The recently concluded India tour of acclaimed world’s #1 DJ Martin Garrix presented by Asia’s largest dance music festival, Sunburn has set an impressive benchmark within the live event industry of India. The 8-city trek spanning over two weeks that saw the acclaimed 26-year-old Dutchman tour cities like Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chennai and New Delhi becomes the first ever arena showcase to be the highest-grossing music tours in the history of live shows in India. The cumulative on-ground attendance for the tour totalled up to a whopping 1,50,000 fans. Fresh off the success of his Sentio World Tour and high-flying performances at Tomorrowland, Lollapalooza, UMF and Creamfields last year, Garrix showcased his supremacy at the India showcase, his 6th visit in the sub-continent, with the last tour in the region in 2018 The two-time MTV EMA winner and four-time world’s #1 DJ got support from Indian celebrities like Ranbir Kapoor, Allu Arjun, Suhani Shah, Abdu Rozik, Just Sul, Aryan Khan, Nagma Mirajkar, Funcho at his multi-city showcases.
Since hitting the music scene in 2012, the superstar artist is most well-known for his trailblazing hits such as Animals, In The Name Of Love, Summer Days and Scared To Be Lonely, but beneath the stadium- thumping persona is a pure-hearted, humble and disciplined soul who doesn’t take his achievements for granted and continues to inspire his fans all across the world. We got a chance to have a quick tete-a- tete with our cover star for the month.
- The last time India had the pleasure to host you was in November 2019. How was the whole experience then as opposed to now?
Doing shows in India is always amazing because I always get so much love and support there. However, this time around we did such a huge tour, even the biggest headline tour in India ever with 9 shows in total. The whole tour has been so special, I’ve met so many amazing people and the energy I received at every show was insane. - You are a humanitarian who often supports and plays for the welfare of society. What has driven
you towards playing for a cause?
I think it’s important to help wherever you can, even when it’s little impact. I get so much joy from doing my shows and I’m very grateful for the position that I’m put in, but I also want to use it to do good and to help others. - You have performed at music festivals such as Coachella, Electric Daisy Carnival, Ultra Music
Festival, Tomorrowland, and Creamfields. Where was your best experience so far?
I absolutely can’t choose one. All of these festivals are a different experience in itself and I’m just grateful that I’m able to play on all these different stages. - Which of your latest and upcoming tracks have you played in this India tour?
I have definitely played some brand new tracks during the tour, also from STMPD artists that people can expect to be released very soon. Next to that, I have been playing my brand new 070Shake Cocoon remix and DubVision’s remix of my latest single ‘Hero’. - What inspired you as a child to choose this profession? How has your journey been so far?
I have always loved music and started playing the guitar when I was 8 years old. However, seeing Tiesto’s performance at The Olympics on TV inspired me to start experimenting with electronic music. It started as a hobby and I never expected to be able to call this my job. - You recently flew an F-16 jet and blew everyone’s mind!!! What else we don’t know about Martin
Garrix?
That was definitely a tick off my bucket list and one of the craziest experiences ever. I think it will be hard to top this one. - Apart from music, what is that one thing that drives your life?
Family and friends! - How exhausting are these tours? As a performer what all health care do you follow to be able to
pull these hectic schedules?
They are pretty heavy, especially with all the travelling we have had to do in between the shows as well. During this tour, I have been focused on my health by working out, not drinking alcohol and trying to get as much sleep as possible. - You have been playing for more than a decade now. What difference have you seen in the
audience? Describe the evolution from then to now.
Of course, my audiences have gotten bigger over the years and also more familiar with my music. - 10 years ago you released your solo, ‘ Animals’, and the world was set ablaze. Such an iconic
number; did you ever anticipate this legacy of yours then?
Absolutely not! I remember thinking at that time that this was it and it wasn’t going to get any better. Looking back it turned out to be the start of everything. - How was your experience of your 2023 India Sunburn tour and collaborating with legends on stage this time around?
It has been amazing. I’m so grateful that I got to meet so many amazing people and even share the stage with Ranbir Kapoor and Allu Arjun. - Where is home? And how do you rejuvenate after these tiresome tours?
My home is in Amsterdam. After these tours, I do try to take some time for myself to catch up on some sleep and of course, spend a lot of time
