#IMSAsiaPacific: Meet Paul Oakenfold, One Of The Founding Fathers Of Trance

We’re now only about 2 weeks away from the inaugural International Music Summit (IMS) Asia-Pacific and the excitement is building! In case you haven’t heard, the IMS is a 3-day electronic dance music (EDM) conference that takes place in Ibiza. It became such a booming success that IMS Ibiza has since become an annual fixture (the 2012 summit was held in May).

Interestingly, the first IMS in 2008 and was open to only 300 delegates. But in 2009, the number of delegate badges available was increased to 400, and saw the addition exhibition space for 30 companies. The summit would later go on to spawn IMS Engage in 2012, a one-day summit hosted mid-April in Los Angeles which brings together key industry figures and professionals who descend on the region at that time.

IMS Engage has a unique format – 6 un-moderated conversations pairing artists and players from electronic music with the world of film, technology, media and the wider music world in a one-on-one conversation. The event is designed to show how far electronic music can reach, how deep it penetrates, and how it innovates at every step.

Fast forward to 2014, IMS continues to pave the way in the electronic music industry. Described by many as “the TED of music conferences”, 3 IMS panels in 2013 were voted in the top 10 electronic music debates of all-time by Beatport. This year, for the first time ever, the world’s most influential electronic music summit will make its way to Asia in Singapore on 11th Dec.

We spoke to one of the founding fathers of the trance genre, who’s not only a partner for both IMS Asia-Pacific and IMS Engages, but also an electronic dance music idol to many DJs/producers of the recent years.

When it comes to a career the magnitude of Paul Oakenfold, it’s hard to encompass one of the true legends of electronic music into just words. For over 3 decades he has elevated and shaped an entire genre and remains one of the leading forces in the global music scene today. His most recent works have taken him from the DJ booth of the worlds hottest nightspots and festivals to the studio producing soundtracks for Hollywood blockbuster movies. His diversity in artistry and ability has earned him accolades from critics and fans alike. Garnering him not 1 but 2 Grammy Nominations for his works.

Believe us when we say that we’re just as excited as he is about his panel at IMS Asia-Pacific this coming December. In fact, he told us exclusively about what we can expect from the summit:

Hi Paul, so good to speak to you! Having spoken at IMS Ibiza previously, you’re no stranger to the summit. Tell us, how will you be contributing to discussions at IMS Asia-Pacific?

Very proud to be a partner in IMS. This is our first venture in to Asia and I’m really looking forward to it. I’ll be talking to Lincoln Cheng (founder of Zouk Singapore) who is one of the most well respected club owners in the industry.

What are you personally looking forward to most about IMS Asia-Pacific?

I am really looking forward to embracing the audience at IMS and hanging out and meeting everyone. I will be doing a party at Attica on Thursday night (11th December) which I very much look forward to.

In brief, what is your experience with the scene in Asia? How do you expect it to grow?

I’ve been going to Asia for many years and have played some amazing gigs from the handover in ’99 to playing the Great Wall of China. This is very special to me and I’m looking forward to it immensely.

As the official Malaysian ambassador for IMS Asia-Pacific, we too are immensely looking forward to seeing Paul again!

Watch the highlights from IMS Ibiza 2014 here: