Yufo & Amél open up about their inspirations, collaborating on ‘Losing My Mind’ and more: Interview

More than set on leaving a lasting impact within our community, Yufo and Amél are the epitome of acts that will have anyone feeling some type of way. We could not be any happier to be joined by both these acts, in this back to back interview that you don’t want to miss out on.

Taking the dance industry by storm, several fire tracks at a time, both Yufo and Amél are the epitome of acts that have been mastering their craft to the utmost of perfection. Hailing from Norway, Yufo have been causing quite the frenzy with each of their releases, with this dynamic trio more than set on leaving a lasting impact within our community. From producing remixes for some of the biggest names, to releasing their own tracks that omit nothing less than the most feel-good and energetic of vibes, it comes to no surprise that this act is destined for global recognition as time progresses. Having also produced the official anthems for both Saga Festival in Romania and Amsterdam Music Festival, it was not long until no other than Afrojack caught a glimpse of their unique musical capabilities, and in turn, has been supporting their music on the most constant of levels. Leaving no doubt to the imagination, Amél has embraced his love for electronic music in the most immersive of fashions, with each of his endeavors further showcasing the undeniable musical prowess that he possesses. Taking inspiration from the likes of Alan Walker, Martin Garrix, Brooks and Avicii, this fast-rising star has been developing his sound in a manner that anyone would envy, whilst his main focus towards Future House, does not add a barrier or limit to what he can achieve, no matter the main genre focus. Signed to Wall Recordings and mentored by the legend himself Afrojack, both of these acts have a lot in common when it comes to their style of play, and in turn, we could not be any more thrilled to be joined by Yufo and Amél, as they open up about their main inspirations and influences, working alongside Afrojack, their recent collaboration ‘Losing My Mind‘ and more. 

Hello guys and thank you for joining us! Could you give us an insight on the main inspirations/influences that led to your chosen career pathways in music?

Hey, thanks for having us! We have been following WE RAVE YOU forever, so this was a fun surprise. For us it has actually been Afrojack that was the one who made us get into music production and electronic music in general. So having this release with the support of him and his team is like a dream come true. – Yufo

I first got hooked with EDM when I heard the early work of Alan Walker. I immediately fell in love with the clean sound and downloaded FL Studio. Shortly after that, I discovered Martin Garrix and started producing mostly in the genre of Euro/House music. – Amél

Leaving no doubt to the imagination, each of your releases ensure the most energetic of vibes. We would like to know how your act was formed, as well as the main thought process behind each of your productions?

The project “Yufo” was formed just over a year ago. Magnus & Kristoffer (previously “Alterboyz”) moved back to Norway during covid where we met Ole. Funny enough we have all grown up just 15 minutes from each other as kids. We instantly clicked and had the same taste for music, so we started throwing ideas back and forth. After a few months we figured that it would make sense to put all of our focus into one project together, and that is how “Yufo” came to life. When it comes to the main thought process behind our productions, we always try to create something that we truly enjoy listening to ourselves. At the time of us deciding to work together we all felt a bit lost musically, feeling like we were trying to make music to please others instead of ourselves. So, I guess you could say our main focus is to make something that all of us would love to hear going to a club, festival or for a car ride. – Yufo

Establishing yourself within the dance scene, could you provide us with an outlook on your style of play, as well as the impact that you hope to generate as time progresses and your sound evolves?

Right now is a really interesting time in the dance music scene. So many producers are making EDM right now, and the bar is very high in terms of production quality, so it can be tough to stand out. I’ve always been a melody guy, and I think that’s a big key in catching people’s attention – having something that really grabs the listener from the get go and makes the song memorable. If I can make an impact on the music industry, it would be to make music that inspires people and is memorable beyond my time. – Amél

Joining forces for this progressive house anthem, we would like to know the main thought process behind the production of ‘Losing My Mind,’ as well as the overall feel of working together on the creation of this certified hit?

