Calvin Harris – The Next David Guetta
1, Oct, 2012
no comments
Watch out David Guetta, you’re not the only European DJ that has become a sought after producer and a global DJ superstar. Of all the competing DJ’s out there the biggest rival to David Guetta in my opinion has to be electro-house DJ Calvin Harris.
Over the past few years, Calvin Harris has gone from a moderately successful DJ in the U.K. to one of the top DJ’s in the world, collaborating with superstar pop-artists such as RIhanna and Kylie Minogue, and scoring a massive number of transnational hits in the process. As EDM continues its proliferation across the world, especially America, Calvin Harris will only continue to rise among the ranks of the world’s tops DJ’s.
Much like Guetta, Calvin Harris was not very well known outside of Europe, but was nonetheless successful in establishing his popularity before becoming globally recognized. Harris’s first two singles “Acceptable in the 80’s” and “The Girls” were both reached the top ten in the U.K. and charted in other European territories such as Germany, Denmark, and Ireland. Additionally, his first album I Created Disco released in 2007 reached the top ten in the U.K. and managed to chart in France and Ireland.
From 2008-09, Harris managed to score several hit singles both in and outside the U.K. He produced and was featured on grime rapper Dizzee Rascal’s the number one hit “Dance Wiv Me” in 2008, and obtained his second number one single in 2009 with “I’m not Alone”. The single managed to become a top ten hit in several European territories such as Belgium, Ireland, Denmark, and on the European Hot 100 Singles Chart.
These singles followed by “Flashback” and “You Used to Hold Me” generated more success for Harris, and cemented his popularity in Europe.
Yet it wasn’t until 2011 that Calvin Harris managed to take his career to new heights. He wrote, produced, and was featured on Rihanna’s single “We Found Love”, which reached number one in nearly every territory it charted in and sold more than 6.3 million copies worldwide.
The single gave him massive amounts of exposure, and was his first song to become a major hit in America as it spend 11 weeks at number-one on the Hot 100 and sold more than 4.6 million copies.
In addition to scoring a breakout hit, Harris reached out to well known recording-artists to sing on his tracks, similar to when David Guetta enlisted well-known urban singers (Kelly Rowland, will.i.am, Akon) for his singles released in ’09. By adding bigger guest vocalists to his releases, they obtained more buzz and notoriety.
R&B diva Kelis provided vocals for his smash hit “Bounce”, which reached the top ten in the U.K., Australia, Ireland, and Scotland, R&B singer Ne-Yo for “Let’s Go”, which notably reached the top twenty in U.S., and Florence Welch the lead singer of the alt. rock group Florence and the Machine for his latest single “Sweet Nothing”.
Along with producing his own hits like Guetta, Harris has become a sought-after producer for several pop artists as well.
For instance, he produced Kylie Minogue’s 2007 single “In My Arms”, which reached the top ten throughout Europe, Cheryl Cole’s “Call My Name”, which is currently the fastest selling single of 2012 in the U.K., and co-produced Rihanna’s “Where Have You Been”, which has become a global top-ten hit. It goes without saying that whatever he produces becomes a chart success.
Although David Guetta broke out as a global recognized DJ three years ago, doesn’t mean the Harris can obtain that level of success. With his recent chart hits, big-name collaborations and rapidly rising popularity don’t be surprised if Calvin Harris becomes the top-ranked DJ in the world.
With his distinctive production style of squiggly synth-riffs, floor-to-the-floor beats and pulse-pounding choruses, Harris is able to please fans of both pop and dance music with his songs.
Photo Source: Wikipedia Commons