From: The Netherlands
DJ style: “House/melodic/mainstage."
Best known for: “‘Electric Elephants’, ‘Wizard’ (w/ Martin Garrix), ‘Spotless’ (w/ Martin Garrix).”
Fave tune of 2022: “Tiësto ‘Can U Dance (To My Beat)’.”
Rising star DJ/producer of 2022: “Fred again.. He’s in a league of his own, and what he is doing is inspiring thousands of producers and artists worldwide.”
Dutch DJ and producer Jay Hardway became a father in 2022, so he spent a lot of time focusing on his family and figuring out what is most important for him in his career. This time led him into production overdrive after a period of creative drought during the pandemic. The removal of limitations or outside influence has seen him exploring a wide spectrum of genres within his productions. He even released tracks under different aliases outside of his ‘usual’ sound.
Hardway’s family commitments and introspections seem to have kept him away from clubs and festivals this summer, though he curated a star-studded line-up for his ADE showcase. The showcase was an extension of his Inspire Radio series, which now boasts over 100 episodes. 2022 really has been all about production for Jay Hardway and, although he released a handful of tunes via Spinnin’ Records and HEXAGON, he’s still sitting on stacks of unreleased material which he hopes to find a home for in 2023.
What’s the best DJ set you’ve seen this year?
“Either Fred again..’s Boiler Room set or Charlotte de Witte at Fest Festival (Poland).”
Name one great festival you played for the first time this year…
“Fest Festival in Poland. It was only the second edition they did, but what an amazing production and great atmosphere!”
What’s the longest DJ set you’ve ever played?
“Something like six hours. I used to work as a resident DJ in small clubs in Holland from open till close.”
What’s one piece of studio hardware you wish you owned?
“A Prophet 6 or a giant SSL table.”
What’s the last tune you bought?
“Julio Navas, Gustavo Bravetti, David Amo ‘Raw (Tony Romera Remix)’.”
What’s the next big sound?
“I hear a lot of techno influences in house/mainstage music, and I love that. Crowds love harder and deeper stuff at the moment.”