Featured Artist: AVAION
ARTIST BIO
As a teenager, AVAION had a dream – a dream of a gold record that, in his mind, he had already assigned its very own spot on the wall of his children’s room. Twelve years later, this wish came true when he was honored with the platinum award for his debut single “Pieces”, which has been streamed millions of times and heralded the German songwriter and multi-instrumentalist’s breakthrough as one of the most exciting and promising young stars of the international electronic music scene at the end of 2019. For the 25-yearold, this is just the beginning of his journey – as he makes clear to us below!
AVAION has borne his mysterious name ever since the early days of his childhood, back when the then 4- year-old boy was beginning to create his own musical world. Both his grandfather and his father were musicians, encouraging the youngster to try out a wide variety of instruments from an early age: Keyboard lessons at 4, then the piano at 5, as well as the church organ, singing in the children’s and youth choir and playing the guitar. He later discovered electronic music for himself – a formative moment for the then 13- year-old. “For as long as I can remember, I have been particularly fascinated by electronic sounds,” says AVAION, looking back. “I begged and begged my parents until they bought me my first music software, and then after school I would teach myself how to produce music with the help of online tutorials.” He quickly realized that he didn’t want to make music for himself – he wanted to make his audience dance, too.
AVAION began DJing in local clubs in southern Germany. His setlist also included his first self-composed tracks, which he posted simultaneously on Soundcloud. Eclectic and experimental in equal measure, these tracks were a mix of drum & bass, dubstep, ambient and electronica, and these influences can still be heard in his distinctive signature sound. AVAION doesn’t want to be tied to a single genre; instead, he combines electronic beats with organic elements, melancholic harmonies and soulful vocals to form an instantly recognizable mix that has helped him establish a global fan base in a very short period of time.
AVAION set a first milestone in 2019 with his celebrated debut single “Pieces”, released by Sony Music. “The song was written during a difficult and depressing period in my life,” says AVAION as he reflects on his big breakthrough hit. “I was very unhappy at the time, and every day I would sit with my eyes glued to my computer screen after my late shift, trying to come up with new tracks. I was desperate to find a way out of this situation. ‘Pieces’ is about those times when you literally fall into a thousand pieces...” – and it is a track that was to fundamentally change AVAION’s life: The various versions of “Pieces” now have a combined total of over 100 million streams, more than 63 million of which are on Spotify alone. AVAION delights and inspires more than 2.7 million Spotify listeners every month – and this number is rising quickly! The multiaward-winning track entered the Spotify Top 100 in South Africa as well as the Mexico and Italy Viral 50. It also reached 30th place in the Italian Billboard Dance Charts, 76th in the German singles chart and 70th in the German airplay chart. With more than 500 million total views on TikTok, IG Reels and YouTube and entries in the Top 50 in nine countries on Apple Music, “Pieces” has become an important pillar of AVAION’s creativity and artistic identity. It also boasts an incredible level of popularity, which received a further boost from the remake that was released at the end of 2021 with VIZE and Leony as featured guests.
The first building block of AVAION’s very own world of sound, which he regularly invites his fans to be a part of with celebrated hit singles like “I Don’t Know Why”, “Same Vibes” or “Fallin”. AVAION’s tracks go down just as well in sweat-soaked nightclubs as they do in front of 100,000 enthusiastic open-air attendees. It’s no wonder, then, that the renowned Tomorrowland One World Radio included AVAION in its “20 of 2022” Hot List as one of the most promising artists of the year. To date, AVAION’s tracks have been streamed over 150 million times across various platforms. “I need my own flow to be able to compose in peace. I’m most creative in the evenings, when life has kind of come to a standstill and I’m not going to be distracted by calls or e-mails. This nocturnal atmosphere is where I can completely immerse myself in my own realm”, a sentiment AVION underscores with his brand-new single “Lies”. “For me, songwriting is an extremely intimate thing,” explains the southern German. “Most of the time, the process starts with a melody that I play on the guitar or the synthesizer. Then comes the beat, and later the lyrics. The melody gives me a vibe, a feel for what the subject matter of the song should be. The words are often completely improvised and recorded in one take. I just sing about what’s going through my mind at that given time.”
This is where his new work connects seamlessly: On “Lies”, AVAION expands his distinctive mix of electronic, danceable beats and atmospheric, melancholic sounds even further. Music for dancing and for dreaming, depending on how you’re feeling, is how AVION describes his style in his own words. “Music has always been my most important outlet,” says AVAION regarding his new track. “I can process things from my emotional space that I can’t get out of my head. On ‘Lies’, I talk about the dichotomy between lies and truth. About promises that ultimately turn out to be lies. The lyrics were inspired by a toxic relationship I was in where I was mentally exploited and manipulated. At some point you have to find the strength to pull the plug and break up with that person. I hope that my experiences will also give my fans the courage to speak up about their own problems and face them head on.”
AVAION can be seen live at numerous festivals over the course of this year.
TRACKLIST
- AVAION - Broken
- Goodboys & AVAION - Numb
- Avaion, Paul wetz , Nu aspect, & Yuma- Sleepless
- Nu aspect - strings attached
- Tin Licker, & Ben Böhmer - Voodoo
- Tech it deep - Maria Maria
- Zuma Dionys - Larie
- Lane 8 - no fun
- Joji - Glimpse of us ( it’s Vam remix)
- Fred again - turn of the lights again
- MBNN & Rowald Steyn - Ilomilo (Avaion Remix)
- AVAION - Lies
- Nu aspect - something real
- Palastic - Price
- AVAION - Pieces
- AVAION & Why so sad - Fallin
- Nu aspect, Magnus, & jewels - Afterlife
- Somma & Dillistone - Body on Fire
- Monolink - Father Ocean (Ben Böhmer remix)
- Nox Vahn & Marsh - Come Together
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