By Official Charts

The Official Singles Chart UK Top 40 is compiled on behalf of the British music industry by the Official Charts Company.

To listen to Billy Gillies is to capture true joy, because every song he produces and DJ set he performs radiates pure passion and vibrant spirit.

 

The Northern Irishman’s blend of quirky Eurodance synths, uplifting trance grandeur and hard-hitting bass rhythms goes beyond catchy melodies and expert timing, as breakout hits “Lagoon” and “Youth” tap into the very essence of what makes a night spent on the dancefloor with your best mates such a special experience.

 

That’s why he’s earned more than 145 million views on TikTok, filled a Creamfields tent with thousands of ravers at 1 p.m. on a Sunday, and why he’s managed to get an official remix of Madison Avenue’s 1999 hit “Don’t Call Me Baby” after ripping the iconic vocal off the internet.

 

Crowds chant his name from Taiwan to Texas because Billy Gillies dares to do something different; something unique to himself. Now, Billy Gillies is the next superstar-DJ-in-the-making, poised to take over the world.

 

Billy’s musical obsession started in the 2000s when his older sister started buying Clubland compilation CDs and dating a local DJ. One night, the boyfriend came over and brought his decks, but when the couple left to go dancing, 11-year-old Billy snuck into his sister’s room and started playing with the turntables.

 

“I was like, ‘what is this music? I love this,’” he laughs. “On the Christmas list for that year was a set of decks.”

 

His mom delivered with his first set of Kam belt drives, and Billy’s been mad for mixing ever since. Each Saturday, he’d head out of the house with a five Pound note and spend it on a new record (Tiesto’s Traffic being particularly influential). In turn, he’d spend the next week learning to mix that record in and out of his steadily growing collection.

 

When he was 17, he got his first taste of true Clubland. A year underaged, he caught an hour-long bus from Belfast to Banbridge and talked his way into a club called Coach. Japanese DJ Yoji Biomehanika and the UK’s own Lisa Lashes dropped heavy hard-house records all night, and Billy started dreaming of his own chance to rock a crowd, proper.

 

He knew that if he wanted to be an in-demand DJ, he’d have to come up with some original songs. In 2011, he locked himself in his bedroom with a copy of Ableton Live and didn’t come out until he’d mastered the basic trance sound.

 

He fell in love with music production and started sending his tracks to BBC Radio 1 DJ Judge Jules, who played them on his show every Friday night. For 19-year-old Billy, there was nothing better.

 

After spending much of his 20s as a self-described “party animal,” 28-year-old Billy once again locked himself inside his bedroom and churned out a ton of original tunes. The result? A spot on the lineup of Luminosity 2019 alongside major trance legends Paul Van Dyk, Ferry Corsten, Gareth Emery and more. He played a set of all-original material, and when a recording was posted to Soundcloud, it earned more plays than any of the headliners.

 

“I’d brung a fresh sound into the trance scene,” Gillies says. “Everyone was making the same type of thing, where I just look back at my influences growing up and crammed it into the main trance style.”

 

International booking requests flooded in, sending him to Argentina to Australia—and then COVID struck. Many of his peers saw no point releasing music to a locked-down crowd, but Billy saw a chance to experiment.

 

“People need music in hard times, not just for clubs,” he says. “The music I was making around that time was proper emotional melodies, and it was resonating with everyone.”

 

He’d share each tune in a rough clip to Facebook or TikTok, and every post brought shares in the thousands. His fan base wasn’t just growing, it was ballooning, due in part not only to his masterful skills in the studio but also his effervescent personality that spills into each tune.

NATHAN DAWE feat. ELLA HENDERSON - 21 REASONS (OUT 29.04.22)

Welcome to the home of UK Urban Entertainment.

A new free record label, blog and brand dedicated to bringing you the best in underground Tech House, House & Disco.

Reposts: TechNoPrisonersUK@outlook.com

Demos: TechNoPrisonersUK@outlook.com

Tech House, House & Disco, it's what we do. x

It's all about the groove. x

Established 2020. x

CYRIL
Setting a benchmark with his late 2023 hit “Stumblin’ In,” Australian DJ/producer CYRIL has surely come a long, illustrious way. His story is defined by various highs and lows, though always with music as a common thread throughout all his tribulations. Now, having survived the most daring events of his life, CYRIL is more decisive than ever, freshly signed to Spinnin’ Records and eager to excell with a much anticipated string of new releases. He’s still got his best tunes ready to drop; stay tuned for this seasoned aussie to overwhelm the scene. 
Born and raised in the countryside of New South Wales in Australia, young Cyril Riley got hooked on music when only 2-years old, exploring instruments like (bass) guitar, piano and drums. Once a teenager, this love had only increased, causing him to move to the big city, learning the skills of DJ’ing and music production as well as the business side of clubs and festivals.
While pursuing a DJ career in the New South Wales area, though, Cyril hit several setbacks, caused by heartbreak and financial problems. One thing led to another, and soon enough he found himself hooked on a serious substance addiction, crashing his car and losing his home, forcing him to sleep in friends’ houses or in the club where he had his residency.
While going through these traumatic events, Cyril kept making music with just about his only possessions left: a laptop, usb and guitar. Safe to say, music kept him going this period, until he reached the ultimate lowpoint in 2018, when he almost overdosed.
As Cyril says, this moment was ‘the biggest wake up call of my life.’ He made his way back to his home town, managed to clean himself up completely, and after a few months started making music again.
Enter CYRIL, the DJ/producer who’s been making waves until this day. Building a resume since 2021 with several headstrong, inventive electronic tunes, he’s conquered some of his past ordeals with songs like “Lucid Dreams” and “Strong,” culminating in the late 2023 release “Stumblin’ In,” revamping the 1978 pop tune into a sun drenched deep house gem.
It proved a major breakthrough for CYRIL. Kickstarted by a TikTok video that amassed an incredible 3.3 million views, 156k comments and 37.3k saves, things started rolling for CYRIL, culminating in the Bayern Munich football team posting a video featuring the track, while thousands of other people hopped on a jamming trend using the track in their content. 

By now, CYRIL is stronger than ever. Having learned from his experiences, he’s returned to the music scene, living and working in Darwin these days, where he initially had a DJ residency and job as promotions manager at a local club, but has progressed into running another club as venue manager, while doing bookings for another.
In the meantime, he got schooled in music theory at Charles Darwin University, perfected his production skills, moved around to different clubs, and performed some huge shows around the country. 
It’s all come together, he acknowledges, especially with the success of “Stumblin’ In” and the deal he recently signed with Spinnin’ Records. It’s time for the rest of the world to meet CYRIL and the uplifting sounds he’s ready to share. Expect a burst of positive energy and life experience in every tune he drops, coming soon as 2024 unfolds. 
It’s a journey worth joining him on, as this Australian artist is sure to surprise us all with his strong and remarkable return to shape - his story has only just begun.

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