Exron Exclusive Interview: Dom Dolla at Electric Zoo

Austrailian dance music talent Dom Dolla has experienced massive success in the past few years with his enticing signature sound and ability to craft timeless house records. In 2018, his smash single “Take It” skyrocketed to the forefront of the dance music scene and has since earned over 100 million collective streams worldwide. Since then, Dom Dolla has continued to carve his own path in the dance music realm, delivering heaters like “San Frandisco”, “Moving Blind” with Sonny Fodera, and more.

In just a short time since his debut, his talent and knack for house music have earned him nominations from Pete Tong as a “Future Star” via BBC Radio 1, “One To Watch” from Billboard Dance, and “Breakthrough Artist of 2019” at WMC’s International Dance Music Awards.  As he continues to quickly expand his global fanbase, it is evident that Dom Dolla is a force to be reckoned with as he solidifies himself as a leader in his genre.

In addition to his star-studded discography, Dom Dolla has delivered remixes for the likes of Purple Disco Machine, RUFUS DU SOL, MK, Sonny Fodera, Hayden James, The Martinez Brothers, and more. Commanding nearly 3 million monthly Spotify listeners, each subsequent release showcases Dom’s musical prowess.

We got the chance to catch up with Dom Dolla at Electric Zoo in NYC to discuss his return to live shows, time in the US, and his countless collaborations. Read the full Q&A below! 

Exron Music: How does it feel to be back in the States and playing at EZoo after the past year? What are some of your favorite things about the US?

Dom Dolla: It’s been absolutely surreal. I was getting ready to buy a car and buy a house and settle down because I didn’t see the end to the pandemic but then my manager gave me a call and said we were leaving to come to the States in two weeks time and I just didn’t even believe it. I turned to my friend as we were walking past the stage today because I’m still not used to it. It was actually a bit overwhelming the first time I was back at a festival and talking to so many people that I hadn’t seen in so long. My brain kind of gave out because I’ve just been texting and doing the occasional Zoom call. It’s wild. 

Exron Music: We see that you just played your first UK festival at Reading & Leeds fest. What was the energy like during your performance?

Dom Dolla: It was amazing. I’d never played a festival in the UK before until that event so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew I had somewhat of a following in the UK but I wasn’t prepared for turnout. The energy in the crowd was mental and they are very talkative and singing along. They knew songs from my catalogue that are several years old which I was surprised by. I think there was around 10,000 people at my set at Reading. 

My first ever UK festival… thanks for blowing my mind 🇬🇧🤯 @OfficialRandL pic.twitter.com/I9lqvLzREB

— Dom Dolla (@domdolla) August 31, 2021

Exron Music: You’ve had a lot of iconic releases over the years like “Take It” and “San Frandisco”. Is there any particular track of yours that you are most fond of?

Dom Dolla: Probably the ones I haven’t put out yet I reckon. From the stuff that’s been released, I really love playing my remix of the Martinez Brothers which came out during lockdown. I hadn’t really had a chance to play it since it came out last year so the first few times were here in the US. I was hoping it would work on the dancefloor. 

Exron Music: You played a six hour set at Space in Miami recently – what do you like about playing longer sets like that?

Dom Dolla: It was a lot of fun – my manager actually left before I finished because the set was long hahah. We were all having a great time. You kind of have to time it right and make sure you don’t have too much liquid in your body before a set like that since you can’t really use the bathroom so I took it pretty easy and I still had to sprint after I finished. The venue is really cool, the energy is amazing and when they blow the CO2 down from the ceiling it’s really refreshing during such a long set.

 

 

 

 

 

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Exron Music: “Pump The Brakes” has reached almost 12 million streams (on Spotify) since the release earlier this year. What was the creative process like for this single?

Dom Dolla: That song is inspired by the first car that I still actually have. It’s a 2001 Toyota Camry and basically the track is inspired by different sounds in a car. I’d be sitting in my car just listening to the different sounds like windows and locking the car and stuff. I thought it would be cool to create some sort of production with it so I decided to write a song about a car. Everyone seems to really connect with it, I’ve had a lot of car enthusiasts reach out to me to say it’s their favorite song. I’d love to acutally have my car with me on stage during the song haha.

Exron Music: Why do you think it’s important to collaborate with other artists in addition to your own original releases?

Dom Dolla: I’m just inspired by a lot of friends’ productions and songwriting. It’s so interesting to be in the studio with someone else, two heads are usually better than one. You can often get stuck in your head wondering if what your writing is any good but if someone is with you saying “oh yeah this is awesome” or “this is trash” it helps the process a lot. Collaborations can actually get done a lot more quickly because of this. I enjoy it for those reasons but it’s also exciting because of all of the promo rollouts or going on tours and shows together. They become such good friends too since you have so many mutual interests and you’re working on a big project together so it’s great. 

Exron Music: What are your goals for the rest of the year? Any upcoming plans you can share with us?

Dom Dolla: To make up for lost time. Foot on the gas and saying yes to everything. I want to make the end of the year as busy as possible. This week alone I’ve playing 6 sets – I was in Chicago for 48 hours and I was DJing for like 7 or 8 hours haha.