Location: Denver, Colorado, USA
Dimitri: Can you tell your achievements in your music career in 2013 as DJ & producer?
Bruce Cullen: I released one of my very first tracks called ‘Princess Bay’, Black Hole Recordings, In Trance We Trust really enjoyed it and signed it. ‘Princess Bay’ just missed the print date for being included on ‘In Search Of Sunrise’. So although I just missed getting onto this release it is a huge accomplishment for me as it’s one of the bestselling Trance compilation CD’s ever sold. I was very excited about that. Another track in 2013 ‘Red Rum’ was also considered for the In Search Of Sunrise compilation CD with Black Hole Recordings, In Trance We Trust. Also in this same first year of my career my release ‘1492’ signed with Black Hole Recordings made it to 14th position on the dance charts. I feel this is a great start.
Dimitri: If you look back in 2013 are there matters in your music career that you wish to have done them differently in order to get a better outcome?
Bruce Cullen: Laughing, yes… I have travelled around the globe since the age of 17 on my own, my father was a Delta Airlines pilot. I met soooo many people in this industry (EDM) over these years and most of this time I was sort of behind the scenes involved with event promotion and event planning. I regret that I did not decide to produce tracks earlier, event planning is a lot of work and a lot of travelling around the globe. I feel the rewards are huge in event planning but it was difficult to justify the amount of money that I directly spent managing this all. For those that do not know the story I will try to keep this short, lol. Years ago I managed one of the USA’s SuperBowl (NFL) ½ time show website, I was already working/acting on Hollywood films/shows like Melrose Place, Days of Our Lives and was asked to join SAG/AFTRA pretty fast, I was very fortunate. In regards to the SuperBowl site, we saw about 55+ million people visit the site in a very short amount of time. At the time I was not involved really with event planning. So one day I decided to just get up and go to what I kept hearing about in Holland (Amsterdam), Sensation White and Black. So I left Los Angeles and went. I was amazed beyond belief at the production and ID&T’s knowhow. At Sensation White I walked into a VIP room where JOOP was playing, I went up to him and said “You are playing some awesome music”, he smiled and looked at me a bit funny, I walked to the dancefloor and jumped around a bit. JOOP took off his headphones during his set and came up to me on the dance floor and was like “Are you from the States?” I said “yes”, JOOP then said, “You came all the way here for Sensation?” I said “Yah dude, this is INSANE!” Long story short, lol, the next year one of the main founders of ID&T invited me to Sensation again personally as an ID&T Company guest, Irfan van Ewijk, what a time that was. Irfan sat down with me in the middle of the 45,000 person event and we spoke about bringing Sensation to the USA. I flew out my colleagues from Hollywood and we had a few meetings. From there it’s all sort of history so to speak. My colleagues in the United States did not agree with my feeling that EDM would take off like WILDFIRE in the USA years later, that’s VERY frustrating as we pretty much had the go ahead from ID&T years before they finally came to the USA the first time. Lots of wasted time in my opinion, I was ready, ID&T was ready but the USA was not. So there lies just a tiny bit of some frustrations. But later I flew out Sied van Riel for his first show ever in the USA, brought Emma Hewitt to one of her first appearances at my own event http://NextPresents.Com in Denver, I arranged Marcel Woods, JOOP and Apsara from San Francisco as well. My first event: three headliners. I was going to continue, I might yet still with event planning, but this is a bit of my background to this all. Currently I am representing the organizers of Sensation Belgrade (Insomnia Global) and talking to Los Angeles, Denver, Las Vegas and a few other cities to attempt to align up some huge plans. This week I have been reaching out to some of the largest event organization on the planet to bring a new concept over here to the USA and also to attempt to combine the biggest in the USA with the biggest in Holland once again. It’s fun being in the middle (So to speak), I do everything possible to make EDM bigger on a global scale, I think many will agree and this is where a ton of my support and respect stems from, for those who want to know. To answer your question… So would I have done this differently?, yes… I would have held (maybe strapped them) people much more against a wall and convinced them that EDM would take off in the USA BIG TIME, and it sure is happening, wow! So when I released a track called ‘Rum Runners’ with High Contrast Recordings, Dick De Groot (main man), an awesome dude, lol stated on the promo when the track was just starting to play out “Bruce Cullen, a man every DJ knows, releases his debut track on High Contrast”. I felt good about that, thanks Dick! Now it’s time to make some BIG tracks!
