Yesterday, Tim Bergling, or Avicii, made the announcement that he would cease touring at the end of 2016 via a lengthy letter to his fans on his website.
The 26-year-old DJ has been an integral part of the booming Electronic Dance Music (EDM) scene ever since he shot to stardom in 2011, when he released hit tracks like “Levels” and “Fade into Darkness”. Both of these tracks have since been sampled by several mainstream artistes.
The Swede never looked back, adding on to his success by producing megahits like “Wake Me Up”, “Hey Brother”, and “Waiting for Love”. He’s no stranger to accolades either, picking up prizes at the American Music Awards, Billboard Music Awards, and World Music Awards to name a few. In 2012 and 2013 his efforts earned him a much coveted Grammy nomination, an impressive feat considering his relative newness to the spotlight.
Image: billboard.com
In the letter to his fans, Avicii said “My path has been filled with success but it hasn’t come without its bumps. I’ve become an adult while growing as an artist, I’ve come to know myself better and realize that there’s so much I want to do with my life. I have strong interests in different areas but there’s so little time to explore them”. This leads me to believe his course of action has something to do with the health scares he has faced in the past (In 2013 he told press he had to cut back on alcohol due to acute pancreatitis and in 2014 he suffered a blocked gall bladder and a ruptured appendix).
He went on to say, “Two weeks ago, I took the time to drive across the U.S. with my friends and team, to just look and see and think about things in a new way. It really helped me realize that I needed to make the change that I’d been struggling with for a while”.
However, fans can take solace in the fact that the DJ will carry on making music, explaining that he will continue to “speak to his fans through it”. If you haven’t already caught him live but are keen to, click here to check out his upcoming shows. If you’d rather just check out his work on Spotify, then here you go:
Here are a few reactions from other DJs in the industry:
.@Aviciii pic.twitter.com/VQDVo3DoX5
— dead mow cinco (@deadmau5) March 29, 2016
Much love to @avicii and his new beginnings! Thanks for being so inspiring to us and we wish you the best man!
— THE CHAINSMOKERS (@TheChainsmokers) March 29, 2016
Brave choice wishing all the best to my brother @Avicii we are always here for you! https://t.co/c6O9yVXkI4
— Nicky Romero (@nickyromero) March 29, 2016
@Avicii we’re going to miss you on the road!https://t.co/4lYXINzmhz pic.twitter.com/but1nW7Rfl
— Steve Aoki (@steveaoki) March 29, 2016