Five Things with Oliver $

1. Growing Up

I got into music at a pretty early age, I was 12 or 13 when I first spun the records at the school disco… it got more serious when my older cousin, Jan Driver, showed me the ins and outs of how to DJ or be a producer and the rest is history.

2. Inspirations

When I was really young we were all into trance music and Love Parade in Germany, but those were just the first mini steps. The real passion for music began with the first time I heard the beats of Chicago house: people like Larry Heard or Cajmere/Green Velvet with whom I now have the honour to work, which is the greatest honour ever – to work with someone who you look up to so much. I am also influenced by a lot of disco, funk and soul; I love stuff like Marvin Gaye or Roy Ayers to name a few.

3. Your Crew

Like I said, the first person who got me into the music was my cousin, Jan Driver… these days I work with various people to get as much creative input as possible – it’s great to bounce off the ideas and get feedback from other musicians/producers. I still like to collaborate with my mate Jesse but I’ve been focusing on working with more upcoming artists like my mates, Jimi Jules, Sqim, Matthew K or Vonda7. Other than that there are collaborations with some pretty big names in the pipeline but I cannot talk about it just yet. The next think I look forward to the most is the next Dancemania remix I was requested to do.

4. The Music You Make

My sets are mostly house and I like to play a musical journey for people. So don’t expect Top Ten charts on heavy rotation, expect a bit of music history, some new cool shit too but maybe not always that obvious and of course always a good groove.

5. Music, Right Here, Right Now

Berlin is still the European capital for electronic music to me. Some say it’s very competitive because everyone is a DJ here but the scene is also bigger than anywhere else so things even out. The best thing is that you meet so many people involved in the music here; the creative vibe is very strong. I played some of the best parties in my life here. And it’s very affordable to live here – Berlin is still “poor but sexy”.