Recently, I had the opportunity to talk to one of house music’s most influential artists. He goes by the name of Chuckie. Don’t let the name frighten you, he’s got some great stuff to talk about in this interview, including the history of Moombahton, new music he’s making and what might come out of electronic dance music in the future.
RMR: Let’s talk about your new track with the Colombian music icon, J Balvin. How did that conversation start with him and how was the process from start to finish?
Chuckie: So, first of all, I was writing this record with a musician from Aruba, named Jeon. We had the hook, and the song basically ready, and the language spoke was his native language. So we had that record, we had that demo. Both of us thought that it was great, but it’d just be for that island, because it was in that native language.
He then went to New York for some project, and ran into J Balvin, and played some music for him, and was looking for something new, something fresh. He thought the whole track was great.
Later on, I didn’t realize, while talking to his manager, that I’ve known him for ages. It was really meant to be. I was really happy that I could really help kickstart Jeon’s career, and at the same time I have a very unique record in the Latin scene, and also that I could get in touch with a really old friend again. The situation was a win for everybody.
RMR: Wow, that’s really cool!
Chuckie: Yeah! My whole idea was that I really wanted to help out this Aruban kid. He’s such a talented musician and a great songwriter, so I’m glad that his first song was an international success, “Machika’, and has gone on to produce tracks with other artists, including J Balvin. Jeon has almost a billion views on Youtube now or some number like that.
RMR: It’s really cool how all of that comes full circle with you guys together.
Chuckie: It really was meant to be!
RMR: What is/was the single most significant point in your career that felt really important to you?
Chuckie: Well there’s a bunch of them, but I’d have to say that the most significant point was when I made “Let The Bass Kick”. In the beginning, it wasn’t even my intention to create a record that’d go global. I was just focused on my sound, and stuff I was doing. The moment I released that record, was a very important moment for me. That song was also a significant point in the history of Dance music. It gave people a chance for dance music to actually be heard, because of how big it became. That track gave dance music a fresh breeze too. There was nothing out like that record.
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RMR: While growing up what did you listen to?
Chuckie: Growing up, I listened to hip-hop. I’m what you’d call an 80’s baby, you know. I grew up in the golden era of hip-hop. And obviously, growing up in Europe, I grew up with drum and bass. That was the genre that got me into electronic dance music, and house music in general.
RMR: That’s cool, you used it as a stepping stone.
Chuckie: Yeah man! And also, living in the Caribbean, I listened to reggae music. That’s why the Latin sound isn’t something I just jumped into. I’m very well aware of the history of reggaeton. I think being born in South America exposed me to all these different genres which are cool, and then moving to Europe, where I got exposed to Western pop culture, definitely helped shape me to where I am now.
RMR: What is the most fun part about being you? And what are some of the coolest experiences you’ve had in your career?
Chuckie: The most fun part about being me is the fact that I’m a very versatile DJ, and i like different sounds. I do electro sets, I do tech house sets, I do underground sets, but I also do hip-hop, and open format, or even disco. When I play in New York, when its a festival, they come for electronic music so that’s what I play, but when I’m in the club I just get my hip-hop on.
Before I turned into a really well known electronic music DJ, I played hip-hop and got nine awards for being the best hip-hop DJ in Holland. So to me, still playing hip-hop in all these clubs is great. I think some other DJ’s are jealous that I can do it and pull it off.
RMR: Well you’re sticking to your roots, which isn’t really that common.
Chuckie: Exactly. Yes, exactly. Like, I can imagine that some people might be confused because they only know me since 2010, or whatever. And when they see me playing hip-hop they’re like “Hey Chuckie, can you play your original sound?” I’m like, this is my original stuff. Its funny, but it’s still exciting at the same time.
When I play in LA, especially when I play an open-to-close set, I go full on electronic music, and I like to play tech house, techno, and a little bit of electro. It’s kind of like how I used to do it in Amsterdam. I’d do a nine hour set. I’d start at 150 bpm at the minimum, and take it all the way up. Then I would end the night at 7 AM with techno. I would like to take it back to those days. Just the fact that I’m able to do that and get away with it, I feel blessed. That’s the most fun part about being me.
This may not have been a nine-hour set, but it shows how hard Amsterdam goes when Chuckie plays
RMR: Where do you see the electronic dance music scene right now and where do you see it going in the future?
Chuckie: Well I think, that electronic music has come of age. We now have a very healthy, very big commercial scene. We’re very present on the radio. However, at the same time, we’re running the clubs. If you go to Ibiza, there are all these big underground nights and thousands of people. There is a healthy underground and a healthy mainstream part of it. We have a phase where we just embrace pop music. Calvin Harris, Avicii, David Guetta, they all have had mainstream success, which is good for the music.
We are at a point where because electronic dance music has all of these subgenres, which spans the whole spectrum, you can blend it into anything. If someone gets it right, they can get some sort of success with it. For example, Avicii. He blended it with country music and it worked for him. With others, they thought that they could blend electronic music with dirty south hip-hop. We call that trap.
It’s the same thing with house music and mainstream latin, now it’s called moombahton. You know where moombahton started right?
RMR: I actually don’t.
Chuckie: I was working on a track, I didn’t have a title for it, and I had to play at this beach club in Aruba, and the name of the club was called “Moombah”. I thought, hey that’s a cool name, so I just made that the name of my song. Dave Nada (of Nadastrom) took the track, slowed it down from 128 beats per minute, to about 105-110 beats per minute, and he named it Moombahton. That track and the remix actually came out around the same time as “Let The Bass Kick”, in around 2007.
I was lucky to be there around the time that the whole electronic music industry was still shaping.
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RMR: If one of these had to disappear which one would you choose? Salt or Pepper?
Chuckie: Salt.
RMR: Which fast food chain, in your opinions, could be a front for the Illuminati or a secret world organization? (Excluding Taco Bell).
Chuckie: Let me think…… well it’s not really fast food but I’d have to say Starbucks. Shoutout to Seattle.
RMR: Do you smoke at all?
Chuckie: I vape. As a matter of fact I have a very successful vape line. I’ve sold over a hundred thousand bottles of my own vape, named after my biggest tracks. (Check out DVTCH vape line)
RMR: What are your favorite road foods, when you’re touring and whatnot?
Chuckie: Thai food. Definitely Thai food.
RMR: What about at home?
Chuckie: When I’m at home, I love to cook. I’d have to say Caribbean fusion. If I’ve only got about 20 minutes my favorite go-to is fried rice. The best kind though is left over fried rice. You know, when you wake up on a Sunday, you look into the fridge, and you see all these leftovers from the whole week, you gotta start with the fried rice.
RMR: What is the worst buzzkill situation that you’ve been in?
Chuckie: Oh man, you know, I’ve had this one a billion times. When it’s promised that the party is until 4 AM, and the cops shut us down. The cops show up at like 3:30, and say the party’s done. I had that at Miami Music Week, had my pool party. All of a sudden they decide to show up and kill the vibe. You understand that when you’re at a show, you’re on this electronic music journey, you get to the climax, and it just stops, the lights turn on, and were forced to leave.
RMR: Are there any people that you were surprised to find out that they enjoyed your music?
Chuckie: It’s funny, I was surprised that most of the biggest Latin artists at the time were following me and listening to/enjoying my music. That’s how I got in contact with them in the first place. I didn’t realize that I ran into Ozuna four years ago, until he showed me a picture of us together, while I was talking to him in New York. Happened with another artist named Ruko. There was a show where I played one of his tracks and I posted it on Instagram, after the show he sent me a DM saying “Hey that’s my track!”I didn’t even know he was following me. Knowing these people follow me, that was the most surprising for me to find out.
I once had a DM from Amber Rose, right before she was with Wiz Khalifa, she was like “Yo lets work on some music”. I was thinking to myself, “nah now someone is messing with me.” So, I checked and it was actually her. Right after being engaged with him I think she just kinda stopped thinking about a musical career.
RMR: Is there anything else you wanna say to your fans?
Chuckie: At this point, I’ve been in the game for so long already, I’m really excited to see where dance music goes in the future. I feel really blessed at this point to have all these residencies. Really happy for those in Miami, New York, Las Vegas, and LA. I’m happy to do those, and I’m just gonna keep on working on making awesome music.
I’m excited for my new single to come out on July 9th, it’s a fusion of Latin sounds and dance music, it’s called “Latino” coming out on Spinnin records!
Follow Chuckie’s Dance Music Journey
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