[music]

>> Executive editor Brian Sassie spoke to

DJ and record producer Tiesto ahead of

his performance at Yahoo's party at

Cannes Lions.

>> It's good to meet you in person. Like I

told you off camera, I I'm a fan. I

listen to you every day in my car. So,

it's good to know it's good to know you

actually exist. So, it's good it's good

[laughter] to see you.

Um

look, you're about to play go on in

front of

hundreds if not thousands of people here

at the Yahoo Beach House.

>> Yeah.

>> Uh close our party for us. What goes

through your head as you get ready to do

this?

>> Well, you know, I've been DJing for a

long time. So, I always adjust to uh

where I am. And I feel tonight there's

people from all over the world here.

We're in France. So, uh the set

is going to be all over the place. Like

I'm just got try to figure it out on the

spot. So, I don't really have a a plan

like here we go.

>> You know, you nail the energy. Uh I

think it reflects the Yahoo energy. We

are very fun. We're very welcoming. How

do you know if an event is going to be

fun? Like how do you how can you tell if

the energy is good?

>> Well, you know, I always hang around

before the event for like a couple of

hours. I meet the people who organize

it. I talk to them what what kind of

crowd do we expect tonight.

And they told me it's going to be very

fun crowd. So, lots of people are really

going to party hard tonight.

>> Yes.

>> So, that makes my job easy.

>> I'm not going to party hard.

>> Makes my job easy.

>> What at this point in your career

how do you plan for an event?

>> The what?

>> How do you plan for an event? Like what

goes into that last-minute preparation?

>> Um you know, I I have like a an arsenal

of uh different records with me. So, I

can really feel the vibe of the crowd. I

think we start off with some more known

records.

And then see how it goes. And then I can

go a little deeper or a little faster or

slower.

It's really um it's hard to prepare

because

you never know what kind of crowd you're

going to get. So, it's it's it's hard to

prepare.

>> I see so many of your like I mentioned,

I've been listening to you for for so

long. But I now see so many of your

clips appear on Instagram and TikTok.

And the crowd is hanging on every note

that you are putting out there every

sound. How do you get the crowd that

engaged?

>> Um, I I don't know. I think I I think

they just they just like what I play so

I just

I I always play from the heart. I love

what I do. I love what I play and uh

it it seems to connect and the

connection is there and then I get more

pumped and the crowd gets more pumped.

>> It's like you just a beat you bring them

in you bring them in.

>> Yeah, the interaction with the crowd and

>> [music]

>> the songs you know it's it's a delivery

of the songs. I think uh

the power of a good DJ is when know what

to play when to play it and I think

that's uh what I've learned over the

years.

>> We've seen so many different variations

of your music. I remember when you

listen to you in the late 90s and now

mid-2000s you've always evolved. Like

what is the state of your music today

and what are you trying to focus on?

>> I think today is actually really

interesting for me because I feel like

I'm back to the roots of how I used to

play. So it's a lot more

yeah, rave trance inspired music.

>> Yes.

>> There's a lot of trance out there but uh

it's also new trance. It's not just like

the old records bring them back.

It's also new new tracks inspired by the

the feelings and the emotions we had

back in the days. And that's what makes

it really special for me.

>> Is trance going back into the clubs? Are

they Is it back yet? Back Is it cool

again?

>> Um,

it's very cool and and it's not just in

the clubs. It's on big festivals. Like

in England and in the Netherlands where

I'm from

you see a a lot of young upcoming trance

DJs now who have their own little spin

on it. And um yeah, the the dance scene

is is bigger than ever so it's

>> We've seen we've seen such a boom in

festivals around the world. Like how is

First of all is that sustainable and how

is that changed what you do as a

business person and even a musician?

>> Yeah, yeah you know I always try to

evolve myself because I get bored myself

of what I do. And then so I have to

evolve, get new music, and do new

things, and

I think it's very important because that

that is also for the people who come to

your shows.

