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Nick Van de Wall, aka Afrojack, joined Tiësto and Armin van Buuren in the line of globetrotting DJs, producers, and remixers to come out of the burgeoning Dutch dance music scene.
Born in Spijkenisse in 1988, he began playing the piano at age five, but after getting his hands on a copy of the music-sequencing program Fruity Loops, he started to play around with samples and create his own songs. After discovering the Rotterdam club scene, he began performing short DJ sets before traveling to the Mediterranean to hone his craft, playing at various clubs over a five-month period. Returning to his native Holland, he signed to the independent Digidance label and released his debut single, "Afrojack: In Your Face," before forming his own record company, Wall Recordings, scoring club hits with "Math" and "Do My Dance."
Following performances at dance festivals Tomorrowland and Sensation and a collaboration on David Guetta's One Love album ("Toyfriend"), he was invited to remix the likes of Madonna's "Revolver" and Lady Gaga's "Alejandro." In 2010 he teamed up with electropop vocalist Eva Simons on his first U.K. Top 40 hit, "Take Over Control," and also released a rarities album, Lost & Found, featuring nine previously unreleased tracks. In 2011 he collaborated with Miami rapper Pitbull for the hit single "Give Me Everything" and released his own hit track "The Future."
A 2012 tour of America confirmed his growing popularity, including dates at the Ultra Music Festival in Miami and Coachella in Indio, California, plus more than 40 other venues. Soon after, he announced a worldwide deal with Universal and Island/Def Jam, resulting in global chart success with the single "As Your Friend," featuring Chris Brown. Two more singles, "The Spark" (featuring Spree Wilson) and "Ten Feet Tall" (featuring Wrabel), preceded the release of his 2014 album, Forget the World, which also included guest features from Snoop Dogg, Sting, and Wiz Khalifa. Over the next few years he stayed busy, collaborating with David Guetta on several tracks including "Hey Mama" and "Another Life." He also also appeared in the Grammy-nominated Steve Aoki documentary I'll Sleep When I'm Dead. In 2018 he released the single "Bed of Roses," featuring Stanaj. ~ Jon O'Brien, Rovi