Page 38 - We Rave You Magazine | December 2022

EDITORIAL > ADE SPECIAL: SOLOMUN X LOVELAND - THE TRADITIONAL ADE EXTENDED SET

Could you give us a little insight on the main inspirations/influences that led to your chosen
career pathway in music?
I started as a Hip-Hop DJ under the name DJ L in 2003 so, my influences at that time were some of
the biggest Hip-Hop DJ’s such as my good friend DJ Suss One from New York. I first wanted to be
a Hip-Hop producer actually, but after studying some of my favorite Hip-Hop producers such as
Swizz Beatz, Timbaland, Dr. Dre & DJ Premier, I realized they were all DJ’s before being producers.
So the reasons I became a DJ were because I wanted to follow their path and learn as many
aspects of Hip-Hop records as I could as a DJ before actually starting to produce Hip-Hop beats,
and because I loved 90’s Hip-Hop and R&B so much. Eventually, many years after, I went into Open
Format as I started to enjoy more and more playing different styles of music during my sets. During
that time, my favorite part of the night was when I was able to play House Music and the beginning
of EDM. I fell in love with Swedish House Mafia, Bob Sinclar, Daft Punk and David Guetta. I started
to travel to Ibiza during the summer around 2012 and really studied the House Music culture and
world, and instantly fell in love with it. I loved to see people go crazy when they heard their favorite
artists/DJ’s and I was mesmerized when I saw these incredible nightclubs with sound and light
systems that were out of this world. What inspired me the most was that these DJ’s were also artists
and played their own music. That’s when I knew that I wanted to become a House Music artist. I
love what the music stands for so much. Unity, love, compassion, and a ton of energy.

Constantly on the rise, we would like to know the significance of diversifying your style of play,
as well as the genres that have helped shape your signature sound over the years?
My sound is very simple. I don’t really have a sound per se. I am someone who is very very
educated musically. In my 19 year-long career, I have played close to 6000 parties and I can
play Hip-Hop, Latin Music (Reggaeton), Dancehall, EDM, Tech House, Afro House, Melodic Techno,
Techno, and even Ol’ School Music almost equally well. My mother is a professional classical
pianist, so I get inspired in so many ways that I can’t even keep up. However, I make sure to
always have some similarity in all my records. They all either need to be as cinematic as possible
since I am an actor and my biggest passion in the world is acting and movies and storytelling,
or they need to make you want to dance and throw your hands in the air and go crazy, or they
need to be emotional and touch your soul in the deepest way possible with sounds, melodies,
and vocals that are very creative and unique. I try as much as possible to use real instruments in
my records where I can, and I try my best to have original vocals and no samples. I will say that
currently, my favorite genre to produce is Afro House. But that changes almost every day.

Sharing the stage with some of the biggest names within the dance scene, could you give us
an insight on the experience gained when looking to adapt your style of play, as well as any
advice that you have been offered and has helped enhance your career and outlook on music
as time has progressed?
Sharing the stage with big names is always an honor but can be also challenging. At least in a
nightclub, (at a festival, it’s very different) because you understand that you are the support. Your
job is to get the room to a nice level of energy without crossing a certain threshold, as the main
act of the night is the artist that should take the energy to the highest level possible. And I play
with so much energy and passion that it’s very challenging for me to contain myself but I think I’ve
done a pretty good job so far, because I’ve never had any big names complain about my sets,
and they always give me a ton of compliments before they get on to play themselves. Kryder, one
of my favorite producers, and once upon a time my mentor, told me to always remember to enjoy
the journey. One of my biggest dreams is to play on the mainstage and the fact that I’m not there
yet disappoints me at times but I always remember what he told me which is to enjoy the journey.
Other big names have told me to stay true to myself and be different. I’ve been told often that it’s
not a good idea for me to produce Afro House and Tech House and Progressive House and release
all tracks in all genres under the same name, but I decided that will be who I am. Someone who is
very versatile and creative and educated musically. After all I will always consider myself a DJ and
performer first and then a producer. And as a DJ, I love many styles of music. I mean, my biggest
dance music heroes are Swedish House Mafia and my favorite artist of all time is Michael Jackson.

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