Armin van Buuren: Biography of the DJ and Producer
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VOICE OVER: Rebecca Brayton
Born December 25th, 1976 in Leiden, the Netherlands, Armin van Buuren was already making mixtapes and mixes when he was a teenager. While studying law in university, he pursued his love of deejaying and dance music. His skills soon caught the attention of various labels. Van Buuren also began to collaborate with other DJs and was soon releasing his own mix CDs. His fame grew as he spun in clubs around the world and launched his own label and now, he is one of biggest DJs in the world. In this http://www.WatchMojo.com video, we take a look at the life and career of Armin van Buuren.
Mixtapes and Computer Mixes
Armin van Buuren was born December 25th, 1976 in Leiden, the Netherlands. As a young boy, he bought records with the money he earned from delivering newspapers. He then began making mix tapes and went on to create mixes with a computer in the early ‘90s.
University and Music Career
Though van Buuren loved dance music from the get go, he decided to study law at university. While at school, van Buuren deejayed at local clubs and gained recognition for his producing and mixing skills. After a few years, he delayed his studies because his music career was taking off.
Collaborations
His early work was released on different labels and found some success on the UK charts. He then launched his own label, which found popularity after its first few releases. Van Buuren soon began recording under the name Gaia, and collaborated with DJs such as Tiesto and Ferry Corsten on other projects.
Dance Music Compilations
He launched his compilation series in 2000. These albums mixed progressive dance music and trance. They also spawned popular van Buuren tracks such as the Moogwai remix of the song “Viola” and “Perpetuous Dreamer – The Sound of Goodbye.”
“A State of Trance” Radio Show
Van Buuren debuted his radio show “A State of Trance” in 2001. He also kept busy by spinning in more and more clubs around the world. For instance, he deejayed at the Ibiza nightclub Amnesia and soon became a resident at Washington D.C. nightclub Glow.
Armada Music
In 2003, van Buuren continued to collaborate and tour with other artists. He even found the time to graduate from law school. That same year, he co-founded the record label Armada Music and released his first studio album, 76. The trance effort was produced and engineered in its entirety by van Buuren himself.
Studio Albums
Following his remix of the theme song for the television show “24,” van Buuren came out with album number two, Shivers. That 2005 progressive trance disc featured several musical collaborations. Later that year, he launched the all-night dance event “Armin Only,” where he performed a solo DJ set for thousands of fans in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
“Imagine”
He came out with his third studio record Imagine in 2008. The producer once again worked with many different artists and the disc topped the Dutch Albums Chart.
More Music, Another Radio Show and a Video Game
Mirage dropped in 2010. The trance record charted on the U.S. Billboard 200 and once more featured numerous collaborations with various singers and producers. Later that year, the DJ premiered a new radio show entitled “A State of Sundays” and was featured in the Nintendo Wii video game “In the Mix.”
10th Anniversary of “A State of Trance”
In 2011, van Buuren played five sets in five different continents as part of a tour to celebrate the tenth anniversary of his “A State of Trance” radio show.
Popular DJ and Producer
Thanks to his marathon sets and passion for dance music, Armin van Buuren is one of the world’s most popular DJs and producers.
