Moonsound: From Event Promoter To Running A Hugely Successful Label

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Nexus Lounge Amsterdam ADE 2022

DJ Moonsound joined us at the Audionamix popup studio in the Nexus Lounge, Amsterdam.

Moonsound has made quite the name for himself in recent years. Dubbed one of the biggest names in the Romanian electronic scene, he has risen through the ranks and developed his signature style, allowing him to work with some of the greatest in the business.

His party brand, Teddy Bear, has allowed Moonsound to host countless parties featuring icons of the dance world; Groove Armada, Claptone, Jan Blomqvist, and Gorgon City are just a few. Paired with his releases being massive hits – 20 million streams over 50 releases – Moonsound is a force to be reckoned with in today’s music world.

In our interview, we spoke to Moonsound about his new label, sampling, and the impact of COVID-19 on his career.

A typical comment from artists we interviewed at the Nexus Lounge at this year’s ADE is that they have enjoyed being around other artists post-COVID. Moonsound adds to this and says that his ADE consisted of “a lot of seeing faces because the pandemic was a little bit difficult for everyone”. He adds: “It’s really good evolving in digital, but it’s nice sometimes to see the faces that you work with.”

The pandemic had quite an impact on Moonsound’s workflow, causing him to pursue previously untouched territories in his career. He explains:

“The pandemic pushed me to the label and the production side because I was a promoter and doing events. And when I was at home, I started to think more about the different sides of music that I can be involved in. And we put up a studio; [it’s] getting bigger [and] bigger, more people coming, joining the team, the full team now.”

His go-with-the-flow attitude and work etiquette has resulted in his label hitting 30 million streams in just 10 months. The label, I NAME IT, is based in Bucharest and is dedicated to putting Romania on the map and building its reputation as a home of high-quality electronic music.

Sampling is a bastion of the electronic music genre and is fairly easy to use but incredibly difficult to master creatively. Moonsound describes how The Prodigy used sampling most creatively. “They used the sampling in an amazing way that inspired me and made me understand that using a good sample in a very creative way, it’s also defining as an artist”, he says. “The way you can shape it, not using it as the original sample, just play with it.”

To listen to the full interview, click the link below: