DJ Afrojack is at the top of his game

Afrojack is on top of the world. But despite his recent fame and fortune in the world of EDM (the brash, commercial form of electronic dance music), the Netherlands-born DJ, real name Nick van de Wall, maintains a modicum of modesty. "I don't see myself as a founder of EDM," he says. "There are a lot of artists who have been around longer in this scene than me. I'm still young."

At only 27 years old he's certainly made a name for himself. In 2013, Forbes named him as the seventh-highest-earning DJ in the world. He has contributed to multiple hit singles, including David Guetta's Titanium and Beyonce's Run the World (Girls). A long article in The New Yorker featured him prominently. He has performed at top festivals around the world. He was the first DJ to sign an exclusive contract with the Wynn Casino in Las Vegas, earning hundreds of thousands of dollars a night. He allegedly taught Paris Hilton how to DJ (and briefly dated the hotel heiress). In May, he dropped his debut album, Forget the World.

Afrojack is located squarely within the EDM tradition, a phenomenon still sweeping the globe, but his sound is distinctive in a number of ways. In comparison to David Guetta or Avicii, his music is harder, less melodic and more obviously influenced by hip hop.

On Forget the World, Afrojack ventured in a more accessible direction, melding signature EDM beats with a classic pop sensibility and swirling club vocals. "I wanted to try something different," he says. "And I wanted to make something that combined EDM with another music genre."

The album is full of high-profile collaborations (Chris Brown, Snoop Dog) that confirm his place among the elite. "I already knew I had some good tracks, which needed good vocals. So when I started my first album, I already had a list of the people I wanted. It was actually really easy to find the right artist for each collaboration, the only problem was persuading them to help me."