1) Best Track:
Bruce Cullen: "1492" I truly imagined myself as a sea bearing discoverer looking to change the world by finding an entirely new land, really had fun making this track! Took the passion of this feeling and made SURE the thought was in the sound, done, at least in my opinion.
2) Best Artist (Dj & producer):
Bruce Cullen: Emma Hewitt, she’s a person of natural sincerity, warmth and has a heart and voice like an angel. Big respect to her.
3) Best Remix:
Bruce Cullen: Solar Fields - Sombrero (Lyctum Remix) – People who know me well, know I can listen to Nine Inch Nails, and then Opera and then EDM all in one sitting, lol. I love all EDM! To those out there producing, ignore the naysayers, no matter what and keep going with your skills development! Think Big!
4) Best New Talent (Dj or producer):
Bruce Cullen: W&W, I miss the basement chats I use to have with them on Skype years back, keep your heads guys! I think they are building-in a new excitement into the EDM scene, and it’s badly needed. Big sound!
5) Best EDM Compilation:
Bruce Cullen: In Search of Sunrise, I do miss the days Tiesto was behind this badly!! I am not the only one.
6) Best artwork/cover of an album or compilation:
Bruce Cullen: I always enjoyed what Naden would do with his track names and album art. That guy also has a good ear for producing.
7) Best lyrics in an EDM track:
Bruce Cullen: Emma Hewitt - Waiting, I felt it, everyone else did to! Go Emma! Much love and respect again!
8) Best Vocalist/Singer featured on EDM track:
Bruce Cullen: Shogun ft. Emma Lock - "Save Me" (Walsh and McAuley Remix). Also dedicated to my girl Cherylee Silber, awesome lyrics as well!
9) Best EDM Label:
Bruce Cullen: Black Hole Recordings, In Trance We Trust, I really want to see these guys grow and move into much more of the EDM scene as a whole. Big thanks to Mark and Arny!
10) Best Funny video from Youtube related to Dance Music:
Bruce Cullen: The First Man In History To Dance! (Saturday Night Live) Best laugh I ever had, ever. The first glimpse of EDM dancing by a caveman lol. Ya HAVE to laugh at this!
11) Best Online Social media network:
Bruce Cullen: Facebook, I could tell them so many things they could still improve upon though.
12) Best music composition software:
Bruce Cullen: Cubase, but I also love Ableton for Radio Shows. I really enjoy just messing around with Cubase, hours can go by in minutes, and ideas can come of them that the whole world can share alongside me.
13) Best Event or Open Air Festival:
Bruce Cullen: Trance Energy, Sad This Was Cancelled. SFXE bring it back!
14) Best personal Dj Gig:
Bruce Cullen: LoveParade Germany, just amazing! Big thanks to JOOP and Frank Hulsebos. I am saddened by the lost lives at the last event, my heart goes out to them and the families involved, we ALL miss you in EDM land! BRING BACK LoveParade in Germany! There is no way if you could ask any of the lost souls from that day if they can imagine the event cancelled due to the tragedy that they would want it shut down, think about that people!
15) Best dj set of the year from other fellow dj?:
Bruce Cullen: TomorrowWorld, Sander van Doorn, always enjoy his style and running into him behind dance clubs on snowy streets in Denver and Amsterdam.
16) Best country that you have visited to perform:
Bruce Cullen: Germany, beer for breakfast, mmmmm. It’s like taking a step backwards in time there, the USA is nothing compared to Europe and the history behind it, the amount of history, you can feel it and smell it in the air over there, really love that feeling, nothing like it.
17) Best Radio show:
Bruce Cullen: Izzy Meusen Favs, Amsterdam, Runner up: Suzy Solar, USA. So glad that Izzy is also now producing tracks, him and I go far enough back, I supported his radio show as well as DJ Dazzle, Armin van Buuren and MANY other artists for a decade.
18) Best Radio station:
Bruce Cullen: DI.FM ‘Vocal Chillout’ Plug and play, take your closest partner and watch the night melt away, that’s life! Awesome tracks on DI.FM, have considered approaching them for getting more involved, been a user/listener for years. Decided to launch my http://TranceElements.Com around when they first started. We’re are currently re-launching TranceElements, a site I founded.
19) Best Online Record shop that you usually purchase your music:
Bruce Cullen: AudioJelly.Com, less cost more music, that’s the way to do it in my opinion. Can’t beat $0.99 per track, support your artists!
20) Best Website that you visit daily:
Bruce Cullen: Trackitdown.Com I also try to update http://BruceCullen.Com as often as I can. Bookmark that one as well! ;)
21) Best smart phone/mobile phone device:
Bruce Cullen: http://Trance.FM Mobile App, clean and great track selections on that radio station. Big greetings to Andre Behr, the founder!
22) Best Dj equipment (software or hardware):
Bruce Cullen: Pioneer 2000: Earth meet the machine we all dance to around the globe, DJ’s love and they finally are getting it technologically advanced. ;)
23) Best new sound or sample that has been used in EDM this year preferably introduced by you?
Bruce Cullen: Trance Meets Electro-House, Bruce Cullen – 4 Sheets To The Wind [Fraction Records]. It was best described by Bjorn Akesson (https://soundcloud.com/bjorn-akesson/threshold-096) “Rather confusing but massive mixture none the less between trance and electro house”, there is no way I will follow other producers in my attempts to put amazing and different sounds to the globe, the more you are confused the more you will be a part of my world of thinking, lol.
24) Best twitter or facebook message you received from a fan or friend or you have read from someone else’s account:
Bruce Cullen: Eric Prydz – Call On Me “This porn has good music”. Funny!
25) Best piece of News you learnt this year related to Electronic Dance Music:
Bruce Cullen: TomorrowWorld Comes to The United States.
26) Best personal achievement related to Electronic Dance Music:
Bruce Cullen: Making it to the top 15 on one of my first tracks released. It made all my years of running around dark alleys and dance-clubs more sensible; it meets my expectations… many call me ‘mindless’ – um yes, I am!
27) Best holiday destination or Best hobby or activity that you spent a lot of time in 2012
Bruce Cullen: My favorite place on earth is Princess Bay in the United States Virgin Islands, thus my track name “Princess Bay’ signed to Black Hole Recordings, In Trance We Trust. I spend much time there and am working on a plan to donate funds to saving the Sea Turtles on the beaches there. Awesome creatures!
28) Best piece of advice you got in relation to your career:
Bruce Cullen: ‘Do what you enjoy and the money will follow you on its own’, from a bond trader when I worked at AG Edwards Investments when I was younger. It’s true, live by it people, don’t listen to others, I have found that the things most people laughed about as I grew up became massively successful, massively! And.. “There is no such thing as luck, it's preparedness meeting opportunity’ BE PREPARED PEOPLE, much more to come!
29) Do you read books? The Best Book of the year preferably related to EDM:
Bruce Cullen: No time for books, I live by the feeling of a very good track release and where it takes me, and respect the producers around the world for getting me there. I did read once ‘2001’ and love the movie, also the movie Contact with Jodie Foster & Matthew McConaughey. I really think it’s possible that all the gods people speak of came here a long time ago from distant places (I think they just did not know how to explain it on paper or in scrolls), but again I am also very religious and have a very very open mind. I was brought up Roman Catholic. I am ½ Irish, ½ Italian.
30)Best tip that you learnt this year for your djing or music composition:
Bruce Cullen: To have a theme and a story that finds itself inside itself, weather a trance track or big room EDM track, when creating it, feel where IT wants to go, not where you want it to go. I do also think this ideal is based on much experience being around music growing up. My sister was a classical pianist; my parents took me to too many Broadway plays lol.
Dimiri: 2014 is ahead of us would you like to tell your plans with your future releases, tracks, albums, collaborations, dj gigs.
Bruce Cullen: I have so many requests for collaborations, one day at a time lol. My plan is to continue working on the two tracks I am arranging now, they both are big room. I want to create two sounds going forward, deep & dark and Big and in your face. I love so many styles but that’s my plan. I am also slowly working on a Black Hole Recordings Bruce Cullen handpicked Compilation CD, one day I shall finish this. I’m also looking to produce music for the motion picture industry, if anyone with a solid background is interested in getting involved let me and my team know. Much much more to come people, a big thank you to the massive support from Flux Bpm Online! I wish everyone a safe and pleasant future with massive music!
Dimitri: Thanks very much for your collaboration to reply in this interview
Additional info:
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for your comments