EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Deepend discusses new single ‘Could Be Love’

Dutch DJ Deepend is synonymous with positive vibes, keeping dance floors full and dance fans enthusiastic. Led by Falco van den Aker, Deepend ensures his creations rise above the dance music pool by creating a signature sound. Colliding house roots with groovy, melodic and pop elements, music has created a studio crush for Falco.

His live shows do not disappoint either, mesmerizing crowds from Ushuaia & Pacha in Ibiza, Tomorrowland & Sziget, to nailing a 10-show supporting tour with David Guetta throughout Europe. In the remix world, Deepend was on official duties for Matt Simons’ “Catch & Release”, seeing phenomenal charting at #1 across Belgium, Germany, Portugal, Spain and France, and attracted over 200 million streams. Ultimately the song reached double platinum, platinum & gold status in 15 countries across the world. Deepend has locked his time down well and worked on more remixes for Disciples, LP, James Blunt, JP Cooper, Robin Schulz, Gnash and many others.

With his new single ‘Could Be Love’ out today on Spinnin’ Records, Deepend spoke to We Rave You about the track, and his incredible career so far…

‘Could Be Love’ is a lovely uplifting Pop/Tropical tune that suits both festivals and beach clubs. What did you aim to achieve with this track?

“This was exactly the plan for the song. Some of my most popular songs are lower in energy, easy to listen to and very suitable for radio and streaming playlists, but I need some higher energy music for my DJ sets and ‘Could Be Love’ sits perfectly in the middle between listening and partying.”

The vocals and chord progressions thoroughly intertwine and compliment each other perfectly. Tell us about the process of finding the perfect recipe.

“It was a lot of trial and error basically. It took me almost a year to finish the song and find the right combination of elements in the production. The biggest challenge was to find a simple and catchy drop melody combined with the right sound. I didn’t want to go fully electronic with the lead sound so I stacked a few organic layers made from vocal chops and sampled sounds underneath the synth plucks to give it a more organic feel.”

The plucks are arguably the most prominent element in the drop. How important was it that they be the focal point as opposed to the piano per se?

“When producing, I always keep in mind that the listener can only focus on one element at a time. So for every part of the arrangement (intro, verse, chorus, etc.) I decide which element is the most important in order to emphasize this element. The plucks are playing the lead melody in the drop, so I mixed them on top of all the other elements and filtered the piano chords to the background to prevent distracting clashing frequencies.”

How did Joe Killington come into the picture? How valuable was his contribution to the project?

“Joe wrote and recorded the very first demo of the song which was the starting point for me. I loved the demo and I could hear the final production already in my head. Joe did an amazing job on the vocal performance and recording. I really like the energy of his vocals.”

You had the privilege of working with Sam Feldt on ‘Runaways’ and the track is one of your best-known. What did this song mean to you in terms of your career prosperity?

“‘Runaways‘ was an important follow-up to our breakthrough remix for ‘Matt Simons – Catch & Release’. It was my first big single and its success really helped to push Deepend. I still play the song in my DJ sets and it’s incredible to see how many people sing along with it anywhere in the world.”

How important is it that you create music that reflects you and your personality?

“It’s crucial for me and I think that this is the only way to truly connect with your audience. I’m a positive minded person and you can hear this back in my music and see this when I’m on stage. And to be honest, I can only make music that reflects my personality because I really have to feel the song. I’m not the type of producer who is able to produce any type of music at any given time.”

What’s in store for the rest of 2018? Any new releases or exciting shows on the horizon?

“I’ve lined up some very cool releases in the upcoming months with Spinnin’ Records starting with ‘Could Be Love’. I’ll be back on tour later this month to support David Guetta and I’m closing my Ibiza season in September which will be followed by a busy Amsterdam Dance Event in October.”

Deepend‘s new track ‘Could Be Love’ is out now and can be heard below: