Tijs Michiel Verwest was born and raised in Holland.  In 1997, he co-founded the record label, Black Hole Recordings, and adopted the moniker, DJ Tiesto.  Through Black Hole Recordings, he released Magik, a series over over seven installments and four years, beginning in 1997.

DJ Tiesto

It's a dream come true. I've been DJ'ing in the clubs for about 12 or 13 years now and I always dreamed to be a famous DJ in Holland, you know. And now it's worldwide. You can't imagine. I mean I still can't believe it myself that everything went so well.

The Early Years

Tijs Michiel Verwest was born and raised in Holland.  In 1997, he co-founded the record label, Black Hole Recordings, and adopted the moniker, DJ Tiesto.  Through Black Hole Recordings, he released Magik, a series over over seven installments and four years, beginning in 1997.  Magik consists of a series of trance style movements, using electronic music and synthesizers.

He started a similar series, entitled In Search of Sunrise, in 1999, which is not yet completed.  In 2001, he released his first album, In My Memory, which had actual singles.  The album featured vocals of Jan Johnston, Nickola Hancock, and Kristy Hawkshaw. Singles,  Dallas 4PM, Flight 643,and Obsession, gained him notoriety, and the album appeared at #12 on the US Hot Dance Club Play.

Climbing to the Top

He released Just Be in 2004.  #3 on the Billboard Electronic Music  chart.  DJ Tiesto promoted his album on a European train tour.   Also in 2004, he performed in Greece at the Summer Olympics, being the first DJ ever invited to perform.  He performed mixes he had  prepared specifically for that performance; after the show, he released the mixes on a CD he called Parade of the Athletes.

DJ Tiesto released his third album, Elements of Life in 2007.  The album included with collaborations with such artists as Julie Thompson of Holden & Thompson, Charlotte Martin, and BT.  The album sold more than 72,000 units in the first month of release.  It was  later nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Electronic/Dance Album. He earned gold records for this album in Belgium, Hungary, Netherlands, and Romania.

Here and Now

In 2007, in Ipanema, Brazil, DJ Tiesto gave a trance concert on the beach, with 250,000 fans in attendance.  This holds the record for the second largest concert in history.  In 2008, he took up residency at Privilege, in San Rafael, Ibeza, the largest night club in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.  He toured through the summer to promote  his ongoing trance compilation, In Search of Sunrise.

His 2009 release, Kaleidoscope, included collaborations with Nelly Furtado, Emily Haines of Metric, Tegan and Sara, and Bloc Party, among others.  Later in the year, DJ Magazine announced that DJ Tiesto had placed at #2 on their Best DJ Readers' Poll.  He continues to perform to sell-out crowds on Monday nights at Privilege and enjoys an international fan base, as indicated by Soundscan's analysis of download purchases.

Did you know . . .

1. The track, Sweet Misery from the album, Just Be, had been written Evanescence, but was not submitted in time to be included on their album.

2. Since 1999. DJ Tiesto has won forty-eight music and dj awards, and has been nominiated for sixty-one.

3. In 2003, he was elected an officer of the Order of Orange – Nassau, the military power in the Netherlands.

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