MBW’s Key Songs in Life… is a series in which we ask influential music industry figures about the tracks that have defined their journey and existence to date. This time the person pressing the soul jukebox button was Maykel Piron, CEO and co-founder of Armada Music, one of the largest independent dance music labels in the world. The “Key Songs in Life…” series is supported by: Sony Music Publishing.
As Armada Music Group CEO and co-founder Maykel Piron herself jokes (only half): “I love collecting dance records, I always have. When I was 10 years old, I started buying vinyl records, and I still do. But now I Bought the rights to them too! Basically the same thing but a little more expensive and I get to do it with a great group of people.
Today, these deals are no longer done with a few euros at a local record store, but through the investment vehicle BEAT Music Fund, which plans to invest more than $500 million over the next five years.
The fund was launched in 2023 and is backed by Nashville-based Pinnacle Financial Partners. Since then, it has made more than a dozen acquisitions involving more than 20,000 assets, including works by artists, labels and publishers including KMS Records, ARTY, King Street Sounds, Chocolate Puma, Sola Records, VIVa MUSiC, Cloud and more. Full or partial ownership 9. Jax Jones.
“We understand and love the records involved in these deals, which makes them more than just deals to us. Because of that, a lot of artists and managers, they feel like what value we can add,” Piron said.
“Most of the artists who sell are still touring, so they want us to work with them because it’s better for their careers. I have to say, a lot of the people we’ve dealt with have been very positive about their experiences, which adds to the experience every day. We bring more opportunities. There are more deals in the pipeline.
Earlier this year, Armada reorganized and recorded its music under parent company Armada Music Group (Armada claims to be the world’s largest independent dance label, with more than 1 billion plays). , with offices in the Netherlands, the United States and the United Kingdom, and approximately 150 employees.
It’s a huge leap from when Piron started the company 21 years ago in partnership with Dutch DJ Armin van Buuren and booking agent David Lewis. Its growth (before being turbocharged by acquisitions over the past 18 months) has come from collaborations with some of the biggest names in dance, including Chicane, Paul Oakenfold, Lost Frequencies, Kevin Saunderson and, of course, van Buuren himself.
Looking back on Armada’s progress, Pilon said: “It’s always been a dream of mine to be where we are now. I don’t have too many aspirations anymore. It’s more about certain songs, artists or catalogs that we hope to get, which That’s the wish list.
“I’ve been doing this for over 30 years and I can’t think of doing anything else. It’s not just a hobby, but it definitely comes from being a hobby and from doing something that I loved and was obsessed with as a kid.
Here are seven of those obsessions…
1) Alexander O’Neill, Fake (1987)
My interest in dance music started when I was about 10 years old, and the way I listened to music was a learning exercise for something I still do now.
At that time, house music didn’t really exist yet, and it didn’t exist in a mainstream way.
I’m listening to the mix. These mixes are basically disco records, hip-hop records, and rap records. I’m listening to shows like Colonel Abrams (especially trapped), Mantronix, Public Enemy – they all shaped my musical taste. I’m also a big fan of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis’s work.
But if I had to pick one track from that era that shaped my musical taste and is still very helpful in what I’m doing, it would be fake Alexander O’Neill. That’s my most played song.
I also bought the album rumorwhen I would come home from school, I would play that record, especially that track, every day for months. It’s about the rhythm, the sound, everything.
It was also my first step into house music, because it was about 113 bpm, so people could mix it, and I was interested in that, about how records were mixed. This led me to buy my first turntable and start making my own.
2) “Promised Land”, Joe Smooth (1987)
There is a club called “Talk of the Town” in my hometown of Tilburg and I’m lucky because it plays really good dance music. In fact, I’ve been sneaking into clubs since I was 13 years old.
There was another bigger club in Amsterdam playing house music at the time. One day I walked in – I’m tall so I could get in the minors – and they were playing promised land Author: Joe Smooth.
House music has never really been soulful to me, but then I heard promised land Like, ‘Now, I get it, this is real house music to me’. I knew that if this was where the house was going, it was here to stay—because it had a soul.
