If there ever was a DJ at Tomorrowland who forged his own unique path through the ranks, it’d have to be John Newman. Catapulted into fame through early hit singles ‘Feel the Love’ (with Rudimental), ‘Love Me Again’, and ‘Blame’ (with Calvin Harris), he was initially mostly known as a singer and songwriter leaning towards dance music.
But he’s since mastered the sonic arts of production and DJ’ing too, and after a hiatus, he has been capturing the hearts and minds of fans anew over the past few years. Somewhat of a Tomorrowland staple, we asked John Newman how it all came to be, and where his career will be heading moving forward, ahead of today’s hybrid performance at the Mainstage.
Your first hit was ‘Feel the Love’ with Rudimental, a big drum & bass anthem. With drum & bass on the rise again, can we expect another one in the genre from you?
“In my show, I do play moments of drum & bass. I've always been a massive drum & bass fan, starting when I was at university, so it's something that lingers. I was working with Netsky recently, and there's always a possibility… It'd also be quite cool to do something with Rudimental again, because they are like my brothers.”
Some of your tracks feature traditional songwriting, like ‘Feel the Love’ and ‘Love Me Again’. Other songs are more electronic. How do you decide what path to take when you make something new?
“Actually, I made a big change in my career around five years ago, when I had what was basically a burnout and wanted to reinvent myself. As a kid, I'd always loved dance music and I’d done dance collaborations through the early years of my career. It was part of that change where I went from being more of a solo act to leaning more on my dance influences and becoming more of a producer.”
Leaning into that, you made the decision to start doing hybrid live/DJ’ing shows a few years back. How has it been working out for you?
“The dance scene is different, and it's been an amazing challenge. I have a vision that I work towards every second of every day, and I think it's important to keep that focus.
I want to occupy the gray, hybrid area where I am a DJ, but I’m also a performer. My ambition is to one day close the Tomorrowland Mainstage as such, and I'll keep working until I achieve that!”
What was your personal connection with dance music before you started DJ’ing? Were you a clubber yourself?
“My connection with dance music started from growing up in the north of England, where we used to go to raves. We used to listen to the type of things they played at Wigan Pier, to gabber and really fast hardcore music.
And it reminds me of driving around the summer-touched countryside and smoking cigarettes with my friends like idiots, haha. Every time I play dance music, it gives me a deeper feeling, letting me connect to my inner child.
Your song ‘Blame’ with Calvin Harris has surpassed the 1 billion streams mark. What an achievement! How did you make such a successful song?
“’Blame’ was an amazing organic journey, really. I met Calvin, outside of a studio, and we got along really well. Musically, we just gelled really well. I created the first idea for the song on a laptop in the kitchen at Christmas with my family, actually. To see it succeed in the way that it has is both humbling and surprising.
I guess it shouldn't be that much of a surprise given that it’s got Calvin Harris’ name on it. And I don't know what I was expecting, but it still blows my mind how how big it became.”
Many of your songs, like 2023’s ‘Hold On to My Love’, are energetic with a melancholic undertone. What is it that makes this combination of vibes work for you?
“I don't know whether I’d consider them melancholic, or it's just that I need an emotional attachment to the songs. Sure, the lyrics sometimes go into darker places, and I think that's important. I'm just speaking about my life and personal experiences in my music.
I think in dance music, it's quite rare that you hear that, actually. And as we’re moving into the AI period, it might be less and less that we hear that. But for me, it's really important to keep the ‘song’ in there. The song always wins, whatever style of music it is.”
We heard that you have new music in the pipeline. What kind of songs are you working on? Will the music be on an album? We’re excited to hear!
“I'd love to tell you everything, but that would be taking the surprise out of it! And I love the excitement behind the mystery… I will say, I've been working very proactively towards creating a big wave of music in different ways. And it's coming very shortly, so I'm sure you'll hear it all soon!
To round off with, what can we expect from your Mainstage show? What should people who have never seen you play before look forward to?
“I think it's important to add new elements to every show that I do, and I give them all my energy to every show. Obviously the Tomorrowland main stage is a is a big one, so I'll be bringing a lot of energy, a lot of new ideas, and a lot of new versions of my old songs.
In the end, I just think it's about the energy I'll be bringing, the biggest energy I can, and the biggest emotion that I can as well!”
