Bros Bros
Bros Bros is a musician/DJ/producer from Antwerp, Belgium.
He started his career as a bassist and toured with various artists internationally. After making a mixtape with his brother, the DJ/producer has been crafting his own musical signature by offering refreshing remixes and authentic original music.
He recently collaborated with Kevin Kofii on a new remix called “Boasty” now available on Bros Bros’ Soundcloud’s page.
The Belgian artist has begun to release original singles (including “No More” and “Melodie”) which will be followed by more releases in September.
Bros Bros’ new EP titled The Journey will be revealed very soon.
Introduce yourself - where are you from?
My name is Bert Callens aka Bros Bros, born and raised in Antwerp, Belgium.
What's your story?
I’ve been a musician/bass player for almost 20 years now but decided to make a career switch in June 2018.
I made a mixtape with my brother (hence the name Bros Bros) and it got picked up by a local event organizer in Antwerp (The Love Below). Since that very day I started focussing on DJ’ing and producing my own tracks and remixes.
Could you describe us your childhood a little bit?
I had a lovely childhood with my parents, brother and friends. I had a fairly “normal” childhood as I went to school and had a lot of friends. When I was younger I was mainly into sports such as soccer and basketball.
Everything twisted 360° when I bought my first instrument!
If you could say something to your younger self, what would it be?
Practice more and be consistent! The more you try and rehearse, the better you will become at something.
Also, give things some time… be patient.
How would you describe yourself today?
Focused. I was never this real with music as I am today. Since November 2018 (when I made the rough demo’s of my upcoming EP The Journey), I got into this extreme work ethic and focus mode as I’ve never been before. Like it took me almost 20 years to actually know what I really want to do and what I feel for 100%.
When did you start making music?
I started out around the age of the 15. My nephews played guitar and I loved to play an instrument too. I was very into Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean”. The bass in that song was so deep and groovy that I bought my first bass guitar and was totally passionate about it.
I came home from school and started playing until my neighbors were complaining :)
You played for various artists as a bassist, what did this experience teach you as an artist?
The best experience you get when you play for a lot of different projects and artists is the versatility.
You need to get in every artist’s head and being the right man for the job. You need to lay down that steady groove, but also one that suits the artist.
When did you decide to pursue music as a career?
I was always pursuing the music game. It’s more than just a spare-time thing for me, I love working on it everyday. But the real switch came to me when I realized that I didn’t have any vacations from my job, because I spent them all on working on projects or bands!
So in 2014 I decided to go to the next level with it.
How would you define Bros Bros, the artist?
Bros Bros stands for BounceBeats, a crossover between Hip Hop and House music with a special homemade sauce on it. I try to blend those 2 genres with all their sub-genres and create something that gives you a good feeling and makes you smile!
You recently released the "NxtLyfetime" remix. Could you describe the production process for this one?
First and foremost I really love this song. So one day I found the a cappella for it. So that’s basically the beginning of the remix. Then I started out to make a first structure.
Once that’s done I always start with the kick drum and bass to find the right groove. Because the kick drum and bass are for me the key elements of a great Bounce Beat! Once I got this right, I kept on adding layers and most importantly, deleting a lot of layers, to get it as easy as possible. To try and get it to the essence of a good song.
What made you want to remix this particular song from Erykah Badu?
As a bassist I discovered Erykah Badu’s live album. It blew my mind. The way the bass was played, so laidback but still having that pocket with the drummer. So when the idea popped to drop some remixes, I just felt like having an Erykah remix on it.
You recently did a remix with Kevin Kofii. How was it like to collaborate with him?
Well I got to know Kevin last year after a DJ gig. We talked a bit and found out we share the love for the same music, same artists... We stayed connected and when I was releasing my own tracks, he came to me with questions about productions. It was nice to help somebody who is so motivated to make his own edits. Then the idea popped that we should work together on a remix. Basically Kevin came up with the “Boasty” a cappella and we laid down a new sort of sound.
In your opinion, what makes a good "remix”?
To be honest, for me it’s really hard to make remixes. Because a friend of mine once said that a remix only can be a good one when it’s equal or better than the original. Meaning it has to bring the song to a new level. I try to create or listen to remixes with that in mind.
What can you tell us about your Bounce Beats project?
During the summer I’m releasing remixes on my Soundcloud profile at least every 2 weeks. For me it’s a good way to show people where I get my ideas from and getting connected with my vibes through remixing classics.
These Bounce Beats are like a sister project in my Bros Bros carreer. Because my body of work is releasing my own original music.
I recently released 3 singles with extra instrumental tracks and we are releasing some new originals starting in September 2019, as well as my first EP called “The Journey”.
So stay tuned! ;-)
As a producer, what equipments and softwares do you usually use?
To start every new project I’m very happy I’m running my DAW on a solid, high spec computer. These days we run a lot of softwares so a good computer is my number one equipment.
As a DAW I’m running Ableton and Logic. Ableton as my main music creating program and Logic for vocal recording.
For myself I have some little secret toys in my studio as outboard and I’m fortunate that I work in a studio with a lot of cool vintage synths, like a Juno 106, Yamaha DX7, Moog One, ARP2600,… provided by the guys of Turnlab.
However all my mix tools are plugin’s. Except for the preamp for vocal recordings I’m using a clone of the Neve 1084 preamp/EQ from Vintage Audio Project.
What advice would you give to young producers?
This question sounds like I’m already one of the old school people! Haha. Not really. My biggest experience is that gear will not help you to make a better song. By this, I mean, I had fancy monitors and these crazy interfaces and high-end bass guitars and expensive preamps… you name it… But if the song ain’t good, that kind of gear won’t help you to make it a good song. So don’t invest in too much gear. These days you can buy very good interfaces for like a couple of 100€ and some good headphones or monitors for that same price range. Start with that and just create, create, create! Don’t get fooled by the urge of having all these things, just create with what you have. And gain/invest experience in songwriting and producing.
What appeals you the most about creating music?
The energy and passion you put in these tiny bits and pieces and in the end it creates something beautiful and gives us some sort of timestamp in life.
Why do you make music? What keeps you motivated?
I’m obsessed with making music. When you create music, you know you are creating something for yourself but also for others. To share these feelings. Maybe it sounds a bit cliché, but to have created something and for people to be able to connect with it, it’s just so cool! :)
How would you define music?
Like I mentioned, for me, music is all about timestamps. For me, it’s like a map of moments in my life. I know which song I was making or listening when I was somewhere or what song I discovered when I was doing something… Music are fond memories.
In your opinion, what would make the world a better place?
More Bounce Beats (haha)! The only place where I see so many different kinds of people coming along with each other is during concerts. People don’t think of who you are or what you do! The minute they step into that same concert venue, they know they share the same common interests.
What biggest life lessons have you learned so far?
Sometimes you have to make very heavy decisions that set you back, but you only gain more experience and you will fight back and grow. Life presents many choices, the choices we make determine our future…
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