They um

they they never know what to get. They

never It's always a surprise. It's

almost like the Grateful Dead or like or

um

>> You're a legend. You're a legend now.

>> Yeah, the super legend. And what I what

the crowd likes about those shows is

that they never know what songs they're

going to play.

And that's kind of the same with me. You

know, I I can be all over the place. It

could be EDM, could be trance, could be

house, could be fast, slow. So, you just

never know. And that's that's kind of

the nice surprise, I think.

>> Yeah. I recently uh talked to Wyclef,

and he blew me away with this stat. He

said, "Brian, I'm about to drop seven

new albums, and AI is helping me." I

couldn't believe it. How are you using

this technology because I that stat

almost seemed unrealistic to me.

>> Yeah,

I mean, it's hard to consume, I think.

Uh seven albums.

>> Yeah.

>> But I mean, good for him.

>> Yeah, I He's going to be doing a country

album, too.

>> Okay, wow. It's um Yeah, I feel like for

me that would be more like a dinner.

Like they have so many courses. That's

How are you going to eat it all?

>> Yeah, right.

>> So, I prefer to uh

yeah, do a little less, but

>> Are you Are you still Are you using this

new technology in your music creation or

you're still old school? You're doing it

the way you've always done it.

>> Yeah, I'm I'm like mostly old school,

but there are things I can use from AI.

Like, for example, I want to know how

Rihanna sounds on this song. And I can I

can do that just to get the feeling of

it. But I don't use AI literally put it

on the song and put it out there. But I

use AI for seeing how things can sound,

come up with lyric ideas, and go back

and forth, but I don't really use it in

the final product.

>> Is the long show coming back? Like those

good old-fashioned 6-hour shows?

>> I think so. I think also the the the

tracks are getting longer as well.

People are getting the attention span

back

of of listening to longer songs. Like a

year ago

everything over a minute and a half

would be skipped on.

>> Nobody has attention span anymore, so.

>> No. TikTok 15 seconds.

So, I feel like that's definitely going

back. But, it has to be good.

And people

I feel like they're very into live

entertainment again.

So, even if they don't listen to the

track as much online

people love going to festivals and

parties and shows.

The experience of a of a of a dance

music party

is bigger than ever.

>> Do you have a most memorable show that

you played? One that will forever stay

in your head?

>> Uh

>> Besides this one you're going to do

today.

>> Yeah, but besides this one um I so many,

you know, I've done I've done so many

different shows in my life, so much

variety.

From like

a beach party in Rio de Janeiro

for 200,000 people

and uh to the Olympic Games back in the

days.

>> Yeah, the Olympics that was huge. Yeah.

>> I mean, I played a lot of really amazing

places. Also, like a small yacht party

in in in in Saint-Tropez.

So, it's you know, for me it's always

like

the vibe and the people and the

environment that makes it special. And I

could be anywhere.

>> When you're in front of 200,000 people,

what is that like?

That's wild.

>> It's wild. Yeah, it's and especially

there because

when I grew up in the Netherlands, I

never thought I would play a big giant

show in Brazil. So, yeah, it was very

special.

>> Um lastly, cuz you're getting ready to

go on for us. I mean, the crowd is it's

wow. I mean, it's packed. So many early

access folks. Um

what do you think your legacy will be in

music?

>> Um I I think what I what I hope for and

what I've seen so far is that I inspire

a lot of young talented DJs over the

years.

I don't from from Avicii to Martin

Garrix

uh to to many other DJs now even now

still a lot of young upcoming talent, or

when I meet them,

they always say like, you know, Tiesto,

you were one of my

all my inspiration. And I think that's

the best compliment I I ever had, that

you see other successful DJs that became

big and successful because they were uh

aware of my music, and that's really

special.

>> It's good to give back. I can't wait to

hear you uh at our beach house. I thank

you for doing this. I know you got ready

to get ready to go on, so I appreciate

it. Really, congrats.