KUALA LUMPUR, April 13 — For acclaimed Dutch DJ Hardwell, life is perfect at the moment.
The 37-year-old who’s now in his third year since returning from his sabbatical is already off to a strong start this year, with one highlight being his closing of the 25th Ultra Music Festival in Miami last month.
And more recently, Hardwell made his return to Malaysia’s capital after seven years — performing at the Neon Music Festival on April 11 — delivering yet another momentous set which left over 10,000 festival goers at KL Base, Bandar Malaysia in Sungai Besi elevated.
“Malaysia was one of the first places (that I’ve performed at) when I started touring internationally back in 2008. I did my first Malaysia show in Zouk KL.
“I love Malaysia and it’s really great to be back. It’s a great festival, so it’s an honour to be here,” he said.
Life After Sabbatical
Talking to local media just before he hit the main stage, Hardwell, or real name Robbert van de Corput, said that he is really enjoying life at the moment, especially as he is living more healthily nowadays and he seems to have found the sweet spot of work-life balance.
Aside from having a routine of working out up to five times a week, the DJ Mag’s two times World Number One DJ admitted that he nowadays tries to stop drinking whenever he’s on the deck.
“I’m living super healthy now and I only do 30 shows (for world tours) per year and I have time for my private life, I have time for my studio work.
“For example, tonight I’m playing here, tomorrow (April 12) I will go to Bangkok for another show and after that I will go back to the studio for one month straight, so no travelling, just making new music.
“I think finding the right balance really works for me,” Hardwell said, adding that surrounding himself with friends and a team with good vibes and energy also keeps him going.
Despite hitting the pause button on live performances for four years from 2018 to 2022, Hardwell kept cooking in the studio, resulting in tracks like his latest single, Sanctuary.
The Happy Accident
The Neon Music Festival, which took place on April 11, saw over 10,000 festival-goers coming in droves to KL Base, Bandar Malaysia. — Picture courtesy of Neon Music Festival 2025.
During his milestone show at Ultra Music Festival 25, Hardwell debuted Sanctuary as the opening song to his set; however, the single was not released on streaming platforms until the morning of April 11 which coincided with his comeback show at Neon Music Festival that evening.
Talking about the coincidence, Hardwell said that it was a ‘happy accident’ explaining that the release date was chosen because his label, Revealed Records, wanted to do something special for their 15th anniversary.
“Sanctuary was just released today (April 11) and it means a lot to me because it’s the first vocal song that I released after my sabbatical.
“And obviously I did the album ‘Rebels Never Dies’ but that album is fully instrumental with only small spoken words and working with a singer and song writing– Yea, it’s been a while since I did that,” he said.
The track’s official video which featured the vocals of singer Caryln has been viewed over 40,000 times on Youtube since its release.
After a roughly one-month break following his show in Bangkok, Thailand, Hardwell will be heading to Poland next for the ING Silesia Beats 2025 music festival happening at Park Slaski this June 20.
