Up-and-coming DJ and producer Bradley James is a fast-moving talent that’s picking up support way beyond expectations. The Staffordshire based talent has been hitting high notes since the very start, signing a deal with Treatment within his first year in the business and landing support on BBC Introducing.
Taking the Dance music world by storm with his debut single ‘Charger’, released through Matchbox Recordings he’s kept the momentum going with another enticing project by the name of ‘Visionary’. Drawing influences from A-list acts such as: Michael Woods, Nicky Romero, Afrojack and his musical idol Deadmau5, Bradley has come up with his own style, rapidly moving away from his humble DJ beginnings to become a fully fledged distinctive producer.
Bradley James’ style draws inspiration from various branches of House music, spicing things up with hints of Electro and Deeper sounds, whilst going back to old-school concepts brought forward by the likes of EDX and earlier deadmau5 material.
We’ve caught up with Bradley following his trip to Ibiza where he’s attended IMS and we had a chat with him about how things turned out for him at the event.
Hey Bradley, how are you and how was it in Ibiza?
Ibiza was great! Had some very interesting and promising meetings that will, fingers-crossed, lead to some great things in the near future.
What’s the weather like there?
It couldn’t make its mind up. One minute it was raining, the next there wasn’t a cloud in the sky – the minute I got hot and put some shorts on, it was thrash it down for an hour or so!
Was this your first time in Ibiza and would you go back?
Yes this was the first time, and I would 100% go back! Didn’t get a lot of time to explore the island but just from what I saw, it was incredible and the evidence of love for music is everywhere you go.
Ibiza is one of the main electronic music hotspots in the world. Was it as you’d expected?
Definitely. IMS this year was just before the main part of the season kicks off, so I think if I went in July it would be completely different because of both the energy and just the sheer volume of people that would be there.
You’ve spent 3 days in Ibiza for IMS – how’s the whole experience been?
Very interesting to be honest, it’s kind of opened my eyes to what the music industry is really like and what some of the people are like. I noticed that a lot of people there knew each other some way or another… Everywhere you went, there were people saying “you need to come and meet this guy, and that guy” and so on, so it made me realise just how important contacts are in this industry.
The aim of IMS is to be an educational and inspirational hotspot for electronic music artists and lovers. What were the main learning points from this experience?
As I just said, the main thing I gained from it all was the fact that – aside from the actual music – contacts are one of the most important parts of this business. Everyone you meet, you have to exploit their contacts in a way, to make as many friends as possible.
Which part of IMS was the most enjoyable or memorable?
As a younger and less-experienced producer, the seminars and talks were the most useful to me, as there were a lot of powerful and useful people discussing how new artists can grow and develop. On the other hand, the interview with Trevor Horn was also really interesting because it gave an insight into what this industry was like in the 80’s and how it has changed.
What were your aims or expectations before going there and have you been successful in achieving them?
I had a few meetings set up whilst there, so the main aim was to gain as much as possible from those – IMS is a great place for meeting contacts from all over the world. As for the actual summit itself, I was expecting to do a lot more networking, but I think as a new, relatively unknown artist, I was way out of position to be able to talk to some of the people there, as I felt that the only way they were interested in you in any way is if you had people talking about you to them, rather than you directly talking to them. So, I think it was predominantly more for experienced people in the industry when it comes to the networking side of things, but the seminars and talks were brilliant for the less-experienced people.
Describe a typical day during IMS.
It really varies from person to person, but for me I wanted to see quite a few of the talks and seminars, so I would spend the majority of the day sitting in the conference room, and then going off for a meeting, then back to the conference room. Then in the evening, there’s music everywhere you go, both chilled out areas and more energetic areas.
Attending IMS is certainly quite expensive. Do you think the whole IMS adventure has been beneficial for you and worth the money? Why?
It’s difficult to say. At my level of experience in the industry, I would say it is not worth as much as it costs. Although the seminars are great, the networking side of things is just swamped with experienced people that seem to only care for people with equal experience and knowledge. For a more experienced artist, it would be absolutely brilliant and 100% worth it.
In what ways has IMS changed your perspective on the electronic music scene?
Massively! It’s shown me how important the business side to things is, and that there are so many roles available in the industry to try and make an artist more successful.
If you could choose, what would you change or add to this event?
I think there definitely should be a more structured networking system, maybe with a dedicated area where businesses could setup a stand or something and you can go over to them and speak to them about what they can offer etc. whereas now, you just go anywhere to talk to people and you feel that the only people you can speak to are people you already know – which is my case was very little.
Would you recommend IMS for young, up-and-coming DJs and producers like yourself and why?
Right now, I would say no, purely because you feel kind of lost there unless you have contacts there too. If you have a manager who knows people there, brilliant, 100% it would beneficial for you to go, but for someone with no contacts, I would save the money and watch the seminars online!
Any final thoughts?
This is one of the most competitive industries, and it is so clear to me now that nowadays people are in it to make money and that’s it.
Thanks a lot Bradley!
Check out IMS here: www.internationalmusicsummit.com/
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