Lodewijk Fluttert (born 8 October 1991), best known by his stage name Bakermat, is a Dutch DJ and music producer. His music is characterised by a mix of dance,

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

, and pop.

Career

2012–2013: ''Vandaag''

Fluttert started his musical career while studying psychology at

Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; , formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public university, public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2023, it had an enrollment of ...

and moonlighting as a DJ in his spare time. He released his first two

EPs An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

in 2012 titled "''Zomer"'' and "''

Vandaag "Vandaag" is a song by Dutch producer Bakermat. It was released in August 2012 as a single and reached the top ten in Austria, Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. It was re-released by Sony in 2014 as "One Day (Vandaag)" becoming a hit in sever ...

"''. The latter, consisting of an integrated

sample Sample or samples may refer to: * Sample (graphics), an intersection of a color channel and a pixel * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of something * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample ...

of the "

I Have a Dream "I Have a Dream" is a Public speaking, public speech that was delivered by American civil rights activist and Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963. In the speech, Kin ...

" speech by

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...

, charted as a single in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, France and the UK between 2012 and 2013. Re-released by

Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...

, in December 2014 Bakermat's single "

" received a

platinum record Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music Sound recording and reproduction, recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, The UK, The

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

and Switzerland. In this early stage of his career, Bakermat's different approach to dance music inspired many other artists to develop their career in this style (often referred to as 'melodic house' or 'tropical house'). Artists like

Klingande Cédric Steinmyller (; born 14 May 1990), better known by his stage name Klingande (, ), is a French DJ and tropical house record producer with a prominent use of the piano and the saxophone. Klingande was originally a duo, until 2014, consistin ...

Kungs Valentin Brunel (; born 17 December 1996), better known by his stage name Kungs ( ), is a French DJ, record producer and musician. A native of Toulon, he released his first album ''Layers'' in 2016 after success with " This Girl", a collabo ...

Lost Frequencies Felix De Laet (born 30 November 1993), known by his stage name Lost Frequencies, is a Belgian DJ and record producer. He is best known for his singles " Are You with Me" in 2014, "Reality" featuring Janieck Devy in 2015, and " Where Are You No ...

Felix Jaehn Fee Jähn (born 28 August 1994 as Felix Kurt Jähn, ), known professionally as Felix Jaehn, is a German DJ and record producer. Jaehn achieved international success with their remix of OMI's song "Cheerleader", which topped the charts in multip ...

Sam Feldt Sammy Boeddha Renders (born 1 August 1993), known professionally as Sam Feldt, is a Dutch DJ, record producer and entrepreneur. Career Musical career In 2015, he released a remake of Robin S.' " Show Me Love". The track was released by Spin ...

Thomas Jack Tom Jack Johnston, (better known by his stage name Thomas Jack) is an Australian DJ, record producer and musician. He is noted for the " tropical house" subgenre, and first coined the term in 2013. Early life Johnston grew up on a dairy far ...

Kygo Kyrre Gørvell-Dahll (; born 11 September 1991), known professionally as Kygo (), is a Norwegian DJ and music producer. He first received international attention with his December 2013 remix of the track " I See Fire" by Ed Sheeran and his De ...

and many more started making music in this genre. Bakermat often distinguishes himself in his performances compared to other DJ's by including live elements to his DJ sets. He combines his music with live artists on stage (saxophonists, singers, violinists and percussionists). In 2014, he gathered 6 musicians and formed the ‘Bakermat Live Band’, which was the foundation of his live band tour.

2014–2015: Bakermat Live Band

In 2014 Bakermat confirmed that he would perform at the 2014 edition of

Tomorrowland Tomorrowland may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Tomorrowland (Disney Parks), a theme land at a number of Disney theme parks around the world * Tomorrowland (festival), an annual electronic dance music festival in Boom, Belgium * ''Tom ...

. That gave birth to the first stage host of Bakermat & Friends at

, and laid the foundation for further editions growing in to 2015 and 2016. In collaboration with

Live Nation Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. is an American multinational Entertainment industry, entertainment company that was founded in 2010 following the Mergers and acquisitions, merger of Live Nation (events promoter), Live Nation and Ticketmaster. It ...

