Drum and Bass legend Wilkinson chats about his new album, festival plans and how his new era making him feel like he’s starting out all over again.
While some of us may have been twiddling our thumbs over lockdown, Wilkinson was extremely busy crafting brand-new albums.
His new album Cognition came out in February and has received nothing but praise in the drum and bass community, and sent the crowd wild as his recent Brixton O2 Academy show.
Talking about producing his latest body of work, Wilkinson explained: “The studio is my escape. I usually tour pretty constantly, but being able to get in the zone and not having to travel around too much let me make the music I really wanted to make. I feel like it’s the most honest piece of work that I’ve done.
(Image: wilkinsonuk/Instagram)
“I found this album probably the easiest album to make, I’m not trying to prove anything anymore. My label trusted me and it felt really good with no pressure. I think that’s where exciting things happen when the pressure is off. I am excited about the future, I feel like I’m just starting again now, it’s weird.”
The new album sees the DJ team up once again with BRIT Award winner Becky Hill, having already produced a killer collab together back in 2013 with Afterglow.
(Image: Getty Images for Bauer Media)
Speaking on their new track, Here For You, he said: “I had this idea and reached out to Becky. I wasn’t even thinking about Afterglow at the time, I just wanted a really personal record. And I was like ‘I really want you to sing softly on the mic, so it sounds really personal,’ because she can really go for it, she has an amazing voice.
“But with this song, I wanted it really gentle and she did it great, and she felt the lyrics were about her partner. It’s different from Afterglow, it’s a real personal song, and there’s loads of emotion in it.”
Including emotive lyrics is integral to his work and something the phenomenal DJ takes great pride in.
(Image: WireImage)
Wilkinson added: “Even with my harder stuff, there has to be emotion in there for me. Whether that’s an energetic thing or a heartfelt message, I need my music to say something and stand out, it is something that I pride myself in.”
Wilkinson will be playing non-stop sets all summer long throughout festival season and he is beyond thrilled.
Among some of the star’s big shows this year is Austria’s Snowboming Festival, taking place on 2-4 April, and Manchester’s Parklife, kicking off 11-12 June.
Talking about some of his fave festival memories, the artist added how he often gets to play in quirky locations, such as an igloo, like at past Snowbombing sets.
(Image: WireImage)
This year festival-goers should expect to hear him mainly playing his own music, as he has so many tunes to squeeze in due to his Cognition’s release, along with tracks from 2020’s Portals and old favourites.
Talking about future plans, he insists he is nowhere near done with his successful career and will be carrying on for an extremely long time – which, of course, is music to drum and bass fans’ ears.
He concluded: “It’s just an exciting stage, I feel like a student with a new textbook at school, so at the moment I’m just enjoying it and gathering inspiration from different places and basking in the hard work that I’ve put in the last few years.”
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
