Floating with ANGO
Melbourne DJ, producer, songwriter, pianist & guitarist ANGO has shared his brand new track ‘You Are The One’, a tune which has been delivered via the musician’s Art City Records label, and is the follow up to his 3 track EP ‘Floating’ that was released in May. We caught up with ANGO to chat about ‘You Are The One’, how the collab with Gigi Russ came about and his ‘Soiree’ event series which takes place in Melbourne.
Firstly Ango, congratulations on the release of ‘You Are The One’, a track that you both wrote and produced. How did you celebrate this huge milestone?
Believe it or not, I spent the day of my release at the Blue Lagoon in Vanuatu. Ironically, an extremely apt location to celebrate the song's release. Over the phone, the Art Ctiy team and I shared congratulations, excitement and PLENTY of nerves for what is to come next for not only the song, but for the Ango project as a whole.
Tell us about your new song, what inspired the track and what did the creative process entail?
The track was inspired by me wanting to create something original, relatable and most importantly, a song with a shelf life. As my interest in dance music is heavily stilted around the likes of Calvin Harris, Avicii, Swedish House Mafia and those alike, I intended to write a euphoric topline supported by huge melodic synths. The first version of the track was a piano house song we got Gigi to sing on. It sounded great, however it didn’t hit the mark just yet. At about 4am the night after recording, I ended up rewriting the entire song around Gigi’s lyrics. The morning after I sent the new version to my manager Ross. He knew this was something special, and 2 days later we had the whole song ready.
‘You Are The One’ sees you work with Vocalist Gigi Russ, how did this collaboration come about?
Gigi was a mutual friend of Art City’s team. Whilst I’d never recorded any vocalist, let alone written lyrics for one, Gigi had a series of features and plenty of huge songs under her belt. Obviously, I had some serious nerves coming into this session. Thankfully, Gigi was patient and extremely easy to work with, allowing us to churn out ‘You Are The One’, a product that I was ecstatic with.
“I’d really just want to sit in a room with them and soak up some knowledge”
Collabs are huge right now, who else is on your wish list to work with?
Some that come to mind are DJ Seinfeld, Loods and 1tbsp. Whilst it would be amazing to make a song with any of these three, I’d really just want to sit in a room with them and soak up some knowledge. There are a few vocalists I'd love to work with, with the main one being Jazzy.
If I could work with anyone who has ever been around, Angie Stone would be my number 1. She will forever be one of the greatest.
ANGO, you are a multi-skilled musician, accomplished in both the Guitar and Piano, were you ever tempted to go down a more traditional music path or has your passion always leaned towards electronic music
Definitely towards electronic music. I’m far from classically trained, luckily I’ve had a good ear carry me through learning instruments. I’d love to get involved in some classical training down the line, but for now I’m all good. Maybe I could be the next Bach.
Not only are you recording and releasing but you have also helped launch ‘Soiree’, an emerging force on the Melbourne nightlife scene? What sparked this and how is it going?
I was heavily struggling being booked in Melbourne. My sound sits in a sphere which doesn’t really have a place in the scene. My thought process was if I won’t get booked, then I’ll book myself. Now, I run it with my two friends, Marli and Jack.
“All the team and I want to see is organic growth and success for all parties involved”
You have also co-founded the new label Art City Records, how difficult is it to switch between your artist hat and your label boss hat? Does it create any tricky dilemmas or is it easier being on both sides of the fence?
There are never any tricky dilemmas. All the team and I want to see is organic growth and success for all parties involved. As an artist, I can see what the artist wants. From a business perspective, I can see what can be done to facilitate success, and subsequently give artists what they need to feel secure.
As an artist and label owner, do you believe there is enough support of Aussie music and our artists here at home?
Kind of. Aussie music is heavily supported at home for sure, but it’s often stilted around a small number of artists and genres chosen by hype and trends. Subsequently, without the hype, heaps of artists are overlooked.
Festival Season is almost upon us in Australia, will we see ANGO on any of the summer festival lineups?
Sadly at the moment I won’t be on any festival lineups. Maybe next year. Or the year after. I’ll get there.
“I want to be writing unique tracks and working with amazing people whilst developing an enterprise which supports artists who deserve the spotlight.”
Where would you like to see your career in a year's time and five years down the road? What do you hope you have achieved?
In a year, I want to keep doing my thing with the label and writing original music. I want to carve my own space in the scene. I want to be writing unique tracks and working with amazing people whilst developing an enterprise which supports artists who deserve the spotlight.
Who in your crew or team deserves a shout out but never gets one? And what is it they do that keeps your world turning?
Ross. He hustles like no one else. No debate.
Do you have a message for the ANGO fans and supporters?
Thank you for everything. Each message, comment and like keeps me going. It’s a tough scene. A lot of the time, I wake up feeling disheartened. I’ve got no evidence that I’m going to succeed, the numbers are stacked against me and I’ve got virtually no money coming in. But, people are still showing love. People from around the world who don’t even know me. That alone keeps me going.
Interview by Michelle Symes
July 2025
