From winning prestigious awards such as an MTV European Music Award and multiple International Dance Music Awards, the seasoned international star has become one of dance music’s most decorated artists with a cabinet of awards ranging from 2 x World #1 DJ titles to being awarded a ‘Best Electro House DJ’ at the DJ Awards in Ibiza, ‘Best Global DJ’ at the IDMA awards and ‘Best DJ’ at the Nova Era Awards.

Alongside his artistic endeavours, Hardwell also sought to utilise his position for philanthropic causes. With his United We Are Foundation, the project achieved social change through two aid events labelled the ‘World’s Biggest Guestlist’. These special aid concerts hosted at Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium in December 2015 and 2017 would raise enough donations to school a combined 122,000 children from the slums of Mumbai. Over the two aid concerts, more than 145,000 attended, and over 20 million people watched via the live streams on the night.

In Autumn 2018, after more than a decade of playing the most significant stages on the planet, Hardwell announced he would be taking a sabbatical from touring. However, before temporarily stepping out of the limelight, the seasoned veteran gave his fans one final show to celebrate with him. Hardwell performed a special one-off concert at the Ziggo Dome during Amsterdam Dance Event, collaborating live with Metropole Orkest Symphony. Merging the worlds of pop, jazz, and electronic, Hardwell took the audience on an explorative trip of dance music history.

Although out of the spotlight of touring, Hardwell’s creative output continued to flow. Studio singles kept coming for the remainder of 2018 and throughout 2019. In addition, the start of 2020 saw the release of The Story of Hardwell, a unique collective album of his most significant past and present hits.

Time away from touring would allow Hardwell to be more hands-on with his award-winning label, Revealed Recordings, to reorganise and expand the longstanding imprint. This period away from touring also meant he could commit more focus in the studio for artist discovery. During this interval, the fruits of his action resulted in a body of work that would signify a new era in the Hardwell story.

On March 27th, 2022, after 3.5 years away, Hardwell returned to Miami’s Ultra Music Festival to perform a surprise closing set. Armed with a new 14 track artist album, Rebels Never Die, released on Revealed Recordings and the announcement of a massive world tour, Hardwell ignited the attention of fans around the globe. Always a leader, with a quest to evolve, not repeat. Rebels Neve Die represents a critical point in the musical shift for one of electronic music’s biggest known stars.