RB Exclusive Interview: Fedde Le Grand Gives Us ‘Something Real’ with His First Album Since 2009

Fedde Le Grand has been a staple in house music for the last several years with releases like “Sparks” alongside Nicky Romero, his Darklight Sessions Podcast, and last years unique production of his GRAND live stage show. Although there have been many singles released over the last few years, Fedde Le Grand’s last full album release was in 2009, over 6 years ago!

Well Fedde Le Grand is back and better than ever. Later this month, the house sensation will be relaeasing his highly anticipated album, Something Real. The latest album is set to show off a new side to Le Grand with a mission to “shift the focus from the hype and pigeonholing that comes with releasing new music nowadays.” The album’s first single, “Keep on Believing” was revealed in early 2016 to extremely positive acclaim, adding vocals to Le Grand’s previous release “Don’t Give Up”.

I had the chance to talk with Fedde Le Grand about the upcoming album, it’s variety of styles, and how he feels that he has truly created Something Real.

This is your first album since 2009. How does it feel to get back into the saddle, making a full cohesive piece of work where each track depends on the other?

It feels great! This album has been in the works for a while now and I’ve taken huge care in selecting the tracks that make it on. It’s always difficult to arrange an album because you want it to flow but it also needs to have mood changes. I think I’ve just about managed to do that because there’s a real variety of styles on there.  

Is there a particular message that you are trying to present with Something Real? Where did you find inspiration for the title?

At the core, my idea for the album was to shift the focus from the hype and pigeonholing that comes with releasing new music nowadays. While working on ‘Something Real’ I tried to maintain an open mind, and let creativity flow every which way. Honestly, I believe this process resulted in some great tracks, and influenced the title. I think I’ve made something ‘real’.  

One of the first singles you have released from the upcoming album is “Keep On Believing”, which is actually a vocal edit of one of your previously released tracks. Why did you decide to release this track first?

I really wanted to introduce the fans to the album with a newly stylized version of one of my previous tracks – interestingly I actually went through quite a few vocalists for “Keep On Believing”. I really wanted to make it perfect, and I think that track embodies my new concept for ‘Something Real’. There are a few tracks that have a bit of my classic sound, but also have a really new vibe to them.

Fedde Le Grand – Keep On Believing (Official Video)

That music video is simply mesmerizing, might I add. How did you come up with the concept and how do you think it plays into the message of the song?

I actually caught Patrick Jean through some of his amazing work like Pixels and was able to get in touch and got him to do the Keep On Believing video. Upon hearing the track this was the first idea he pitched and I immediately loved it.

Will we be seeing any more songs off of the album before it’s release?

Well I just released one called “Give Me Some” with the talented duo Merk & Kremont, it’s a bit of a funky dance track which I love, and yes this will be the last (original) release before the full album is out, I think 😉

Which track on the album are you most excited about and why?

I really can’t say! I’m the most excited to see how people react to the album as a whole. I spent so much time with so many different artists to make the album, so I can’t just choose one. I have to say that one of the more difficult ones for me was Immortal, I was in love with the vocal but felt I just couldn’t get the track to really work as a whole, that’s when I finally was able to really let loose and just work the record the way I felt it had to be…turning out to be very different from my usual style and a track I’m not even able to play out on the floor, but the process worked so freeing for me that it opened up a whole new box of creativity that I can’t wait to explore further.

Is there anything about the song selection on Something Real that sort of strays from what we usually hear from Fedde Le Grand, and if so what is it that makes these songs unique to previously released material?

I wouldn’t say I strayed from my style, but rather expanded my creativity. I didn’t want to limit my production by being pigeonholed into a very specific genre. All songs feel like true songs to me, for the ones on which I started out with the vocal I really tried to focus on what the song meant to me and what kind of track I felt the song needed.

Will Something Real play into your GRAND show in Amsterdam, a sort of revitalization or new rendition of the performance?

Of course! I’d call it more of a revitalization, but we’re still working out the specifics of this year’s GRAND. It will be amazing though, I can tell you that.

Fedde Le Grand and RTL Live Entertainment present GRAND: The Official 4k Aftermovie

Aside from Something Real and GRAND, what can we look forward to from Fedde Le Grand in 2016?

Both the album release and GRAND will absorb a lot of the beginning of this year, however other than that, I’ll be touring a bit with two shows at Ultra South Africa (which I’m super pumped for!). Keep an eye out for post-album release dates too!

Finally, Can you give some words of advice to aspiring producers and DJs out there, and perhaps share an experience of your own when you were first starting out?

When I was first starting out, I DJ’d as many clubs in my hometown as I could, and honed in on a sound I could call my own. I perfected it, and then got my tracks into as many peoples hands as possible. You have to be prepared to fail, and not be afraid to show your art to others and take serious criticism.

Something Real is set to release on February 26th!

Connect with Fedde Le Grand: RB | Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud