Armin van Buuren has been named number one in the prestigious DJ Top 100 poll four times in a row, in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010– voted for by over 350,000 people across the world, as an indication of his prolific output over the more than 13 years he’s been dj’ing and producing. Being the official World’s Most Popular DJ is just one of his many achievements, but the driving force behind his success is an overriding passion for dance music.



Awards & Accolades

Even a basic list of recent successes reads like a lifetime of work: he was awarded with the prestigious Buma Cultuur Pop Award in 2008. This was followed by being voted as the Best Trance Artist in the Beatport Music Awards judged on the musician’s artistic achievements, national and international success. Next to that, Armin was awarded for Best European DJ at the 2009 IDMA Awards and most popular International DJ at Australia’s Sony inthemix DJ Poll, along with 3 other big Awards that year. It is evident that Armin van Buuren has become one of the decade’s most influential trance acts.

But there’s more. ‘Best Album’ for artist album ‘Shivers’ at both the Dutch Release Dance Awards and the prestigious Edison Awards; ‘Best Compilation’ for ‘A State Of Trance’, in 2006, claiming the ‘Best European DJ’ award in 2007 and ‘Best Mix Radio Show’ at the Miami Winter Music Conference 5 years in a row for radio show ‘A State Of Trance’ – now broadcasting on a massive 40 FM stations as well as satellite and internet radio, with over 28 million listeners a week; a 6 year residency in Ibiza at Amnesia and over 50,000 downloads every week from podcasting high end chart-bothering positions all over the world for singles, albums and compilations, with single ‘Rush Hour’ used as the anthem to the UEFA European Youth Championship; the #1 entry in the Dutch album charts with his artist album ‘Imagine’, the #1 entry of the DVD registration of ‘Armin Only ‘ Imagine’ – the landmarks just keep coming!



A State of Trance

But aside from recognition and ever-going fan support, it’s the music that means most to Armin.
The perfect example of that given fact, is his weekly 2-hour radioshow ‘A State of Trance’. Listened to by 28 million EDM lovers, he continues to deliver his fans a selection of the best in trance and progressive, no matter how busy his tour schedule might be. The 400th and therefore 8th birthday of the show was lcelebrated in style with a cross-country 72-hour live broadcast,
with three events in Germany, UK and the Netherlands.

In addition to the weekly show, Armin also started the weekly ASOT podcasts, which contain highlights and Armin’s favourite tracks from the previous episode, to ensure that trance lovers across the world will never miss another episode.

Armin’s annual A State of Trance compilations have won several awards and continue to lead the trance fans in the right trancy direction with a fresh and exclusive selection of tracks. As if one compilation isn’t enough yet, Armin has been live recording some of his sets at the Armada parties in Amnesia, Ibiza and released them under the ‘Universal Religion’ series. The summer of 2009 saw the 4th edition of this beloved series, a one hour live recording of a more than special night.



How it all began

Born in Leiden, Holland (on December 25, 1976) to a musical family, Armin indulged his passion for music from a young age. He spent all the money he earned with his paper round on records.

His mum won a computer when he was 10, gaining Armin’s interest. “So as a little nerdy kid I was writing my own basic programs, and learnt about the technology from there.” He progressed from making low-profile mix tapes for friends to higher profile mixes when he discovered experimenting with different sequences on his computer through his uncle. “I was so stunned by what I saw him doing on the computer, that I got addicted to creating music right there and then!”
“I loved dance music immediately – this great rebellious sound that was so different to the ‘beautiful’ songs of the years before”.
Armin cites electronic pioneer Jean Michel Jarre as a major influence, as well as Dutch producer Ben Liebrand, who later mentored him in his mixing and producing.
In the early days, Armin thought it was wise to have something extra in case the dj’ing didn’t work out. So he studied for a law degree. The final year of his course was inevitably stretched as he juggled his studies with his increasingly hectic schedule; his rise to fame included lots of productions and remixes, as well as playing out to packed clubs every weekend. It took him three
years to graduate, but his determination made him succeed!

Armin is a dedicated trance lover, but isn’t imprisoned by a single genre, saying “What makes trance work so well is that it doesn’t stick to one style, and can incorporate electro, minimal, whatever it likes.”

The main ingredient to Armin’s life will always be music. “This is just what I really want,” says Armin. “It’s not just love for music, it’s my passion. It goes beyond liking, and beyond a hobby, it’s about a way of living. Music is essential to my life”.