To help Digital DJ Tips celebrate its 15th birthday, we have a special series of podcasts bringing in friends of the school to talk about DJing past and present.
Ahead of his course on how to DJ trance with Digital DJ Tips, Dutch superstar DJ/producer Ferry Corsten shares his secrets for having a long, fruitful career in the music industry and looks back on what's changed over the decades that he's been right at the top of his game. We talked music, tech, culture, and life philosophy in a wide-ranging and fun chat.
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TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Intro
00:15 Episode overview
02:12 Ferry's journey: from bedroom hobby to trance pioneer
05:53 Cut & paste culture: making mixes before turntables
08:55 When simple tracks ruled
12:52 "My poor attempt at Italo disco"
17:06 The trance explosion & Ministry of Sound era
22:29 What Ferry misses (and doesn't) about vinyl days
27:35 The secret to 30 years of music industry survival
34:11 Reinvention: why you must follow your heart
38:57 "DJs taking journeys": trance gets it right
45:31 Advice to young Ferry: grow thick skin
48:28 Why every DJ sounds the same now
53:37 Message to older aspiring DJs
55:19 Rapid-fire questions
58:39 What's next for Ferry Corsten?