[INTERVIEW] BEAUZ Shares Latest Single "Crocodiles"+ More

Known as the godfathers of psy-pop, Asian-American duo BEAUZ has been taking the realms of dance and pop music by storm as the originators of psypop. Made up of brothers Bernie and Johan, this riveting pair of producers merge their expertise in sound design, creativity, and multicultural roots to forge breathtaking tracks. They have gained recognition from some of top artists in EDM, collabing with the likes of Chinese superstar NINEONE, Blasterjaxx, Krewella, Adventure Club, and recently Zedd. Additionally, BEAUZ has dropped multiple electronic anthems throughout their early career, such as "Feel The Light" on Spinnin' Records and "Outerspace" on Monstercat.

On top of their innovative production style, BEAUZ embodies an infectious stage presence and mixing abilities. After releasing "Count The Hours" with Armada in 2019, BEAUZ embarked on their first international tour across Asia and North America. Since then, they have been killing the game with their mind-bending live performances and spellbinding hits. Last year, the duo ranked #2 on DJ Mag China and #53 on DJ Mag's Top 100 DJs. Building off their 2022 hot streak, BEAUZ is back with incite into their project and their brand new single "Crocodiles".

Check out iEDM’s exclusive interview with BEAUZ and their new single "Crocodiles" below.

iEDM: In your 2022 hit single “Make You Say”, how were you able to balance the instrumental with Maren Morris’s vocals? What production techniques did you use to create a bassline that was catchy but not too overbearing?

BEAUZ: Our motto for creating music has always been concise, clean, and catchy. The instrumental should fill out frequencies where the vocal doesn’t, so the instrumental elements in “Make You Say”’ are generally warmer in complimenting Maren’s trebly voice. As for the bassline, it follows the lead melody, with a couple of extra notes so it’s more dynamic.

iEDM: What was your favorite part about working with Zedd on “Make You Say”? How did your production styles complement each other?

BEAUZ: We can’t say this enough, but Zedd is hands down one of the coolest people ever. Besides being down to earth, he’s insanely passionate about making music. As he was working on the final stages of the song, he would literally send a new draft every day, accompanied by a written paragraph detailing what little things he tweaked; absolutely admirable.

iEDM: A ton of cool soundscapes and effects are used throughout your single with Heleen, “Alone”. What are some of your favorite effects, electronic sounds, and instruments to throw in when trying to spice up the overall vibe of a track?

BEAUZ: Any OG BEAUZ fan knows that mallets such as marimbas and kalimbas are omnipresent in our productions. Of course, using the same style gets old so we’re always trying to think outside the box to see what details we can add to make each new song sound fresh.

iEDM: The vocals in “Alone” are very powerful and a centerpiece of the song. In your opinion, what story does the lyrics tell and what emotions does “Alone” make you feel?

BEAUZ: Our most popular songs are ones that are melancholic and blissful. Alone is definitely on the more emo side and really is a song about being abandoned and being resilient through the aftermath. So many kids these days are raised in broken families which cause them to have the fear of being alone. Such fear is so powerful it can subdue you into accepting unacceptable circumstances. The lyrics cry out to the darkness knowing nothing would change. Only after going through extreme heartbreak can we truly learn to love ourselves.

iEDM: What was the process behind creating each of the buildups in “Skeletons” and how did they differ from one another?

BEAUZ: Creating the buildups for Skeletons was definitely a happy accident. The goal for the first drop was to create an intro for the drop that instantly grabs people’s attention. For the second drop, we want to make the buildup as intense as possible.

iEDM: How would you describe psypop to someone who’s never heard it before?

BEAUZ: Emotional and blissful instrumental and vocal climaxed by high-tempo and energetic drops that usually involve elements of surprise.

iEDM: How did you come up with the name BEAUZ and what does it symbolize?

BEAUZ: BEAUZ is pronounced like the speaker: Bose. It originated from the French word beaux, which means ‘stylish young man’. We changed the x to a z because we can.

iEDM: How has your bond as brothers strengthened during your musical journey? What are the best benefits of being family members and working on your artistic vision together?

BEAUZ: We are very grateful to have each other on this journey because our personalities and abilities complement each other in a lot of ways. We’ve learned that the most important thing is to reach the top together and take care of each other and our family.

iEDM: What impact does your Indonesian and Chinese roots have on your production style and overall project?

BEAUZ: We grew up listening to a lot of Mandarin Pop music. We also go to Bali a lot so the penchant for kalimbas definitely came from that.

iEDM: Which artists did you look up to the most throughout your childhood and why? What artists would you love to collab with in 2023?

BEAUZ: It’s quite interesting because besides the previously mentioned Mandarin Pop, the second biggest childhood musical influence was Hip-Hop and R&B music from artists like Justin Timberlake, Timbaland, Kanye West, Chris Brown, etc. The music and fashion from that era will forever be ingrained in our identity.

We’d love to collaborate with Tiësto. His consistency is out of this world. We’re not too shabby either. We can confidently say that our music that’s scheduled to be released this year is definitely up his alley.

iEDM: In 2020, you hosted Blockeley virtual festival featuring a star-studded lineup on Minecraft. What were the top highlights from Blockeley? What do you envision for the future of these music-and-gaming hybrid events?

BEAUZ: Honestly, the best thing that came out of creating Blockeley Music Festival was seeing so many artists selflessly coming together to make the lives of people a little better in a really unfortunate period of time in history. This is only made possible through virtual platforms that amassed a massive user base, such as games like Minecraft and Roblox. These platforms provide alternate solutions to bring together people who are otherwise bounded from meeting physically. We are just seeing the beginning of music and gaming hybrid events. We will see them break unimaginable boundaries.

BEAUZ · 2022

iEDM: What upcoming performances are you most excited about and why? Are there ongoing projects that you can hint at for your fans to look forward to?

BEAUZ: We’re absolutely stoked for Marquee Singapore, Creamfields Hong Kong, Taiwan, and a full-on Japan tour! We plan to drop one or two EPs this year instead of all singles like last year, LFG.

Photos courtesy of BEAUZ