With a career that has dominated the global dance scene, Canadian duo DVBBS, comprised of brothers Chris and Alex van den Hoef, have solidified their place among the industry’s elite. Best known for their gargantuan 2013 hit ‘Tsunami’ with Bourgeous, which topped charts worldwide and earned over a billion streams, the pair has since amassed 12 platinum singles across multiple countries. From headlining festival stages at Tomorrowland, Ultra, and Lollapalooza, to collaborations with artists like Martin Garrix and Wiz Khalifa, DVBBS continue to shape the sound of modern electronic music.
Their anthems have echoed in stadiums, nightclubs, and playlists across the world, making them not only musical innovators but a true global force in EDM. In our interview with DVBBS, the pair discuss 13 years of DVBBS, what success looks like to them, and what the next chapter in the DVBBS legacy will look like, they also share an exclusive 1 hour mix below!
Do you remember the very first track you ever made together? What was that like? 
The first track we ever made was at 13-years-old when we were still experimenting with our band era and learning instruments, real punk & reggae vibes.
But our first track as DVBBS, we took one of our vocals that we wrote and remixed it, we also became friends with Simon Wilcox who was writing a bunch of movies for the Twilight movies & remixed one of those. Very electro / progressive vibes.
How has your creative process evolved from your early days with tracks like ‘Tsunami’ to your recent releases like ‘No No No’ with KVSH and ‘Reset’ with Dave Summer?
It’s constantly evolving, but we still have the same mentality as we have had since the beginning. As much as our main goal is always to create something that pushes the boundaries, we never want to be in a box because we grew up so diverse as musicians. Bending genres was something that always kept us so excited.
Stream ‘No No No’ with KVSH below:
Can you walk us through a typical DVBBS studio session? Do you have specific roles or is it more fluid and organic?
Since day one, we have always had specific roles. Chris is typically producing on Ableton while I am leading the songwriting whether I’m cutting vocals or working with vocalists in the room. We switch off if someone catches a unique idea but that’s typically how we start the session.
For us the start of a great chord progression, something that symbolizes the true emotion of that day is also very true to our process & from there we just keep building and building until something a full body.
Are there any sounds, genres or influences you’re currently exploring that might surprise your fans?
Well for the DVBBS project we like to work under 3 umbrellas. House/dance records, club bangers & crossover just full streaming type hits. I think that gives us enough room to experiment within those lines for the project to keep our sound cohesive, although in the past we have worked on records that maybe shouldn’t of fallen under the DVBBS project.
Which has only taught us the importance of maybe just letting a song get pitched or be apart of someone else’s project. This has been a really exciting part of our new chapter, all the artists we are working with across that map that might not be specifically for a DVBBS project. Just building our catalogue in a very special way.
You’re performing at Tomorrowland Belgium next month! What are you most excited about, and how are you prepping for it?
Can’t believe it’s already that time again haha. So excited, this will be our 7th or 8th time performing at Tomorrowland from main stages to rocking a bunch of the dope other stages. So excited to always catch up and see a bunch of our friends in the industry as well as just give 110% performance filled with new ID’s and some of the classics. At this point in life, people who are still making their way out to Belgium for this festival are the true top-tier dance lovers so to meet fans that are just that passionate is a huge blessing. Can’t wait for Europe this summer in general.
Looking at the EDM scene now compared to when you started, what excites you the most and is there anything that concerns you?
To be able to say that we lived through the North American boom, as well as had a flourishing career that allows us to experience. The new age of the scene is something we will never take for granted. I personally think the scene is just getting stronger but obviously performing those massive shows in 2012 to 2016 were unmatched. There were less cell phones and kids were absolutely electric for days on end during all the sets. People are still like that now, but just a little bit more mature I find. Grooving & enjoying the music rather than like creating full blown mayhem haha.
Have you faced any significant industry challenges or turning points that shaped your path as artists?
Absolutely, from dealing with the behind the scenes, industry drama, to deals you sign to the constant shifts and changes of the music industry. In general, there are always challenges. At the same time it is something that kind of makes it all so exciting and worth it, because without the lows and without the struggles, you wouldn’t really feel those highs.
It’s definitely been a beautiful rollercoaster, and we wouldn’t change anything. It’s just morphed us into thick skinned humans, & we have such a more mature approach to our everyday life as musicians. Then again, blowing up at 19 & 20 years old, no one really gives you the blueprint on how to navigate the madness.
If aliens landed and you had to introduce them to EDM using one of your songs, which one would you play?
‘Gold skies’ … that will forever be a special one for us, the emotion it brings as a record. The way it just came out of us, feels like that one just got extracted from our souls. It was the first song we wrote when moved to Los Angeles from Toronto Canada & till this day hearing people sing it live and talk about what is has done for them in their life is such a pure feeling. I think the aliens would vibe
You’ve toured extensively over the course of your career. What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever put on your tour rider?
Hahaha extensively for sure, at one point it was around 200 shows a year for like 8 years.
Definitely a few things on the rider, but now days it’s pretty locked in with the essentials. Some new boxers and socks on the road, oh and iPhone chargers definitely help haha. Crazy though, I mean at one point we definitely were getting a fresh pair of Nikes to collect and remember what country we got them in, the shoe collection got insane.
What does success look like to you at this stage in your career?
Just being able to say we are in year 13 of DVBBS is beyond something we have ever dreamed of to have a music career, surpassing a decade and honestly just getting more exciting and fruitful.
We have almost 4 billion streams, played over 1000+ shows, headlined and played some of the biggest festivals on the planet and worked/currently working with some of our biggest inspirations in the industry. We wake up and it feels like a dream some days. If you told us any of this 15 years ago, we would never have believed it, but we worked hard and we never gave up even at the lowest of lows and highest highs.
A big next part of our journey, I think is also giving back and mentoring some artist that deserve it & as well as growing our label Kanary Records.
Stream DVBBS mix below, exclusive to YourEDM:
Follow DVBBS:
