Blessing fans alike with his unique ‘Punk Rave’ sound, German DJ and record producer STVW opens up on an array of subjects in this interview that cannot go amiss.
Looking to leave his own distinct mark within the electronic dance industry, STVW is the true embodiment of an act that has dedicated his life into mastering the craft he is so passionate about. Renowned for his unique approach towards music production, the German DJ and record producer leaves no doubt to the imagination, with his immersive fusion of dance music and pop-punk or rock elements, resulting in his own sound known as ‘Punk Rave.’ Multifaceted to say the least, we could not be any more thrilled to be joined by the man of the moment, as he talks main inspirations and influences, the origin of his style of play, the creating of his own sound, taking over the scene with his live performances, future plans and so much more.
Hello and thank you for joining us! Could you provide us with an insight on the main inspirations/influences that led to your chosen career pathway in music?
“Hey thank you so much for having me! I grew up listening to bands like blink-182, Sum 41, Simple Plan, My Chemical Romance etc.. and have always been a huge fan of Pop-Punk and Emo music. Around 2012/2013 when I started producing my own music, Big Room became really popular and I was heavily inspired by W&W, Hardwell or Blasterjaxx.”
Renowned for your unique approach towards music production, we would like to know the origin of your style of play, and how it may have evolved over time?
“When I started producing electronic music, I always tried to sound like the EDM artists I loved at the time. Remaking tracks or aiming for another artist’s sound is a great way to learn the basics of music production, but after a few years, as my skills improved, I realised that you need your own sound and style if you really want to stand out in the scene. After a lot of brainstorming and trial and error, I came up with the idea of combining my first passion — Pop-Punk and Emo — with EDM, because I had never heard anything like it before. It felt fresh, unique, and like a true reflection of who I am as a person. In the beginning, it was hard for label A&Rs and industry people to understand the concept, but there were a few who got the vision right away, supported it from day one, and helped me build the brand into what it is today.One of the first people to support me was Timmy Trumpet, who had already been playing my music for a while. When I sent him one of my first PUNK RAVE songs, he absolutely loved it. That’s how we ended up releasing our first collab, “The Money,” and later our second one at the beginning of this year — an officially approved cover of “All The Small Things” by my favourite band, blink-182. That was truly a dream come true!”
Creating your own genre in Punk Rave, could you talk us through the key elements that bring this sound to life, as well as the response it has received thus far?
“Basically, it’s a combination of the 2000s Pop-Punk, Emo, and Rock sound mixed with EDM. I approach my music production like I’m writing a Rock song to keep that organic feel, but then I switch out the drums in the chorus and add synths to give it that high-energy “MainStage EDM” vibe. I like to describe it as a Pop-Punk or Rock song on steroids — full of energy and built for big festival stages. You could play it at a Rock festival just as well as at an EDM festival. The nostalgia factor of the early 2000s sound plays a huge role in my music and production. I think that’s why so many people connected with my remixes of iconic songs from bands like Sum 41, Simple Plan, and Boys Like Girls. Nobody was really doing EDM versions of those songs, so I started posting short live clips of me playing them. After a bunch of videos with little traction, I finally had one that blew up — over 2 million views on TikTok and Instagram Reels — and the feedback from the community was incredible so I just kept going. That’s when I realized, “Okay, there are definitely a lot of people out there who resonate with this blend of genres”. Very soon some of those bands I´ve been a huge fan of since I was a teenager also started showing interest in my remixes of their songs and supported/reposted them or giving me official approval to release a cover version. The fact that these legendary bands actually enjoy something that started out as just a vision in my bedroom studio gave me so much motivation and proved to me once again that I need to keep going and that I can truly trust my gut feeling to achieve something.”
Garnering a strong social media following with each endeavour, we would like to know the impact this recognition is having on your career, and how rewarding it can be?
“Over the last few years, it’s become increasingly important for artists to be active and present on social media. If you don’t post consistently, you basically don’t exist anymore. Many festival promoters now check your Instagram or TikTok profiles to see how engaged your community is — so it’s not just about having a lot of followers. You need to build a real community that interacts with your posts and actually wants to come to your shows. The music itself is still important, of course, but creating content and promoting your music through that content has become just as essential. A lot of artists complain about how things work today, but I actually see it as a huge opportunity for newcomers to break through. Back in the day, you couldn’t just record a clip on your phone, post it, and have it go viral — leading to people discovering your music, using your songs in their videos, and helping you grow an audience. For me, social media has played a massive role in building a fanbase all over the world and getting noticed by festivals and promoters. That’s also why we’re now able to do our first own headline tour — just like bands traditionally do. We’re heading to the UK, Australia, Germany, Switzerland, and Canada on this run — and it’s all thanks to the fans who discovered my music through social media and the content I post.”
Performing at major festivals and venues worldwide, could you talks us through the preparation process behind each live performance, and the energy your shows omit?
“Of course! I usually have a very clear vision of what I want the show and overall production to look like — especially on bigger festival stages. I share all my ideas with my team, and together we try to bring them to life. My shows should stand out just as much as my music does and feel more like a concert rather than just a DJ set. That’s why I include live guitar playing in my sets and always try to engage and entertain the crowd as much as possible. With my new PUNK RAVE LIVE concept — where I perform with a drummer on stage and my live guitar parts are even more present — it’s basically like a band without a singer. This setup also gives us much more flexibility in the types of events we can play. As a regular DJ, it would be hard to get booked at a rock festival, for example — but with the PUNK RAVE LIVE show, we can totally make that work, and even pure rock fans can enjoy it. The show itself, just like the music, is full of high energy, and I always give everything I’ve got to make sure the crowd has the best experience possible.”
Pushing boundaries with your ‘Punk Rave LIVE’ concept, we would like to know the overall feel around this project, as well as any details on your upcoming tour?
“The idea for the PUNK RAVE LIVE concept was already in my head when I first started working on the early PUNK RAVE songs. I always wanted the live performance to stand out just as much as the music itself. The vision was to create a small band with me as the guitarist and “DJ,” and my drummer Martin — so we could perform these high-energy PUNK RAVE tracks live, while still keeping that rave feeling which I’ve never seen before. Basically, it’s a rave with a Punk-Rock band – The response from the community and promoters has been amazing, and it’s honestly still unreal to me that we’re now able to do our first own tour this year. We’ll be hitting cities across the UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, Switzerland, and several others in Europe in early 2026.”
Creating a lasting legacy of your own, could you provide us with any hints on what the future holds for STVW, always in terms of new music, upcoming collaborations and live performances?
“Right now I work on a lot of new original music – both solo projects and songs with amazing bands but I can’t reveal too much yet. So definitely stay tuned and hopefully I’ll see you somewhere around the world at one of my PUNK RAVE shows soon! You can find all the latest tour dates on my website www.stvwmusic.com and on my socials @stvwmusic. Thanks so much for having me!”