‘Losing My Mind’ came to life at a writing session in Wisseloord Studios in the Netherlands about three years ago, where we wrote and recorded the vocals. We are big fans of progressive house, and we love music that has that big euphoric festival feeling, so this song has definitely been produced with this in mind. Footage from Tomorrowland and Ultra has been playing on the TV in the studio during the whole process, haha. Working with Amél was just a pleasure. Super nice guy who really knows his stuff about music production. We quickly had the same vision for what needed to be done to finish the track, easiest collaboration we have had so far! – Yufo

When Yufo sent me the track, I already loved it – it had a great melody and iconic vocal (all the elements a great track should have). From that point on, my job was just to do the production work needed to ‘bring the track to life’. The cake was already there, we just needed to give it the icing on top. – Amél

Reviving the classic progressive house sound of the past, whilst also adding a modern touch that will scintillate even the toughest of crowds, we would like to message that ‘Losing My Mind’ has set out to portray, as well as the significance of maintaining a versatile nature within the dance scene?

As previously mentioned, we are really big fans of the big progressive house sound, so we wanted it to have the sound that we already love, while adding our own touch to it. We believe the genre is here to stay, and we will continue to try to do our part to help ‘Progressive House’ keep its foothold while also keep evolving and trying out different techniques. There is so many great producers like Garrix, Matisse & Sadko and DubVision to mention a few, so we are striving to get to their level! – Yufo

Progressive House is a well established genre, so it can be hard to make a track that sounds fresh and iconic. I think through its catchy melodies and careful choice of sound design/production, Losing My Mind is one of those tracks that is able to ‘cut through the noise’ and really stand out. – Amél

Gaining recognition from the offset, as well as fully supported by Afrojack and his label WALL Recordings, could you give us an insight on the feedback received from the legendary act, as well as any lessons that you may have taken from the man himself on producing absolute banger’s?

Afrojack is very hands on when it comes to giving feedback and helping aspiring artists develop. We actually got in touch and started receiving directions and tips on what to do to improve our tracks through the WALL Recordings discord community and their demo-drops. Countless times he has listened to our stuff and guided us in the right direction in order to improve our final product. The number one lesson that is perhaps not the most specific, but we believe to be the most important would have to be: “Just keep making music”. If you spend enough time doing something, eventually you will be good at it. So put in the work and good things will come your way. – Yufo

Afrojack has supported this track from the start, even before I was working on the production. That was incredible to see. For me it was a dream having him mentor me through the process of finalizing the track – he has years of experience knowing what a track needs to work in the clubs, and that played a key role in fine tuning the song. I would make some tweaks, he would play it at a show, then repeat the process until we were all happy with the final product. If I have one takeaway from the process, it would be to find yourself an Afrojack! – Amél

Combining your talents in the most immersive of fashions, we would like to know your thoughts on collaborating with like-minded artists, as well as the possibility of you guys working alongside each other in the near future?

Working with other artists are super important. You learn so much by watching how others approaches stuff, and by taking bits and pieces from each other’s suggestions. It really helps you evolve as a producer and as an artist. Our next collaboration is already in the works, and we are VERY excited! – Yufo

Collaboration can be tricky, but also one of the most rewarding things if done right. In this case, Yufo and I clicked right from the start, so the process went very smoothly. We both had the same vision for the track, so the process was seamless. Immediately after we finished Losing My Mind we started bouncing more ideas back and forth. This definitely won’t be the last time you’ll see us on an album together! – Amél

Staying on the note of what the future holds, could you give us an insight on any projects that may be in the works, any live performances for the rest of the year, and all in all your plans/goals that you have set out to achieve, both individually and collectively?

Right now, our focus is to keep making music, while also starting to release some of the many tracks we have made the past couple years so that we can establish and grow ‘Yufo’ into becoming what we envision. One of the live performances we are looking forward to the most have to be ‘Marquee Singapore’ on the 15th of July! It is such an amazing venue, and it will be the first performance together as ‘Yufo’. Our goal is to build the foundation that hopefully will enable us to have 2024 be an extremely busy year full of studio sessions and shows all around the world! – Yufo

I’m very excited to be releasing music again! I have one more release coming out next month in July, and have many more songs in the works behind the scenes. As far as collaboration goes, Tomorrowland is coming up soon – we may (or may not) have some tracks in the works that could be played there… can’t say for sure! – Amél

Well and truly on their way towards global dominance, both Yufo and Amél are showing no signs of slowing down, with their latest collaboration acting as a clear testament towards what they can achieve, either when working together, or when following their own individual endeavors. With this said, be sure to stay fully up to date with both acts, by following Yufo’s Instagram and Spotify, as well as Amél’s Instagram and Spotify.

Image Credit: Press / Provided by WALL Recordings