Oliver Heldens

Dutch electronic dance music maker Oliver Heldens ranks among the leading architects of the future house movement. Although his productions draw from a wide array of club genres such as techno and breakbeat house, the recordings that brought him widest recognition—most notably the 2014 U.K. chart-topper “Gecko (Overdrive)”—fuse deep house grooves with big-room energy and progressive house structures. Material issued under his own name generally favors melodic lines while retaining a funky character. Beginning in 2015, he also began issuing darker, more intense club cuts via the alias HI-LO. He reappeared on the mainstream charts in 2019 with the Riton and Vula Malinga collaboration “Turn Me On,” then continued issuing singles alongside Kylie Minogue, Firebeatz, Funkin Matt, and additional partners. In 2024 he joined Ian Asher for a club rework of Sérgio Mendes’ “Mas Que Nada.”

Heldens launched his recording career in early 2013 with a small run of singles on the CR2 imprint. That same year proved decisive: he delivered a remix of Martin Garrix’s hit “Animals,” placed two new tracks—“Stinger” and “Thumper”—on Spinnin’ Records, and linked with Oxygen Records for the release of “Onya” featuring Alvar and Millas. Around the same time “Gecko” gained traction among leading DJs; Pete Tong declared it his “Essential New Tune” in January 2014, prompting Tiësto to sign the record to his Musical Freedom label. Heldens also reworked Robin Thicke’s “Feel Good” and performed at major European festivals that summer, including Tomorrowland and Creamfields. A vocal edition titled “Gecko (Overdrive),” featuring The Voice U.K. contestant Becky Hill, reached number one on the U.K. singles chart upon its June 2014 release. Before year’s end he scored another U.K. Top Five hit with “Last Night (Koala)” featuring KStewart. He placed thirty-fourth on DJ Mag’s Top 100 DJs of 2014 list, and after his Essential Mix for BBC Radio 1, Tong described him as “one of the breakthrough producers of the year.”

In 2015 Heldens inaugurated his Heldeep Records imprint with the single “Renegade Mastah” by HI-LO, later disclosed as a new Heldens project. Under his primary moniker he issued solo cuts such as “Melody” and “Bunnydance,” plus joint releases with Da Hool, Zeds Dead, and Tiësto—including the 2016 U.K. Top 40 entry “The Right Song.” He supplied remixes for the Chainsmokers, Katy Perry, Calvin Harris, and others. The 2017 single “What the Funk” featuring Danny Shah was followed by a Dim Mak remix from Steve Aoki. The next year he reworked Sofi Tukker’s “Best Friend” (with Nervo, the Knocks, and Alisa Ueno) and paired with Sidney Samson for “Riverside 2099.”

Early 2019 brought the single “Summer Lover” featuring Devin and Nile Rodgers. Heldens and Riton then recruited vocalist Vula Malinga for “Turn Me On,” which sampled the synth hook from Yaz’s “Don’t Go”; the track became a global success, earning gold or platinum certifications across multiple territories and topping Billboard’s Dance Club Songs chart. Later that year he issued “Lift Me Up” with Firebeatz, Schella, and Carla Monroe. Throughout 2020 he released numerous singles, among them “Details” featuring Boy Matthews, “Break This Habit” featuring Kito Bun, and “Freedom for My People” with Shungudzo. Early 2021 saw the appearance of “Never Look Back,” co-written and performed by Syd Silvair. Heldens subsequently dropped the breakbeat-oriented “Zapdos” under his own name, along with further HI-LO material, the MorganJ collaboration “Ma Luv,” “Another Chance” with Roger Sanchez, and “Deja Vu” featuring Anabel Englund.

During 2022 he released a cover of KISS’s “I Was Made for Lovin’ You” that included Chic’s Nile Rodgers and the House Gospel Choir, the Tchami and Englund track “LOW,” and a Piero Pirupa-assisted reworking of Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall” retitled “We Don’t Need.” The year closed with “Believe in Ghosts” alongside warner case and additional HI-LO singles such as the DJ Deeon-sampling “Wanna Go Bang.” In 2023 he unveiled the Yazoo-referencing “Oops” sung by Karen Harding, followed by “Disco Voyager.” He also partnered with Kylie Minogue on “10 Out of 10,” which appeared on her album Tension. Further 2023 releases included a cover of New Order’s “Blue Monday” with vocalist JD Davis, the Shantel collaboration “Bucovina 2023,” and “Out of Love”—a variation on Hall & Oates’ “Out of Touch”—featuring WeiBird. Heldens and Ian Asher closed the period with a 2024 club version of Sérgio Mendes’ “Mas Que Nada.”