The progressive house genre is propelled by many famous DJs, including Victor and Steve, the talented Dutch brother duo known as DubVision. While signed to three labels, Spinnin’ Records, Armada Music and Axtone, the siblings have performed all over the world and created many hard-hitting projects. Additionally, other artists in the industry such as Swedish House Mafia, Tiësto and David Guetta have continued to support their stand-out electro sound over the decade.
Who is DubVision?
It all started when Steven and Victor learned to play the piano at age seven. They grew up in many countries, where they gained inspiration from the music of different cultures. Their backgrounds would later inspire Victor to start experimenting with electronic music and use different computer programs. After seeing his younger brother producing, Steve subsequently became interested in making music. As a result, the two decided to go into a music career together. Their most listened-to song is “Anywhere With You,” which got them discovered; but there’s another song that they love to perform even more, uncovered in our interview.
In a last-minute attempt to perfect their song with Martin Garrix, the sibling duo, DubVision split up; one tackled the interview and the other took on the mastering separately before their Ultra performance. In an exclusive interview with one half of Dubvision, we got to talk to Steve. We discussed their music career as siblings, bringing their mom on stage, their GRAMMY nomination, and more.
RMR x DubVision Exclusive Interview
RMR: How’s your first day at Ultra been?
Steve: It’s been busy and right now, I’m here alone. My brother is coming in one hour because we just received a new take on the vocal with our collab with Martin Garrix that will premier tonight at the Ultra mainstage. It has to sound crisp and perfect, but it wasn’t before this interview. So, we decided to split up and now I’m here.
RMR: Because you are a sibling duo, what is it like going into a music career together?
Steve: It is nice growing in a career together because we’ve gotten to know each other closely all of our lives. I think we know each other’s strong points and weaknesses, and we complement each other well. He’s more like the technical guy and I’m more like the conceptual guy. He’s like the crazy professor, he is just so good at producing and fine-tuning the music. I think we’re a good team and this year has been crazy music-wise.
RMR: What have you been up to recently?
Steve: We reached new heights and received a GRAMMY nomination for “Hero” with David Guetta and Afrojack. We’re blown away. Other than that, we released a new track with Afrojack and Lucus & Steve which is nearing a gold plaque in Holland, which we’ve never gotten before. It was in their top 40 tracks in the country, and it’s super exciting.
RMR: What do you like more, performing or making music?
Steve: When we perform, we are producers at heart, so we would never play without making music. However, producing a track is so nice. But, following it up by playing it out loud and seeing if people like it, is the cherry on the pie. I think my brother is more of a producer at heart, and I’m a performer, but again, I would never perform if I didn’t make the music. We started out making music for a while, but we said to each other that if we wanted to perform, our music had to be picked up by big artists and people on YouTube should want to hear it; if it happens, then we’re going to let it play out.
RMR: Who or what moments do you make music for?
Steve: It’s for the fans. It’s the reason why we’re here, why we’re being successful. Also, we’re doing it for our mom, who is our biggest fan and is also here tonight. She’s in Miami, and she doesn’t know it yet, but we’re going to take her on stage and it’s going to be emotional, but fun. We’re also doing it for our dad who, unfortunately, has to stay in Holland but, it’s been a ride and they’ve been so supportive through our career. I just want to let her experience what we experience for work; having so many people admire you for what you do, putting your hands up with people following, and having everyone scream that they love your music and what you do. I want to give her that.
RMR: What is your favorite song to perform?
Steve: “Turn It Around” kind of put us on the map even though “Anywhere With You,” got us discovered. “Turn It Around” was really being played a lot by Swedish House Mafia and ALESSO at the time. Those were the guys we really looked up to and that track still creates such a buzz, even though its six to eight years old.
RMR: Do you have any before-show rituals that you do to get your head in the right place?
Steve: I don’t eat close to a show. Not that I think I’m going to throw up, it’s just that I want to be energetic.
RMR: How do you come up with ideas for the music?
Steve: It comes to me, when I play piano, listen to all kinds of music, not only EDM but also classical music, indie pop, rock–all kinds of stuff. Sometimes you can hear a transition, notes, or chords, and you think, Oh that’s interesting. You take those transitions and convert it into something EDM or house-like, making them your own. You can get inspired by so many things like a breakup, falling in love, or traveling, it could be anything.
