. I’ve always wanted to work with Goodboys so I sent them a message asking if they’d like to make something happen. The process was easy once they sent over a basic idea and I got to work on it. After a few months, I sent it back and they loved it! We ultimately finalized it to what you hear today.
This single follows on from your massive hit ‘Do It To It’. Although it has been a year since that single came out, when creating it did you know you were making something special?
My intention behind the follow-up track was to dedicate it to my journey since I started making music, to now as I finally caught my big break. I worked hard for many years and never gave up on myself, no matter what others thought of my music. The record’s message is that all it takes is your own self-belief, consistency, and commitment to your work. I hope my experience inspires people to pursue their dreams, whatever they may be.
Before that single you released ‘Funky Town’, which was a switch up from your usual bass-orientated music, can you give me a little insight into your switch up of styles?
During the 2020 lockdown, I became addicted to creating house music and the house music production process. It seemed so natural, and I was doing twice as many house songs than bass tracks. Also, everything I was producing sounded sick, so I decided to stick with it.
Do you think you’ll ever revisit that old style or maybe make a blend of your old and new style?
Although I still have love for it, I probably won’t ever go back to producing in the Bass scene ever again. But I’m definitely entering the Pop music space and hoping to continue pushing the boundaries of House music by bridging the gap between genres.
As an artist, how important is it for you to step out of your comfort zone to try something new?
Taking a risk is crucial for success here. Coming from someone who transitioned from doing bass to house under the same alias, it was the greatest risk I’d ever taken. It was extremely scary since I had spent many years creating bass music and was afraid I would lose all of my fans and hard work. My manager then told me that if I wanted to be something big, I had to take the chance, so I went for it with the confidence that I would succeed no matter what. And now we’re here haha.
If you were to have 1 dream collab in and out of the dance music world, what would it be?
Lady Gaga, for sure.
Over the past months, you’ve performed at major dance festivals such as Sensation and Tomorrowland, what was the experience like performing on those stages?
I’ve always dreamed of performing at these festivals and I still can’t believe I was able to experience them.
Thanks for taking the time to speak with us, do you have anything you’d like to reveal with our readers?
Not waiting another year to put out another track, so keep an eye out for some new ACRAZE music this upcoming year! Can’t wait to show you guys what I’ve been working on.
