Amsterdam is the mecca of dance music, some of the greatest DJs that have entered the industry over the last two decades have emerged from The Netherlands such as Armin van Buuren, Hardwell, Oliver Heldens, Joris Voorn, and Martin Garix. It's home to some of the most significant festivals in the world like Awakenings, Luminosity Beach Festival, Defqon.1, and in October, the largest dance music conference ADE (Amsterdam Dance Event). One particular DJ and producer from The Netherlands who is rapidly looming in the dance music scene is known as ØSAS ØHM. He has always been passionate about music. The euphoric feeling of making music and showcasing it in his performances translates into a universal sense. “Melodic deep house. I like to use euphoric chords and euphoric melodies, which are energetic but also deep sounding.” His following is strong and he can describe his sound as an emotional feeling instead of a sound to be heard. “Where words fail, music speaks.” - ØSAS ØHM.
Artist Interview Episode 005: ØSAS ØHM
The Beginning:
In this exclusive interview, ØSAS ØHM speaks about how he got inspired to become a DJ and producer, the person he looks up to, and music. He is still in the underground deep house scene however, he is rapidly growing with his mixes and his debut release ‘When We Were One’ on Sunchild Records. “What got me into music, I think I always had a passion for music, even when I didn't create music when I was very young, I can remember like about ten years ago, my nephew, was a DJ. I just saw that they were always doing stuff with music and I got inspired by that. So the next day I bought a DJ controller and I made music.” He created a unique melodic sound that is stirring a following. “I did a lot of different types of music. I produced hip-hop and house, mainly right now with ØSAS ØHM (pronounced as Ossos Ohm), I think it's really a bit of a melodic deep house. I really like to use euphoric chords, and euphoric melodies, really energetic, but also deep sounding.” His passion is fueled by creating music and developing a signature sound that is unusual and exceptional.
“I really try to go to all the emotions because I think many people say it's only love and light and that's really cool, like the euphoric sounds. But I also like to go to the darker type of emotions and the deeper sounds because they are also part of human life. From a spiritual standpoint you can't neglect them, you know. So I just like to make my mixtapes a kind of journey through all those emotions.”
ØSAS ØHM
His biggest inspiration and the artist he looks up to most is surprising, “it started about six years ago. I always was a fan of Martin Garrix because he was also young and he started young and he was, like in no time he became very famous. It was about six years ago, my mother, met Martin Garrix in Amsterdam. She was in a restaurant, we were friends of hers,” he continues “She met Martin Garrix, he was at dinner with Tiësto so she immediately gave me a call and she said, oh I'm with Martin Garrix in the restaurant so I got him with him on the phone because she just went up to him and we talked a bit, he also gave me his email address and from that on my real goal was to be like Martin Garrix. Not really his sound of music, I got my own sound. But I just really got inspired by his positivity, how he is with his fans, how he communicates with the fans. Just his vibe, I really like that overall said ØSAS ØHM. What Martin Garrix isdoing with his platform now, is he goes to third-world countries and cities and towns and throws shows for them for free, and interacts with his fans. “I really love that about it. He is really doing something for the community and for the people who love him. He's very humble too,“ replied ØSAS ØHM. Martin Garrix is a very humble person for a DJ with that high of a status. He's a very humble person. Throughout the years of being a music journalist, I met him a couple of times he is such a nice person. “It's important to stay humble, no matter how big you are. People really appreciate it if you're humble. Even if you're like so big as Martin Garrix, just have something magical to like to stay humble and don't become too arrogant.”
The Netherlands celebrates dance music as a culture that unifies music lovers all around, excepting everyone. It's been a while since I’ve been to The Netherlands, I've been to festivals and ADE events at Gashouder in 2018 and Awakenings Festival in 2017.“What I like most about the dance music culture, is there's some form of unity. About a year ago I went to Tomorrowland for the first time in my life. My uncle, he works at Jupiler, and BUD and he was able to get me an extra pass. So we went there and it's funny, about two, three years ago, I stopped making dance music, EDM all together because I got a bit of like I got some losses and I wasn't feeling inspired after all and I just said, fuck it, I'm going to do hip hop. Maybe there's where I find my success. I tried and I tried, and then I went to Tomorrowland one year ago and I came back and I really felt that I need to go to the dance music, to the dance music world again. That's just where my passion is and I like how people are feeling connected when they are at a festival like Tomorrowland. Just incomparable to any other music genre in my opinion,” said ØSAS ØHM. It doesn’t even compare to how much effort and passion the festival and event producers put into creating these iconic shows, between the carefully created lineups, the details, food, organization, pyro, and technology. “It's just lovely how the dance music and the dance culture are really integrated into the Netherlands. It's just special. I actually feel blessed that I'm born in this country because of all the other big DJs that came from here.”
ØSAS ØHM's very first moment began ten years ago when he first ever attempted DJing and already produced music at that time. “I think it was like really when ‘Animals’ by Martin Garrix first came out, he really inspired me because it became so big overnight a lot of people say overnight with you really worked I had like two-three years. He wasn't famous at all and he just kept working But like the moment that you really get discovered by a big label and they see the value in you You really can grow and really big really fast and that really inspired me.” Back then, ‘Animals’ was a different and unique sound that everyone couldn’t get enough of, everyone venue wanted him to headline, every media site wanted an interview and his name was on every lineup.
