An Artist Manager, Nick Royaards is based in Antwerp, Belgium and he manages the top figures in the scene such as Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Lost Frequencies, 3 Are Legend, Yves V, Angemi and more heavily contributing to this industry as a professional artist manager. It is rare case to put the spotlight on artist manager and reveal their efforts behind the scene supporting DJs/Producers under the spotlight so, let’s hear what his roles are and how the industry is going to evolve in the near future.  

Q1. What’s your day to day role as an artist manager?

You got a couple of days’ time? Haha. You better ask me what I don’t do.

Well, I am the artist manager for Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and Lost Frequencies to name just a few. Two world class acts from my home country Belgium. But what I notice, is that people never really understand what “artist manager” exactly means. And if you ask me, it’s a combining term for a whole bunch of jobs.  People think that artist managers are private jetting around the world, wining & dining in the best restaurants and sleeping in 5 stars hotels, and while all of that is true and it’s the nice part of the job, it’s also only about 5% of all the workload. You gotta understand I’m on the phone 24/7, I’m the strategist, operations manager, bookings agent, dealmaker, problem solver, psychologist, nutritionist, organizer, counsellor, etc. Every artist is different and has very different needs and it’s my job to give them the best possible service and make them happy. Something that of course only works when there is mutual respect.

Q2. Could you tell us a bit about your history and how you got into your role? 

In 2010 my company, Blue Flame was on the verge of becoming the largest producer of nightlife concepts in Belgium. In those days, we would be producing over 150 club nights/year for over 100,000 party people. “Bonthuys”, “The Unit”, “Déjà vu”, “Mob Nights”, “Blow” were some of the then famous brands we built from scratch. We were really amongst the pioneers who first brought Chuckie, Sebastian Ingrosso, Dadalife, Yellow Claw, DJ Jazzy Jeff, A-Trak, DJ Kool, DJ Premier and many others to Belgium. So it was only logical that we would be hosting a stage at Tomorrowland in their early years and do our thing. And that’s how the “Blue Flame stage” was born as a yearly tradition at the festival. I remember an old article in a Belgian newspaper stating that our stage was the hottest place on the entire festival. Sweat was dripping from the ceiling. I don’t know if that is true, but we sure knew how to throw a party! Now fast forward to 2012/2013. At that time I was having regular talks about future opportunities with one of the two owners of the amazing festival and that’s how I started co-managing Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and also Yves V. We are over 4 years into it now and I can only say it has been an absolute amazing adventure. It’s great to see how all the hard work is really paying off now. You see, when I came on board, the guys were ranked #38 on the DJ Mag Top 100 DJ’s, last year we made it all the way to the #1 spot! 

So things are really going well, so well we decided to take on another very talented act, “Lost Frequencies”, together with Dimitri who discovered him at an early stage with myself.

Q3. What’s it like managing Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike as well as other huge artists such as Lost Frequencies?

Every artist is different and has very different needs. The superstar status doesn’t really change anything about that. For me, the most important aspect is to listen to my acts and help bring their visions to life. You know these types of amazingly creative and passionate artists who really know where they want to go, so my job is to layout the framework and get it all done. I have to guide them all the way to the top and at the same time bring peace into their lives. It’s all about balancing. Many people underestimate the lives these guys lead. They think it’s all sunshine and rainbows but that's a big misconception. Artists on this level are continuously travelling, from one time-zone to the other, airports, planes, hotels, clubs, festivals, lack of sleep. If they don’t have the right guidance, things can go south pretty fast.

Q4. Do you have any tips for people looking to get into the management side of the music industry?

Get prepared for the wildest rollercoaster ride you will ever experience in your life! And I really mean that.

Q5. What are the biggest challenges you face as an artist manager? 

So many to name, daily you face new problems to solve. Managing major league artists is everything but easy, it's a full-time 24/7 job that you wake up with and go to sleep with but I love it. I always keep my eyes on the target and that makes it easier for me to deal with all the bumps and hurdles we run into on the road to success.

Q6. Where do you think the sound of dance music is heading in 2017?

I see it stronger than ever. If you see how it has evolved over the past years I think it has enormous potential. Electronic music is featured in every pop Top 40 radio station these days, that is something that a decade ago was totally unthinkable. The Asian market is going totally crazy for electronic music nowadays so I’m pretty sure that is going to give the scene a serious boost in the coming years. We will probably also see a great variety of new sub-genres surfacing and that's good, I see a very bright and interesting future ahead."

Q7. You also work on huge events such as ‘Bringing Home The Madness’ and ‘Lost Frequencies & Friends’. Could you tell us a bit more about plans for these in 2017?

Correct but our 'Bringing The Madness' concerts are one big team effort and we have succeeded big time. It's an amazing partnership between Dimitri, Mike, myself and the extremely talented creative team of Tomorrowland. Last November, we played the Veltins Arena in Germany (home of the soccer team Schalke 04) for 45,000 people in one single night, where we broke the record of the biggest DJ solo show in Germany. That was absolutely insane. And then, in December, we did 4 sold out shows in the Antwerp Arena (Sportpaleis, Belgium) for a total of 84.000 people. We will definitely keep on doing these although it’s still a challenge to keep re-inventing ourselves as we keep on striding to bring this to the next level every year.

Q8. Are you working with any exciting new artists this year?

You know, I just turned 30, I’m really just getting started! I love this whole management business and so I absolutely want to grow in that field. With my existing acts, that means keeping on re-inventing ourselves and what we do now so we stay fresh and exciting. Then of course I’m always looking for new opportunities. That can be great major league DJ’s who are looking for a fresh boost in their careers or new upcoming talent that I feel I can bring to the top. Either way, I want to keep on working with great, passionate artists and make sure they can reach as many people as possible with their music.

Nick Royaards has created great achievements within few years and in 2013, working along with Tomorrowland team, produced the biggest festival ever. Other than that, he produced “Bringing Home The Madness”, “House of Madness” and “Lost Frequencies & Friends” as the creative director and now managing the superstar Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and Lost Frequencies. Thinking about EDM 24/7 and devoting his life to work, Nick Royaards is going to be a huge contribution to the industry and we will soon see his efforts once again. Let’s hear about his next success story soon.