Dreamstate Presents: Ferry Corsten, Gouryella, System F - "What The F!" Tour - Exchange LA

where the musician journey is the destination

I’ve been following Ferry Corsten for years. A DJ Mag Top 100 DJ, host of Resonation Radio, and absolute dance music icon, he travels the globe playing some of the most melodic music you’ve ever heard. And he does it with a smile on his face, too! Ferry has a few aliases including Gouryella and System F, but has always kept them separate… Until now. He is on the road showcasing a journey into his sound in all its splendour and diversity. This is where classic Ferry meets his future self. The tour is a culmination of his work rehashed, remixed, reinvented with a futuristic approach… Expect the unexpected.

When I heard What The F was going to be in Los Angeles, I got tickets and made plans to revisit Exchange LA. You may remember I was at Exchange LA a few weeks ago for Cosmic Gate. Ferry would be playing open to close, so I got there early and literally stood behind him for 4 hours watching him perform. EVERY song brought back memories and I’ve never danced as much as I did that night. It is hard to compare one show to another, but this was something special. Oh, and he was drinking champagne all night, too. Amazing!

To help promote this show, I reached out for an interview. I’ve interviewed him before, but I wanted this interview to focus on What The F. I’ve actually written about him dozens of times over the years and have watched as his career has progressed. But it was neat to tie another interview with a feature on this tour AND getting the chance to see this tour live. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did!!!

You are on an impressive tour right now. Hitting some of the best clubs in the world. Glad I got to see you at Exchange LA last weekend! Can you tell me more about the tour and what fans can expect when seeing you perform?
I am currently busy touring lots of festivals and my What The F events. When I’m playing the festivals and other events not labelled What The F, you can expect me to play all the latest awesome stuff out there. But with What The F shows, I will go across the board and through time.

WTF is What The F?
What The F is my open to close event where I will only play my own music all night long. So basically, an open to close producer set, from my latest single to the biggest classics, to Gouryella, System F and everything else that people never knew about or have forgotten about. I revamped some of my older tracks and also made some crazy mashups of some of my own tracks that I will only play during What The F nights. So, there is one crazy moment after another, and the vibe is amazing. One big family.

You have produced a lot of music over the years… Is it possible to pick a favorite? I bet this answer changes over time, too.
Yes, that is a very difficult answer to give. It’s like asking me who my favourite child is out of all of my kids. The one track I do always go back to would be “Rock Your Body Rock” since I had a lot of fun making that track. I really told myself then to not apply any of the ‘unwritten’ rules and just go with the flow. Another one would definitely be the entire Blueprint album.

How do you pick a vocalist? For example, on “Our Moon” how did you connect with Lovlee?
There is never really one way for this. Sometimes we team up in the studio and write something together. Sometimes I send a track over to a vocalist that I feel could work on that track and he or she writes something. And sometimes, like with Lovlee, I receive a demo from a vocalist asking if the song could be something to work on further together. In the case with Lovlee this turned out really well.

Where did the idea for What The F come from?
Lots of people asked me if I ever wanted to do an open to close set, but I was never sure. I didn’t just want to do a long set with random music. I have done quite a number of producer sets over the years and those were always amazing. So, at some point I thought what if I combine the two and do an open to close producer set? I have produced so much music over the past two decades. So many of those tracks were big (club) hits as well as cooler underground tracks under different names where people never even realized it was me. I imagined some people would go like, “Did he do this track as well? What the f**k.” And that is how I came up with the concept and the name “What The F”… What The Ferry. 😉

Tell me more about your new single “You Can’t Stop Me”.
This is the track I initially made for my Ferry Corsten NFT pack at RCRDSHP which dropped back in May. It’s a fun house track with tons of 90s elements and sentiments.

How are things going over at Flashover Recordings?
Going well. We have decided to scale back our output a little and focus a bit more on the gems out there. We have some great releases in the pipeline, so keep an ‘ear’ out for those soon.

I love watching the DJ mix live. Do you ever make mistakes? If so, what kind of mistakes and how would those in the audience know?
Oh, I’ve had my fair share of mistakes over the years, like taking off the wrong needle, ejecting the wrong CD or looping a track in an unperfect loop, sending you straight into ‘bonus beats’ hell. Some of those errors could definitely be heard, but most of those went unnoticed by the crowd. I feel mistakes are part of performing live. They happen in the heat of the moment and sometimes even add to the vibe. It’s part of being human. What is important when something like that happens, is how you handle the situation right after it happens.

Speaking of “You Can’t Stop Me”, who did the vocals on that track? And how long does it take to produce a single?
To be very honest, I got these vocals from Splice, which is something I rarely do, but I ran into them and they worked really well with the track I was working on. So, I decided to use them. I usually produce a track in a few days, but sometimes it takes longer, sometimes shorter. I always try to lay down the initial idea as fast as possible, so I capture the energy I feel at that moment.

It seems like every DJ has a podcast. Tell me more about Resonation.
Resonation is the follow up to my Corsten’s Countdown show. It is a show with a more open format. From house to techno to trance and progressive. It’s also not set on only the latest tracks from that week, which allows me to play tracks that I really like more often than only once. Therefore, allowing me to support and push a track longer.

What else can you tell me about What The F?
I can only say that it will be an amazing night with great throwbacks in terms of music and visuals and a vibe you wished every single weekend would have.

It is good to reconnect, man. It has been 11 years since our last chat. Let’s not wait that long before we rap again! Thanks again for doing this. In all of the interviews I do, I always give the artist the last word. Go.
Thank you for this interview and yes… 11 years is definitely way too long. (Laughs.) It was great seeing you last weekend at What The F and to everyone else reading this, come check out this show and otherwise I will see you all soon.

I don’t where Ferry goes from here, but you know I will be following him. Sheryl and I will actually be going to Ibiza next year to celebrate a milestone birthday. I want to visit the White Island before I am too old to appreciate it! On the way we may swing by ASOT to join Ferry while he records his weekly radio show. Talk about a bucket list trip… Getting to see ASOT, spend time with Ferry in studio AND visit Ibiza. Don’t worry, Ferry. I will bring a bottle of Veuve Clicquot for us to enjoy. Cheers!