Alan Walker: the man behind the mask [Magazine Exclusive]

Alan Walker quickly took the electronic music scene by storm with his distinctive sound. Before reaching twenty years of age, the English-Norwegian artist had already broken milestones, such as hitting one billion streams on his breakthrough single ‘Faded‘ and receiving platinum certifications in 14 countries. From amassing billions of streams on Spotify to collaborating with the one and only Hans Zimmer, Alan Walker has truly carved his lane in the industry. 

Making masks cool before the COVID-19 pandemic, Alan Walker is quickly becoming one of the most successful and talented artists on the scene globally. We sat down to speak with Alan about the pandemic, the inspiration behind his music, and what is next for the talented star. 

Hey Alan! So good to speak with you! We are nearing a year of the pandemic, and it seems like this is never-ending. How have you held up during lockdowns, and what has kept you creative? 

I can’t believe it’s been a year; feels quite surreal that it’s been going on for so long. I’ve honestly spent my time in lockdown quite productively actually. I work with a great team in Norway, and we’ve set a lot of plans for 2021, so believe it or not, I’ve been pretty busy over the last few months!  Other than that, I’ve kept my free time and attention on producing new music, playing videogames with my friends online, listening to new and inspiring music – and staying connected with the Walkers on social media.

It is known that movie soundtracks inspire your creative side. With that in mind, what movie soundtrack have you found yourself playing over and over?

I have a few favourite composers like Steve Jablonsky and James Newton Howard – and I can’t go without mentioning Hans Zimmer, who I’ve been so fortunate to work with on my remix for his iconic track “Time” from Inception. In general, Hans’ soundtracks really inspire me and make me want to push myself to become the best producer I can be 

Image Credit: Stian Andersen