EX.781 Paul van Dyk

RA Podcast

Resident Advisor

Music

4.7 • 662 Ratings

🗓️ 29 October 2025

⏱️ 26 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The German legend talks about the state of modern trance, what it takes to create a legacy and writing his most recent album. Poll the average dance music fan and they'll have almost certainly heard of Paul van Dyk. The German DJ and producer is so synonymous with trance that it's impossible to talk about the genre's history without mentioning his name. He's also been one of the most successful electronic artists full-stop since the '90s, when he first started touring around Berlin. His 1994 hit "For an Angel" launched him into the limelight, and he's been selling out clubs and arenas ever since. In this RA Exchange recorded at the Berlin Synth Museum, he reflected on the current state of trance and how its modern DJs are missing the mark; his lifelong engagement with politics and his efforts to enlist Americans to vote alongside Bono; his experience growing up in East Berlin; and a life-threatening accident he suffered at a festival in Utrecht, which left him with multiple spine and brain injuries. He said the experience taught him to cherish every part of life, and that love is the greatest and most healing power that exists. Van Dyk's most recent album is called This World is Ours, and in this conversation he unpacks the accompanying tour and some of the key themes that run through the tracks—namely, the rise of AI and our need to unite in the face of a non-human ruling elite. You can watch it on our YouTube channel, or listen to the episode in full. -Chloe Lula

Transcript

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0:00.0	RA Exchange.
0:19.4	Welcome to Resident Advisors Exchange. I'm your host and the Exchange's senior producer, Chloe Lula.
0:26.0	Paul is the average electronic music fan, and I can almost guarantee that they will have heard of Paul Van Dyke,
0:32.6	and name so synonymous with trance that it's impossible to talk about the genre's history without mentioning his name.
0:39.3	The German DJ and producer has been one of the most successful artists in electronic music since the 90s
0:45.3	when he first started touring the Berlin circuit. His hit for an angel launched him into the limelight when it came out in 1994 and he's been selling out stadiums ever since.
0:57.6	We touched on a huge range of subjects in this conversation at the Berlin Synth Museum, which was squeezed into one of the few free gaps in his schedule between flights.
1:07.8	Van Dyck spent time reflecting on the current state of trans and how modern trans
1:11.8	DJs are missing the mark. His lifelong engagement with politics and his efforts to enlist
1:17.3	Americans to vote alongside Bono, his experience growing up in East Berlin, and a life-threatening
1:23.6	accident he suffered from at a festival in Utrecht, which left him with multiple spine
1:28.5	and brain injuries.
1:30.4	He told me that the experience taught him to cherish every part of life and that love is the
1:35.8	greatest and most healing power that exists.
1:39.6	Paul Van Dyck's most recent album is called The World is Ours, and we briefly touched
1:43.7	on the album tour
1:44.7	and some of the key themes that run through the tracks. Van Dyck is a very humble and thoughtful
1:50.0	guest, and I thoroughly enjoyed the time we shared over this conversation. You can watch
1:56.0	it in full on our YouTube channel or stay tuned to listen to the audio. Thanks so much for joining us.
2:01.5	Next up, Paul Van Dyck.
2:06.8	Hello, Paul Van Dyck.
2:08.2	Hello, hi.
	...

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