One of the most in demand young names in the music industry is Dutch producer and DJ Brooks. Although he hasn’t really made a touring presence in North America yet, he’s one of the most sought after international producers in dance music. Ask Martin Garrix and David Guetta, I’m sure Brooks is in their top contacts.
Hailing from Eindhoven in the Netherlands, Thijs Westbroek first made his name on Showtek‘s Skink label, with some solo releases and a couple of collabs with Bassjackers. 2017 saw Brooks get his name out to a much wider audience, first with his collab with Showtek “On Our Own,” then teaming up with Garrix for their smash hit track “Byte.” With his name firmly on the radar for EDM fans, Brooks has continued to be an integral part of some of the biggest songs in dance music. After “Byte” Martin brought Brooks back for an even bigger song, “Like I Do” with David Guetta. Subsequently, Brooks has teamed up with Guetta for another track after that, “Better When You’re Gone.”
Brooks, however, has been hard at work on tracks of his own. He recently released “Waiting for Love” with Alida. The song has all of the upbeat energy and groove of any Brooks track, perfect for any festival or club set. The synths should sound familiar to any Brooks fan. We recently caught up with the producer/DJ and talked with him about his musical journey, “Waiting for Love”, and what it’s like being sought after by some of the biggest names in the music industry.
Hi Thijs, thanks for talking with us. First off, tell us about yourself, what’s your musical background and how did you become Brooks?
“It all started back in the days when I was around 14 years old . My cousin had a dj set with CD’s and vinyl in his basement,, we really loved to play music together. We got curious how all these songs were made, so we did our research and downloaded a DAW (FL Studio). From there I was introduced to the world of music production, and I started producing myself (initially together with my cousin). Later on when I developed my sound it reached the ears of my now management. They asked me to visit their office so I could showcase my music, and thankfully they liked it! When I had just signed with them we all sat down and came up with my artist name. We aimed for something short & catchy, and with Brooks it ended up being a derivation of my last name.. At the time Showtek was also with the same management, so I got the opportunity to work on new music together with them! From there on things became serious and I made my entry in the music world.”
Your new track “Waiting For Love” is out now. Tell us how you came up with the song, how did you enlist Alida for vocals?
“I actually got in contact with Alida via STMPD RCRDS, who arranged the vocal for me. Really fell in love with it, and went to the studio and built the track around it. The track itself just kind of happened! I didn’t go into the studio specifically with an idea, I just went on with the flow.”
Tell us about your production process, you have such a catchy and unique sound, how did you come up with it?
“Production-wise I am not really organized. You should see my laptop desktop or my studio projects, they are all over the place. It’s all about spending countless hours in the studio, experimenting with different techniques and plugins. In the end I just really like to make music that has that happy vibe attached to it in some way. In my opinion, the unique thing about my sound is that it’s very futuristic, festival ready, but can also be played on the radio.”
You’ve collaborated with some of the biggest names in the business, namely Martin Garrix and David Guetta. How did you meet each of those guys and why do they keep coming back to you to collaborate?
“Martin Garrix actually responded to me after I sent my music to like 20 different e-mails which I thought belonged to him. He said he really liked my music, and eventually invited me to work together in the studio. You’d think there’s a lot of pressure involved working with such a big artist but that wasn’t the case at all. Later on, Martin had the vocal for ‘Like I Do’ and we made a draft of the track together. And then Martin sent it to David, so that’s how I came in contact with him. I guess they just happen to like my music, and I got it to them at the right moment & time!”
What’s the next step for you as a producer and DJ? Are you ready to start touring internationally?
“Production wise I want to keep developing my sound. DJ wise I am already touring internationally for quite some time! I would love to visit North America some more, so I can (besides playing some awesome shows) further explore the beautiful experiences it has to offer.”
Now that you’ve established yourself, what do you hope to accomplish going forward?
“I hope I can keep inspiring people all over the world with my music!”
Check out Brooks’s latest track “Waiting for Love” featuring Alida out now on STMPD RCRDS.
