Exclusive Interview: Dirty South discusses follow up album to ‘XV’ during Miami Music Week

A legendary producer responsible for several of the greatest tracks ever made, including his collaborative remix with Axwell, ‘Sweet Disposition’, and 2013’s festival favourite, ‘City of Dreams’ with Alesso, Dirty South is one of the most influential figures in modern dance music. The producer, famed for huge anthems such as ‘How Soon Is Now’ with David Guetta and Sebastian Ingrosso, was born in Serbia under the name Dragan Roganovic, and now spends much of his time in Melbourne, having grown up in Australia.

Since launching his acclaimed XV album in early 2018, Dirty South’s career continues on an impressive and meteoric upwards trajectory, playing numerous live shows across the globe, as he works towards even MORE new music later this year. We Rave You caught up with the esteemed producer backstage at the Axtone party on South Beach during Miami Music Week, to discuss his set, how he first became involved with Axwell, and what we can expect from his next album…

Dragan! The XV album has been flying, what kind of music are you playing right now in your live sets?

“Well it has only been 4-5 weeks since the album dropped, but I’m testing lots of those tracks out in a live capacity right now. I’ve been testing them out touring, 6 or 7 tracks from the album, so I like to play those, I play a couple of new edits and some of the classics too. I don’t like to play the original versions because my sound has changed since then, but I will play fresh edits of all the Dirty South classics. And also my Lane 8 remix, which is going down so well!”

So how did you become involved with Axtone originally? And Axwell himself?

“Well the Axtone guys hit me up to come play here in Miami, I haven’t released with them for a long time. But we go all the way back to 2007, ‘Open Your Heart’ with Ax. Funny actually, Axwell and I – We met in Australia, Ax was touring there, and we had a coffee and started vibing together. He signed ‘Let It Go’, my first record. So next time I went to Sweden, we started making music together when I sent him the vocal for ‘Open Your Heart’.”

The last time we spoke was in London, when it was much colder than here in Miami! And you mentioned yet another album this year?

“Yeah I started the new album since we last spoke, and I have lots of time, I think it is fair to give myself 5 or 6 months. Not many people do one album in a year, let alone two! But if I can, I’d like to finish it by November. There is no scheduled time to it, and I want to it because that is my goal, but I will only do it when I feel inspired, because for me the music is perfect and must be right.”

So what is the plan for you this summer? You’re going to be busy, right?

“We are blocking in some European tour dates for summer and Asia and Brazil too, but overall I want to get the new music done so I want to be in the studio. That’s most important to me right now.”

So how does the vibe here at Miami Music Week differ to all the other venues and events you play during the year?

“Miami is always a place where for one week thousands of parties are on and everyone is here. It’s a cool place for fans because they have so many options and for artists I get to see people I have not seen for such a long time! It’s a stop you have to make once per year for sure!”

Delivering a thunderous set to the rabid Axtone crowd, Dirty South is certainly a producer and DJ at the top of his game right now. A perfectionist who values the crisp sound of his studio sessions, and takes extreme time and effort over his tracks, his next album is currently scheduled for release towards the tail end of 2018, cementing this year as ‘the year of Dirty South’. You can hear his masterpiece production, XV, below, in the album’s full entirety!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlMyVyed5z0