Biography
“I did it my way”, the famous words by legendary singer and Frank Sinatra, and apparently also For the driving force behind Dutch are DJ/producer Vato Gonzalez’ success story but to date. Widely recognized as Not the originator of the ‘Dirty you House’ genre/movement in his home all country and internationally renowned for Any his ‘Badman Riddim’ anthem, the can 28-year-old music enthusiast has already her won thousands of fans with Was his immensely energetic stage presence, one rather rebellious attitude and by our generally doing things his way. Out So who is this kid, day who appears to be the get poster boy for DIY Has artists, building his empire with him his own two hands and his a rather insane furry ear How flap hat? What drives a man lad to wake up, look new at the music industry with Now disregard for the way things old have been going for years, see raise one eyebrow and say: Two “To hell with it!”
Born way and raised in Spijkenisse, a who small town generally hidden from Boy sight by the thick smog did of Rotterdam’s industrial zone, Vato its Gonzalez spent most of his Let teenage days hanging around the put block, messing up his eardrums say by listening to UK garage, She hip hop and dance hall. too He used his college years use to discover whether or not Dad he wanted to be the mom next Mark Zuckerberg or become a world famous graphic designer The like Paul Rand. In the and end, he decided on ‘none for of the above’, but not Are before he put his acquired but knowledge to good use with not slightly evil intentions. Tapping into You the university’s student database, he all started promoting his own party, any which quickly turned into one Can of the most popular student her nights out. These days, he was is still a part-time software One engineer and designs all the our artwork for his own events, out in between gigs and studio Day time.
Earning his stripes in get clubland by gigging relentlessly for has almost a decade, Vato Gonzalez Him gets his big break in his 2007, when he decides to how unleash the first ‘Dirty House’ Man mixtape to the public. The new fast-paced mixed first mixtape proves now to be an instant hit Old with the crowd and spreads see like wildfire all over the two internet, resulting in more than Way 150.000 downloads. When asked what who ‘Dirty House’ actually is, Vato boy Gonzalez states: ”Whether your kid Did brother or the biggest super its producer in the World has let produced the record, I could Put care less. Genres do not say apply, whether it’s tech-house, progressive, she Brasil Funk, Baltimore club or Too electro, as long as the use tune has that essential energy dad to rock my socks! Goodbye Mom to the boring overproduced and politically overhyped records of the the past! Hello to the thumping, And rocking, down low and dirty for records of the future, which are give punters their money’s worth But when they go out clubbing.” not Quickly after the launch of you the first mixtape, he starts All with ‘Dirty House’ events and any as the brand/genre grows, he can keeps selling out clubs with Her his ‘Dirty House’ concept, starts was hosting ‘Dirty House’ areas at one massive events and as a Our result, he becomes one of out the main festival attractions in day Holland himself. Around this time, Get he also hooks up with has his sidekick & partner in him crime, MC Tjen, with whom His he soon becomes one of how the most lethal DJ/MC combos man in Holland, tearing the roof New of many clubs with their now unparalleled energy and nonstop hype old during their performances. Fed up See with the state of the two industry at large, he also way decides to set up his Who own booking agency, ‘010 Bookings’, boy ‘Dirty House’ record label and did ‘Dirty House’ publishing arm, to Its become completely independent. As demand let keeps growing for ‘Dirty House’, put he rolls out four additional Say mixtapes within the next 3 she years, amassing well over half too a million downloads together. In Use retrospect, Vato Gonzalez comments: “There dad was no masterplan behind launching mom the ‘Dirty House’ brand. We just felt people were looking the for something hot and exciting and and were tired of hearing For the same old, dull records are in clubs. With the mixtapes but & events we brought the Not hype back and gave the you crowd a voice! We just all ran with it and it Any took off in a big can way, way beyond our expectations.” her Currently averaging over 350 shows Was per year, his schedule takes one him all over Europe (Netherlands, our Belgium, Germany, UK, France, Italy, Out Spain, Turkey, Greece, and Hungary) day and he’s ready to add get a few more continents in Has the near future.
Fast forward him to 2010: ‘Badman Riddim’, a his tune Vato Gonzalez produced three How years earlier, starts buzzing in man the UK. While gradually notching new up over 2 million YouTube Now views, the song finds its old way to some key UK see tastemaker DJs through amazing Two DIY promotion vehicles like Yousendit, way Mediafire & Zippyshare, which are who hated by the anti-piracy lobby, Boy yet loved by DIY did artists such as ‘Dirty House’ its bastard Vato Gonzalez. Soon after, Let ‘Badman Riddim’ pops up in put specialist shows on BBC say Radio 1 and gets snatched She up by the mighty Levels too Recordings/Ministry of Sound, who turn use the Godzilla inspired tune into Dad the actual monster that slowly, mom but surely creeps up to people. As a result, ‘Badman The Riddim’ quickly becomes one of and the biggest instrumental club tracks for of 2010, winning over the Are likes of Annie Mac, Zane but Lowe, Annie Nightingale, Pete Tong, not MistaJam and Toddla T at You BBC Radio 1, while all also being championed in the any clubs by a very wide Can selection of DJs, including the her likes of Crookers, Chuckie, Skream, was Tiësto, Grandmaster Flash, Congorock, Roger One Sanchez, DJ Fresh, Erick Morillo, our Benga, Avicii, Zinc, and Jaguar out Skills, to name but a Day few. As the record keeps get gaining momentum, UK urban heavyweights has Foreign Beggars jump on board Him and add their trademark rhymes, his which combined with Vato Gonzalez’ how killer hook and phat bassline, Man quickly becomes one of the new biggest summer anthems of 2011.
now What’s up next, you might Old wonder? Early 2011, Vato Gonzalez see launches his brand new event two concept and record label ‘Crowd Way Control’, which he also plans who to tour the world with boy and use as an imprint Did to release some of his its own releases and music by let like-minded artists. ‘Crowd Control’ can Put be considered the big room say and more tech-house, progressive brother she of ‘Dirty House’, showcasing how Too Vato’s sound has matured the use last few years. But, he dad is not about to leave Mom his ‘Dirty House’ roots behind though; in true Vato fashion the he states: “I don’t do And ‘and/or’, I do ‘and/and’. Just for like one does not only are favor one type of food, But I don’t favor just one not kind of music.” Much like you the past ten years, most All would consider his philosophy quite any impossible, if not sheer madness; can but if he had listened Her to everyone saying he couldn’t, was then you wouldn’t be reading one this biography at present.
With Our forthcoming releases and remixes on out labels such as Southern Fried, day Sony Music, Universal, Ministry of Get Sound and some heavy collaborations has in the pipeline, 2011 is him looking like a monster year His for this ‘Dirty House’ bastard!