, Bakermat began his first tour with the Bakermat Live Band. Starting in Paris, he sold out the Olympia concert hall in 3 weeks. Following Olympia, Bakermat went on to sell out his Europe Tour, which included a night at London's

Brixton Academy Brixton Academy (originally known as the Astoria Variety Cinema, previously known as Carling Academy Brixton, currently named O2 Academy Brixton as part of a sponsorship deal with the O2 brand) is a mid-sized concert venue located in South Lon ...

. After the summer he made an official remix for

Labrinth Timothy Lee McKenzie (born 4 January 1989), better known by his stage name Labrinth, is an English singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Labrinth signed as a recording artist with Simon Cowell's record label Syco Music in 2010, ini ...

's single "Jealous" and later that year released the single, "Teach Me", on the Dirty Soul Music division of Be Yourself Music. "Teach Me" was influenced by

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

and

in combination with samples of the American gospel singer,

Shirley Caesar Shirley Ann Caesar-Williams (Birth name, née Caesar; born October 13, 1938), known professionally as Shirley Caesar, is an American Gospel music, gospel singer. Her career began in 1951, when she signed to Federal Records at the age of 12. Thro ...

. Legendary house DJ MK also made a release of the single.

2015–2016: Bakermat's Circus

Starting in 2015, Bakermat created a new platform for artists, the audience and himself called Bakermat's Circus. His idea behind it was "to create a night where artists could push themselves musically and the audience would be carried away music, event and ambience wise". He started the trail for the shows at his residency venue in Paris, the Zig Zag Club. Soon after he travelled to London, performing two sold-out shows in a row at

Electric Brixton The Fridge was a nightclub in the Brixton area of South London, England, founded, in 1981, by Andrew Czezowski and Susan Carrington, who had run the Roxy during punk music's heyday in 1977. The Fridge closed on 17 March 2010 and has no li ...

. Since then Bakermat's Circus has travelled to London, New York City,

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

Ibiza Ibiza (; ; ; #Names and pronunciation, see below) or Iviza is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is 150 kilometres (93 miles) from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of th ...

, Paris,

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, São Paulo,

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

and hosted stages at festivals like

and Airbeat One. Bakermat also organises his own ‘Circus’ festivals in

. Notable guests at the shows have included

Oliver Heldens Olivier "Oliver" J. L. Heldens (; born 1 February 1995) is a Dutch DJ and electronic music producer from Rotterdam. He is regarded as a pioneer of the future house genre, propelling it to international attention and scoring numerous chart succes ...

Robin Schulz Robin Alexander Schulz (; born 28 April 1987) is a German musician, DJ, and record producer. On 4 February 2014, he released the first single from his debut album, a remix of "Waves (Mr. Probz song), Waves" by Dutch hip hop artist Mr. Probz. T ...

Don Diablo Don Pepijn Schipper (; born 27 February 1980), better known by his stage name Don Diablo, is a Dutch DJ, digital artist, record producer, musician and songwriter of electronic dance music. He is one of the pioneers of the future house genre and ...

Tube & Berger Tube & Berger is a German electronic music duo consisting of Arndt Rörig and Marko Vidovic, active since 2000. Biography Before producing electronic music, Tube & Berger started out as a punk band. The duo achieved their first international b ...

and many more. Soon after this his monthly radio show Bakermat's Circus debuted. The series was aired on over 75 radio stations worldwide from

SiriusXM Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting corporation headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. The company was formed by the 2008 merge ...

to Radio538 and Revolution FM. Former head of ID&T

Duncan Stutterheim Duncan Stutterheim (1971 in Purmerend) is a Dutch entrepreneur who is best known as the founder of the Dutch event company ID&T. Career At 18-years-old, Stutterheim founded a courier company. A year later in 1992, Stutterheim and friends Irfan va ...

said of Bakermat on Radio538's Dance Department: "Bakermat was one of the few artists that brought something spectacular and refreshing to the stage, and he was also one of the few that didn't just press play during a performance." This led to the invitation for Bakermat to play at Stutterheim's

Sensation Sensation (psychology) refers to the processing of the senses by the sensory system. Sensation or sensations may also refer to: In arts and entertainment In literature *Sensation (fiction), a fiction writing mode *Sensation novel, a British ...

event.

2016: ''Living''

Early in the year 2016, Bakermat released his ''Games'' EP and one its featured tracks, "Games Continued", officially became Corona's Sunsets anthem for 2016. To celebrate this, Bakermat performed at a rooftop event in London, streamed live via ''

Mixmag ''Mixmag'' is a British electronic dance and clubbing magazine published in London. Launched in 1983 as a print magazine, it has branched into dance events, including festivals and club nights. History The first issue of ''Mixmag'' was printe ...

'' alongside support acts including

Busy P Pedro Winter (born Pierre Winter; 21 April 1975), also known by the stage name Busy P, is a French record producer, DJ, record label owner, and former artist manager. He was the manager of Daft Punk from 1996 to 2008,Sinead Harnett and Mr. M. In addition to ''Games'', Bakermat released another EP titled ''Ballade'', which incorporated influences from classical and pop music. Later in the year, Bakermat released the ''Living'' ''(feat.

Alex Clare Alexander George Clare (born 14 September 1985) is a British singer and songwriter based in Jerusalem, Israel. His debut album, ''The Lateness of the Hour (Alex Clare album), The Lateness of the Hour'', was released in the UK on 8 July 2011 on ...

)'', which was featured in a number of commercials including

Suzuki is a Japanese multinational mobility manufacturer headquartered in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Shizuoka. It manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard motor, outboard marine engines, wheelchairs and a va ...

. In October 2016, Bakermat founded the Dutch record label Big Top Amsterdam during the

Amsterdam Dance Event The Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) is a five-day electronic music conference and festival held annually in mid-October. The event, organised by The Amsterdam Dance Event Foundation, offers a full programme of daytime conferences at ADE Pro, ADE Tech ...

together with his business partner/music manager Bob van Wees.

2017: ''Baby''

In 2017, Bakermat debuted his live band Pukkelpop. A 7 piece band led by the ringmaster took over the live stage where they played for over 8,000 people. While touring, Bakermat released his hit "Baby", which samples

Thelma Houston Thelma Houston ( Jackson; born May 7, 1943) is an American singer and actress. Beginning her recording career in the late 1960s, Houston scored a number-one hit in 1977 with her recording of " Don't Leave Me This Way", which won the Grammy for ...

's 1977 hit "

Don't Leave Me This Way "Don't Leave Me This Way" is a song written by Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff and Cary Gilbert. It was originally released in 1975 by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes featuring Teddy Pendergrass, an act signed to Gamble & Huff's Philadelphia Interna ...

". The track charted in France,

and Switzerland.

2018: ''Matt Baker''

Together with Peggy Gou, Bakermat was chosen to be the global brand ambassador for the new Porsche Macan 2. During a period of 3 days the two artists shot a commercial in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

introducing the new

Porsche Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in luxury, high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Th ...

to the international market. During the Autumn of 2018 the Circus moved to

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

where the first full edition of Bakermat's Circus

took place. Over 4,000 people were introduced to the Circus. After the successful debut of the summer before at Pukkelpop, the fall of 2018 was dedicated to bringing the live band show to the clubs. Bakermat returned with the 7-piece band to Paris where a sold-out Elysees Montmartre was the stage for the night. In 2018, Bakermat released his hit "Partystarter", featured in a number of commercials including Samsung Galaxy Q4B4 Commercial, Amazon Corporate Video and Mc Fit January Campaign. In the same year, Bakermat introduced a new character in his music narrative "Matt Baker", his canine alter ego whose adventures feature in Bakermat's music videos from that year onwards.

2019: ''Baianá''

The relationship with London's venue Printworks started in 2019. Bakermat moved his live band show to the live-stage at

Printworks Printworks may refer to: *Printworks (London), a nightclub and events space in Rotherhithe *The Printworks (Manchester), an entertainment venue *Printworks Campus, of the Leeds City College {{DEFAULTSORT:Printworks, The ...