Developing the Signature Sound:
Throughout the years dance music evolved along with artists also evolving, trying to stay current even changing their form and sound. “First of all, I want to put my passion into the music. I want to put my feelings into it. I really try to create a signature sound that nobody has. I also feel like there's in the sound that I have, I'm really into the melodic house. In the last couple of years, I felt a bit of a trend going on. Towards the melodic house and the melodic techno as well the specific genre is getting big, so I'm trying to wave a little bit. Just besides getting a signature sound, because it's just really important, I try to stand out in a way, like when I'm on stage when I'm with people I don't know if I got fans already, but when I got people who really got inspired by my music, just to treat them well and just be loving. Just like Martin Garrix, because he makes incredible music, but a big part of his success is just the person he is and the pureness in himself, you know. That's just, that's really important. It's just all kinds of factors. I think it starts with, of course, just putting the work in, in the studio, and just making something that feels good and it really comes from the heart. Don't try to use a formula to make commercial music that you think can be a hit. Just do something that you love, because it's lasting.” When you listen to his mixtape, it takes you on a journal of emotions. Which is what his main goal was in the process of creating it. You can feel the passion and euphoric feelings through each transition.
Making the Transition:
His journey is only the beginning with releasing his debut single ‘When We Were One’ on Sunchild Records to his mixtape. He dabbled in making hip-hop but then realized he wanted to re-enter back in the dance music industry not music it's more popular these days globally, but because that’s where he belonged and that’s what his true passion really is. “I'm more proud of all these tiny steps. I don't know if there's particularly one big thing but I think it is because like two years ago I was into that hip-hop. I was only doing hip-hop and it was maybe just a cope mechanism because I didn't want to go back to dance music because I failed the first time and I thought, I will never make it. I think the moment after Tomorrowland that I decided, I'm just going to let go of that hip-hop world, it's not my world anyways. I'm just gonna start pursuing dance music because that's what I really dreamt of as a kid. Those people normally I think they're gonna give up in like two or three years. Of course, there are some producers who just started, and two years ago or two years after that they just got a huge hit and they got big. But 99.99% of the time I think you really need to put at least like seven, or eight years in. Using your dog just making music just doing stuff Before you can actually make something that's worth it and of its labels think oh, I want to sign it one.”
ØSAS ØHM - When We Were One
ØSAS ØHM is working hard in making his true passion into a full-time lifestyle and full-fledged career. Playing at sold-out events and festivals, getting him on lineups to dream festivals like Ultra Music Festival in Miami, and Tomorrowland. This media site is meant for artists such as ØSAS ØHM who is more upcoming in his country but unknown in the states. MyPlayground Media is here to shine the light on the underground on a global base. “Tomorrowland is number one, at the main stage, that's like the ultimate goal and play at Ultra Music Festival in Miami. I like any festival I just like to be connected to the crowd and it can be on a big stage but also on a really small one but I think it's too much land that's like the ultimate goal at least for like the European people I don't think maybe for the American people it's more like Ultra Music Festival. Tomorrowland, it's magical, when you step in there, it's like a fairy tale you're entering with music. It's also like really the vision of, like in the general, in the world. We all have that vision of coming together in peace, with all these wars and things going on, the left versus the right and black versus white in Tomorrowland, everybody is coming together and just loving the music. If like the whole world could be like Tomorrowland it would be amazing,” said ØSAS ØHM. His dream collaboration would have to be Martin Garrix, when asked, “I'm just open to a lot of collaborations. Every artist has his unique sound. I'm just really curious about how their sounds can inspire my sound and not only in that collab but also in the future, how they can inspire me to do new things. Artists to name other than Garix would beI really love Meduza a lot, they're really dope! Also, Vintage Culture, and Rufus du Sol.”
On The Horizon:
The underground artist should be on your radar, between his debut release and mixtape, plus upcoming music in the works. “I'm working on a remix project. I'm doing this for the Armada Music remix contest of Seq. Martino Kill My Heart. It's already finished so I hope that it's gonna be released on Armada Music of course.” He will be on the road soon performing at nightclubs in Amsterdam and throughout the Netherlands. Amsterdam Dance Event recently release their first artists phase it will be the perfect opportunity to showcase his work and network there. He has new projects in the works, going strong never giving up, and maintaining that focus to become a successful DJ. “I'm currently working on two new projects. The other two projects I'm like still working on and I still need to find a label that maybe wants to release them. So yeah, definitely more music coming soon.”
“I'm like the worst self-critic but that's a curse it's also can be a blessing because when I make a track and when I'm often when I make it that's the worst part of it the curse I don't like it when it's finished as I listen to it so many times and I think you need to send it. For the track I do after that, I always try to search for the tiny little thing in the previous track that just didn't work out or just try to fine-tune that. With every track, I try to get a little bit better and that process in itself is already a big motivation for me.”
ØSAS ØHM
Interview Segment: ‘Either/ Or'
Wine or beer?
“Beer, I love beer!
Normal hours or after hours at a club?
"Normal."
American football or football soccer?
“American football.”
Club or festival?
“Festival”
Techno or house music?
“House Music. But I also love techno festivals.”
Walk or run?
“I go running once a week running. Before I go to sleep I always try to go on a walk for 20 minutes.”
Day event or weekend festival?
“Day Event.”
Perform Back-to-back or Solo?
“SOLO.”
Underground warehouse raves or an organized rave at a venue?
“I love the vibe of the underground.”
“Just keep, definitely for the artists who are listening, keep making music, and keep chasing your dreams. Keep loving, because getting your dreams is cool, but if you don't, if you're friends, we're gonna party with you and celebrate with you. The success is not good. You just need people who love you around you. Also just follow Myplayground Media of course! Follow the podcast, and follow you on Instagram. And it would also really be nice if you guys can follow me on Instagram.”
