Four years ago, Hardwell did the unthinkable.
Ranked No 4 on the DJ Mag Top 100 list in 2018 and the headliner of major dance music festivals, the Dutch spinner and producer announced he was going on an indefinite hiatus.
While the move was unprecedented for a DJ of his fame and calibre, it wasn’t entirely surprising.
That year, 2018, the dance music world plunged into mourning over the death of Avicii, the Swedish DJ who took his own life in Muscat, Oman.
His physical and mental struggles were documented in the unflinching documentary Avicii: True Stories and his death triggered some much-needed industry discussion surrounding the welfare of DJs in the intense and competitive dance music world.
For Hardwell, who by then aged 30 and 16 years into his career, it was time to give his mind and body the rest it craved.
In an exclusive interview with The National, he describes his return to regular performances from March as being as refreshing as it is calibrated.
"I now really enjoy being on the road and I have put a limit on myself of doing a maximum of 40 shows a year, because it then gives me time to work in the studio and spend time with family and friends,” he says.
“I really feel that I am enjoying the most of life and that makes me a happier person and I think people see that on stage."
A much-needed conversation
This is a far cry from the preceding years, when the sheer adrenalin of the shows couldn’t offset the increasing weariness of constant travel and more than 100 shows in 12 months.
Hardwell understands how the glamorous life many DJs portray online makes such complaints sound hollow.
"That is the point in that we do need to talk about this without people thinking that we are bragging," he says.
"Listen, people know that I appreciate everything I have in my life and I love what I do, but when you get to a certain point that you are so tired that you are not looking forward to the next tour, that you don't want to make music in the studio any more, then this is the biggest sign of burnout.
“When I reached that moment, I realised that I do need the break."
The benefits had a revitalised Hardwell drop his superb new album Rebels Never Die in September and perform a ferocious set at Saudi Arabia’s Soundstorm festival in December.
Hardwell now wants to help seasoned and aspiring DJs find their own sense of balance.
In December, he appeared in a provocative session on mental health as part of the XP Music Futures conference in Riyadh.
The remixer and record producer says such discussions are needed to inspire the wider dance music industry to build an effective framework and initiatives to tackle mental health experienced by artists, who are predominantly young.
"There is no right guidance when it comes to DJs. For example, if you are a professional sportsman you have a whole team looking after your health.
“Even for [non-EDM] singers, they get to go on tour and come back and take time off to work on their album," Hardwell says.
"For some reason, we DJs are working to our limit. There is pressure to play the shows, do social media, make music, prepare the DJ sets and now with many DJs having their own radio show, that has to be done too.
“The workload is crazy and you have to ask if this is the way that we need to do it because it is like working five full-time jobs at the same time.”
Help among friends
Hardwell disagrees with the idea DJs should unionise to demand better work conditions.
Effective change, he says, begins when sectors of the industry forego the zero-sum attitude pervasive within the scene.
"It is hard to demand something like this and I don't think it is to be done through an organisation but from the DJs themselves," he says.
"It is just not necessary to do 200 shows a year. You can be good with doing 30 shows a year, because that can make you financially stable and give you more time to work on your music and be with your family.
“Now I know at the beginning all these shows seem fun because you work so hard to achieve them.
“Ten gigs become 40 gigs a month and you just want to go and play everywhere because you are living your dream.
“But then, after two years of this, you realise you are tired and it's not so fun. We need managers and booking agencies to be more aware of the physical and mental health of the artists."
In the meantime, while we hope the EDM scene eventually dances to a different tune when it comes to mental health, Hardwell — real name Robbert van de Corput — is content to build his career to his own rhythm.
His re-entry to the DJ Mag Top 100 at 43rd place this year is a far cry from his No 1 position in 2013, but he truly sounds on top of it all.
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
$1,000 award for 1,000 days on madrasa portal
Daily cash awards of $1,000 dollars will sweeten the Madrasa e-learning project by tempting more pupils to an education portal to deepen their understanding of math and sciences.
School children are required to watch an educational video each day and answer a question related to it. They then enter into a raffle draw for the $1,000 prize.
“We are targeting everyone who wants to learn. This will be $1,000 for 1,000 days so there will be a winner every day for 1,000 days,” said Sara Al Nuaimi, project manager of the Madrasa e-learning platform that was launched on Tuesday by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to reach Arab pupils from kindergarten to grade 12 with educational videos.
“The objective of the Madrasa is to become the number one reference for all Arab students in the world. The 5,000 videos we have online is just the beginning, we have big ambitions. Today in the Arab world there are 50 million students. We want to reach everyone who is willing to learn.”
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
India squads
Test squad against Afghanistan: Rahane (c), Dhawan, Vijay, Rahul, Pujara, Karun, Saha, Ashwin, Jadeja, Kuldeep, Umesh, Shami, Pandya, Ishant, Thakur.
T20 squad against Ireland and England: Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Raina, Pandey, Dhoni, Karthik, Chahal, Kuldeep, Sundar, Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah, Pandya, Kaul, Umesh.
ODI squad against England: Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Shreyas, Rayudu, Dhoni, Karthik, Chahal, Kuldeep, Sundar, Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah, Pandya, Kaul, Umesh
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Honeymoonish
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, semi-final result:
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona
Liverpool win 4-3 on aggregate
Champions Legaue final: June 1, Madrid
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
'Munich: The Edge of War'
Director: Christian Schwochow
Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons
Rating: 3/5
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
Sun jukebox
Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)
This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.
Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)
The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)
Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.
Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.
Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)
An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)
Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
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More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
