Eric Prydz almost shelved ‘Pjanoo’ before it became a global anthem

Today marks 18 years of Eric Prydz’ timeless ‘Pjanoo’, one of the most recognizable instrumental records in electronic music – however, its story almost unfolded very differently.

Notably, Prydz revisited the story during a recent interview surrounding the return of EPIC Radio, where he reflected on how close the track came to never being released.

Before its global success, Eric Prydz nearly abandoned the record altogether. During early tests on the dancefloor, the reaction simply didn’t match expectations, leaving a lasting impression on him. Reflecting on that moment, Prydz shared: “I’m not gonna say it emptied the floor, but it just didn’t do anything. And it affected me so much that I didn’t play the track for a year and a half.”

As a result, the track sat untouched for months, despite its now-iconic melody. Then, everything changed during a homecoming show in Stockholm. In a spontaneous moment, Eric Prydz decided to revisit the record.

“I found that old CD… I was like, ‘oh, this piano thing‘, I was in a good mood, had all my friends behind me, and I said I’m going to play this because I like it.” This time, the reaction told a completely different story. The crowd responded instantly, and shortly after, a fan-recorded video from that night began circulating online.

“So I played it, and someone in the crowd filmed it, everyone went crazy. That person uploaded it to YouTube, it went viral, and it ended up being the No.2 record in the UK without a vocal or anything.”

Eventually, ‘Pjanoo’ went on to become one of Prydz’s defining tracks, proving that sometimes one moment, or one crowd, can change everything. Watch the moment from the full interview celebrating the return of EPIC Radio below.