There is no doubt that tyDi is the prodigal son of dance music in Australia.
The Queensland-born 27-year-old, better known as Tyson Illingworth, at least still to his mother has been DJing/ producing for 11 years, since he signed to Armin Van Burren’s Armada label as a fresh-faced teenager.
Four years later he became the national Inthemix No.1 DJ — the first non New South Wales winner — and backed it up again the next year, becoming the youngest person to ever take these honours. Furthermore, in 2010 he won 'Best Break-Through DJ' at the International Dance Music Awards.
That would be enough for any kid from the Sunshine Coast who grew up listening to punk bands, but not Tyson. “It's weird, it's not like one day you wake up and you go, 'I've made it'. It's like when you look in the mirror, you don't just look in the mirror one day and say, 'Oh, I'm old’. You look everyday and notice yourself getting older, you notice yourself growing,” he says.
“I grew up listening to bands like Blink-182, Taking Back Sunday, The Used. My favourite band was Dashboard Confessional. I was really into bands, I was a drummer for five years. I thought I was going to be a drummer in a rock band until my heart fell into dance music."
“People seem to be getting into this Melbourne Bounce stuff pretty hard, which I'm not the biggest fan of... it's just beat and a kick drum and a bendy sound, there's no real musicality to it.”
For the last decade tyDi has been spinning music for thousands upon thousands of people all across the globe earning a loyal worldwide following, enforcing his success on the dance charts and becoming one of the biggest names in the EDM world.
Though it may seem like success came overnight, Tyson has been hard at work mastering his craft long before he had any dreams of mixing his music for the world despite the haters. “I got my first set of decks when I was 15. When I was 16 I was teaching myself on turntables, entering myself into local DJ competitions. I was that nerdy kid at kid at school,” he says. “Kids used to throw shit at me and call me loser because I was into dance music.”
While the kids throwing “shit” at him in high school wish they’d been more diplomatic, Tyson has found the best form of revenge — success. His first album, ‘Look Closer’, reached No. 2 on the Australian Dance Music Charts while his sophomore effort, ‘Shooting Stars’, reached No. 1 on the Australian, Canadian, Finnish and UK iTunes Dance Charts while shacking up a very respectable fifth on the US chart.
“I have a place in Brisbane,” he says about his home town that up until recently he was still trying to live in. “I've got an apartment and a studio there, but just working on my new album and touring so much, it got too much and I had to sacrifice my friends and family and base myself over [in LA]. I've been living here full-time for about six months... the biggest transition is leaving everything you know behind. I'm lucky because my record label, my manager, my publisher; they are all based in LA so my whole team was here to support me and it was a lot easier than I was anticipating.”
Last year tyDi inked a worldwide publishing and recording deal with Universal Music which not only meant another face-melting-mind-busting-jaw-breaking album was underway (this year’s highly anticipated ‘Redefined’) but it also gave tyDi the resources that come with signing to one of the biggest record labels on the planet, making for a broad and defiant release that warps the way electronic music is created. “In my eyes it's musically stronger,” he says about the upcoming album.
“In the past I didn't have access or the opportunity to work with the bands and songwriters I got to work with on this one. I got to record with bands like Dashboard Confessional and The Ready Set, and it's a whole different dynamic. We just think about writing good songs and every single song on the album could be broken down to something you could play on a guitar and sing... some of the tracks have live string quartets, duets, live rock drums – it's pretty out there but very strong.”
It seems the punk rock background and classical music training from the Qld Conservatorium has been the critical ingredient that has widened that gap between tyDi and the rest of the EDM world. “I listen to more bands than I do dance music because I find a lot of the dance music I listen to today is very dumbed down. It works for particular people and people love dance music but at heart I am a songwriter as opposed to just making a beat.
“I like making songs with lyrics and a story, so on the new album I've worked mostly with bands and songwriters to try and create different moods and different styles.”
Having started in Brisbane as a resident DJ at The Family for three years and playing sold out shows around the country before he was even old enough to buy a drink, Tyson hasn't been able to make it back for a solid victory lap in quite a while, until now. “I'm excited and a little nervous,” he says about his homecoming tour.
“I've been away for a long time and the scene in Australia changed a lot. People seem to be getting into this Melbourne Bounce stuff pretty hard, which I'm not the biggest fan of... it's just beat and a kick drum and a bendy sound, there's no real musicality to it.
“I'm slightly scared that my music might not translate across, but then again I have a lot of faith in my fans. Australia raised me, all those people who came to my shows over the years are the ones who shot my career to where it is now... I'm hoping for that kind of support.
“Coming back is going to feel pretty special. The whole tour is going to be pretty nostalgic, I think.”
'Redefined' is set for release September 30.
Tydi Tour Dates
Fri Jul 25 - Alumbra (Melbourne)Fri Jul 25 - Ciroq (Melbourne)
Sat Jul 26 Marquee (Sydney)
Fri Aug 1 - The Family (Brisbane)
Sat Aug 2 - Platinum (Gold Coast)
Fri Aug 8 - Toucan Club (Mandurah)
Sat Aug 9 - Wharf Tavern (Sunshine Coast)
