Jay Hardway is a legend within the electronic dance music scene, his iconic recognisable sound is adored by fans all over the globe. A serious musical force, Jay boasts millions of plays and sales to his impressive anthology and has performed at some of the world?s most prestigious stages.
Jay looks to make 2020 his year with a few surprises up his sleeve and we caught up with him to discuss his recent travels, favourite hometown hangouts and what’s coming up.
We hear that you’ve recently been to Namibia. Tell us a bit more about your trip?
My trip was amazing. Such a beautiful country, surrounded by incredible people and nature. In order to take everything in and fully relax, I left my phone off for almost the entire 3 weeks. I highly recommend this to everyone who is up for an adventure and likes to be able to switch off for a couple weeks!
When you’re back home in The Netherlands, where do you tend to hang out?
Best Coffee in town.
Village Bagels at the Vijzelstraat in Amsterdam the coffee is pretty good! (I haven’t tried the bagels yet haha) But nothing really beats my own filter coffee I make in my studio haha.
Top 5 Bars/Pubs.
Cafe Plekk – Great location on the North side of the city with a beach type vibe
CT Coffee & Coconuts – Former cinema turned into a lush oasis where they actually serve fresh coconuts ( and coffee of course)
A’Dam Look out – Former head quarter of SHELL turned into offices, hotel and a bar on the 19th floor with stunning views over the city and their famous swing!
Cafe Nol – Traditional Amsterdam cafe from the 60?s. When you enter it feels like you walked into a time capsule. Karaoke every night!
Door 74 – Cocktail bar in the centre of Amsterdam. A hidden gem, it?s not advertised and hard to find as it?s hidden behind a black door but serves amazing cocktails. The Interior is inspired by the roaring 20?s.
Top 5 eating joints.
Bar Alt – probably my favourite restaurant, pairing amazing food with beer!
Cafe Kadijk – my favourite place for Indonesian food.
Rakang at the Elandsgracht – In my opinion the best Thai food in town.
De Bazar – Amazing North-African / Middle eastern food.
Where do you go to relax?
To my parents in Drunen (in the south of Holland). There is a national park called ?Drunense Duinen? and it?s the perfect place to relax/switch off. Not a lot of tourists know about this place, but it?s only a 1 hour drive (by car) from Amsterdam.
Where do you go to party?
Duke of Tokyo, it?s a karaoke bar in Amsterdam with private rooms. The interior is amazing, built to look like the streets of Tokyo. Karaoke is a good way to go crazy or just have some beers and have fun. It?s also good when you have friends that are a bit shy, as soon as they take the mic they are normally the loudest in the room!
You travel all over the world on tour. Where are your favourite places to visit and why?
I love Tokyo and Japan in general. Super nice people, a lot of great fans and great food over there. I also love New York, as I have some really good friends over there.
What are the 5 essential items you take on tour?
Laptop, to make edits and music for my show. Headphones, to DJ. SD-cards, with all my music. Clean clothes and maybe most importantly for me: SUNSCREEN.
What’s coming up next for you?
For the next couple of months I?ll mostly be in the studio finishing stuff and taking it easy. A new release is set for early April this year, so stay tuned! I might travel to Stockholm soon to work on music together with Swedish song writers. Stockholm is a great city to get inspired with a lot of very talented artists. In March I have a show in Turkey which I?m very excited for, I haven?t been to Turkey for over 3 years. London is also on the calendar in March, also one of my favourite cities.
You can follow Jay’s tips for Amsterdam on our Beatstravellers app. Available for download on IOS and Android now.
You can keep up to date with Jay on his socials below.