. This edition where 4,500 people saw the live band show laid the fundament for the partnership Bakermat had until 2023 with Printworks. After debuting Bakermat's Circus in

the year before, he returned to Brazil with the Circus for more than 10,000 people divided over two cities. Both

and

turned into a proper Bakermat-event where an actual Circustent was built to host the nights. During the summer of 2019 Bakermat announced his residency at Marseille's top venue R2 Rooftop. During a period of 6 months Bakermat was one of the monthly returning international artists that had the honour for a residency. In 2019, Bakermat released his hit "Baianá", sampling the original track by Barbatuques in Brazil. The track reached the SNEP No. 38 top single of the year 2020 in France and it was certified diamond in France and platinum and gold in other countries including

Benelux The Benelux Union (; ; ; ) or Benelux is a politico-economic union, alliance and formal international intergovernmental cooperation of three neighbouring states in Western Europe: Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. The name is a portma ...

. The hit was selected as one of the official soundtracks of the FIFA21 football game and it was featured in the motion-based dance video game, Just Dance.

2020–2021: ''The Ringmaster'' and ''The Spirit''

On 9 October 2020, Bakermat released his first album, ''The Ringmaster'', a ten-track project featuring new tracks as well as previously released songs including "Partystarter", "Trouble", "Learn to Lose" and "Baianá". One year later, on 25 June 2021, the ringmaster released his second album, ''The Spirit'', a twelve-track project including the gospel-house single "Ain't Nobody" featuring LaShun Pace and "Walk That Walk" featuring Nic Hanson. At the end of 2021 Bakermat celebrated his return on stage after

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

in London, at Brixton Electric. The night sold out instantly and during this night he announced his return to

2022: ''Big Top Amsterdam''

In 2022, Bakermat officially signed with his own record label Big Top Amsterdam, founded by the producer a few years before with his business partner and music manager Bob van Wees. Bakermat's first release on Big Top Amsterdam was "Temptation" (featuring Elise LeGrow), released on the occasion of his 10-year career anniversary. It was broadcast in many countries like France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. March 2022 also marked the end of the adventures of "Matt Baker", Bakermat's canine alter ego. During February 2022 Bakermat took his concept 'Bakermat's Circus' a step further. He took over the Press Hall at

for a 12 hrs day-edition of the Circus. Joined on his podium by other artists like

DJ Regard Dardan Aliu (born 23 July 1993), known professionally as Regard, is a Kosovan DJ and record producer. Born and raised in Ferizaj, he made his international breakthrough in 2019 with his remix of Jay Sean's 2008 single " Ride It", which resulted ...

, Tube&Berger among others this day's event was joined by 5,000 people. After a two-year absence the famous

Techno Parade A technoparade (taken from the German language, German word "Technoparade") is a parade of vehicles equipped with strong loudspeakers and amplifiers playing electronic dance music. It resembles a carnival parade in some respects, but the vehicle ...

came back to Paris in 2022. Over 20 trucks with different music genres formed the centre of the parade that went through the streets of Paris. Bakermat was invited by the French radio station Fun Radio to perform on their truck. While touring, his second release on Big Top Amsterdam "Madan (King)" was released, sampling

Salif Keita Salif Keïta () (born 25 August 1949) is a Malian singer-songwriter, referred to as the "Golden Voice of Africa". He is a member of the Keita royal family of Mali. Early life Salif Keita was born a traditional prince in the village of Djolib ...

‘Madan’. For the launch of the new FIFA23 football video game, the song was chosen as one of the official soundtracks.

2023: New music

Starting from January 2023, based on Bakermat social media, the ringmaster has been busy with studio sessions, focusing on production along with writers and producers. On 24 March 2023, Bakermat released the single "Good Feeling" featuring indie artist Rhys Lewis.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

References

Notes

* A "One Day (Vandaag)" was also known as "Vandaag" , it was released in August 2012.

Sources

External links

Official WebsiteLast.fm
{{Authority control Dutch record producers Living people Utrecht University alumni People from Hof van Twente 1991 births Tropical house musicians Dutch electronic dance music DJs