After nearly 24 years in the music industry as both a soloist and member of supergroup Swedish House Mafia, Steve Angello has seen it all — superstar collaborations, Billboard chart hits, and some of the biggest festival stages in the world — and he shows no signs of slowing down.
The DJ-producer released his latest single “Hooligans” on Oct. 25, followed by several shows, including a sold-out night at the Brooklyn Mirage. “Hooligans” leans into the darker, rave-oriented side of Angello and Swedish House Mafia’s sounds. The house music legend stopped by Billboard News to share the inspiration behind the single and more of his biggest hits.
“I was playing Coachella and I needed that energy and that old ravey kind of Hoover sound,” Angello says of his single. “It was straight made for the show. It was to get an effect. The vocals were chopped up for the live production, so it was super ‘Steve Angello’ music. And then I decided to put it out.”
He also opens up about his past work with Swedish House Mafia, reflected on their 2022 Coachella co-headlining set with The Weeknd, and teased what the group has coming up. “Especially with us, there’s always a lot in the works,” Angello shares. “We’ve made so much music in the past couple years, so we’re just going to have this flow of putting out records.”
Watch the full interview — including the story behind platinum record “Moth to a Flame” with The Weeknd, Angello’s thoughts on the current state of dance music, and how Swedish House Mafia’s collaboration process has evolved — above.