The great thing is, 30 years after first hearing the song, because I could sneak into the club at age 13, I got in touch with Joe Smooth and we now own the rights to the song forever. It makes me proud to now have a real connection to a record that changed my life.
3) System F, Unexpected (1999)
I started working in the Dutch DMC (Disco Mix Club) music industry as a DJ promoter.
Of course, I wasn’t signing any music at the time, but two years later I started working for Purple Eye Records. I’m lucky that I can sign Armin’s music [van Buuren]Ferry Corsten, Tiesto, so I connected with some of the artists who later became the greatest DJs in the Netherlands.
then as a ferry [the artist behind System F] send to me Unexpected. In fact, the first time I heard this song was when he played it on my phone while I was on vacation. The melody won’t fade away for the rest of the holiday season. I was like, “Wait a minute, this is popular!”
So we pressed some vinyl and I asked Ferry to come into the office and make a special promotional version of the record. We sat on the floor and scratched out my cell phone number on vinyl to see what would happen. It took a long time, and I remember saying to him, “In a year, you’ll understand why we’re doing this.”
In fact, within 10 days, basically the entire UK music industry was calling me wanting to sign the song. Finally I signed it to Pete Tong from FFRR, who came to the Netherlands to see me.
It was my first top 15 hit in the UK, the first trance hit and the blueprint for many other trance records that followed. This also made Ferry an even greater DJ, beyond the Netherlands, to the UK and around the world.
I always wanted to succeed outside the Netherlands and this is where I started.
4) The motorcycle boom is coming (2004)
After working in independent music, I went to Warner Music. When I joined, I told them, “In a few years, I’m going to start my own brand.”
So, they knew from day one what my plans were, and I think they liked that honesty. Even while at Warners, I had created Armada in my head, one of the first players we signed.
We signed it from Gabriel and Dresden, who were one of the hottest production teams at the time. I listened to it over and over again and I thought the bassline was so great and thankfully I was able to seal the deal.
This song really started Armada because everyone was talking about it. We only had the Benelux rights, but people thought it was our global signing because we were the first label to put it out.
5) Armin Van Buren, This Is What It Feels Like (2013)
Amin is one of my partners in Armada, but he has always been a part of my career in the music industry.
I released his music on independent labels and Warners – in fact, I signed him to Warners. but this is what it feels like This was my first super hit song with Armin. This song brings back a lot of great memories for both of us.
Memories like signing it to Jason Ellis at Positiva in the UK where it went into the top 5 and Jason now works as A&R at our company. It was also nominated for a Grammy, so it took us to Los Angeles.
It’s become an evergreen song now, but I still vividly remember I was driving somewhere in Amsterdam when Amin sent me this song. I know this isn’t just a hit; this beat.
That’s why we spent a lot of time building it and then released it when people really wanted it – the results are amazing.
Amin was and still is one of the hardest working people in the industry. He knows exactly what he wants. This is what I saw in him 30 years ago and he hasn’t changed
He’s passionate about music and he wants to keep making and sharing music, that’s who he is.
6) Miguel Campbell, “Something Special” (2012)
I used to play this song in the car every morning as I drove to the office. This is the definition of a timeless record.
Because of this, Miguel and I got in touch through Instagram, we started chatting and eventually we signed his publication, including this song. This is where an Instagram relationship turns into a real relationship and a major deal.
This is a very sexy house record, the song is great, the bass line makes me smile, it’s so powerful.
7) Duke Dumont, Ocean Drive (2015)
Every year, when you get a list of the most played songs from Spotify, it’s always there. This is probably my most played song of the last ten years.
Surprisingly, when we purchased the catalog from Jax Jones, I found out that he was a co-creator and co-producer of the catalog, so we now have a small collection of my most played songs!
The great thing is, no matter how many times I play it, it still feels like a new record to me. I never get tired of it, it always makes me feel good, and that’s what the best music, especially the best dance music, should do.
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