Tony Foxx
J Tony Foxx - ‘Faithfulness’ Armed with only a turntable and a record collection, they are the new musical heroes. These days it’s DJs that move the masses: DJs like Tiësto and Armin van Buuren have taken dance music to the world, proving that it is a musical force to be reckoned with. They are superstars, creating and mixing music that has a powerful impact on the audience. But as widespread as the genre has become, equally dark is its subject matter. The dance music that you are prone to hear in clubs worldwide comes regular by themes like sex, drugs, alcohol abuse and violence. The use of ‘party drugs’ like XTC is rampant and is often stimulated by the lyrics. As much as the musical style reflects appealing good and happy times, its content all too often reflects or results in despair, hopelessness and loneliness.
Enter DJ Tony Foxx from Holland. This talented young man surprised dance fans of all ages with his compelling remixes of songs by Kees Kraayenoord last year, and now he is stretching his musical wings with his solo album ‘Faithfulness’. It is an eclectic collection of songs, mixes and sonic stories that move both your feet and your heart. ‘Faithfulness’ is also a powerful answer to the shallowness found in dance music today. With the album, the listener is guided through reflections on Gods everlasting grace and faithfulness. Taking lyrics straight from both the Old and New Testament, Tony Foxx pours out Biblical Truth over the listener. Add to that remixes of known Christian music hits (for instance ‘Friend Of God’ from Israel & New Breed, ‘Lifesong’ from Casting Crowns and ‘My Redeemer Lives’ from Hillsong) and there are bound to be many pleasant recognitions on top of an already superb collection.
DJ Tony Foxx (given name: Antonie Vos) didn’t start out in the dance scene, though. “For a short time, I played in a band, but creating dance music and mixing slowly won me over” he recalls his first steps into the genre. “At first, I wanted to simply ‘be a christian’ in that scene and in that way hope to influence my surroundings. But as I started playing in bigger clubs, it became pretty clear that I was fooling myself. It might have been well-meant, but it wasn’t working out that way.” Tony Foxx changed his direction and combined both his passions (his faith and his love for dance music) by developing his own unique brand of dance music: contemporary, beat-driven and spiritually based lyrics that don’t water down the gospel. “I want the message to testify” he says now, reflecting on his own music, “and bring a positive message that does not condone or promote sex, drugs and violence.” In dance music, such a take on the music is bound to get people talking.
Speaking of talking about music: Tony Foxx is no stranger to the ongoing discussion on the influence of dance music. He sees a bigger picture, however: “I once heard an organ player talk about how he could all but lose himself in his music. That can happen with any kind of music; including dance. The way I see it, that’s simply the power of music. I believe that people can get a taste of Gods presence, dancing to music that points to Him. That’s what my music does.”
Whether he is creating his own songs or remixing existing music; Tony Foxx holds himself to a high standard, both quality-wise and spiritually. “When I mix existing songs, the lyrics need to be uplifting; honouring God. I want to provide people with an answer to the darkness that they get served with lyrics on sex, drugs, violence and racism.” On ‘Faithfulness’, several songs feature literal lines from the Bible. “I want to keep Gods Word as pure as it is. It works best that way, and in dance music this way of fitting lines into the music is common practice. This way, even if people don’t necessarily listen to the words, they still take it home with them.”
A standout track on ‘Faithfulness’ is ‘God Is My Co-Pilot’, written after Tony Foxx saw a documentary about a pilot who testified about his faith. “The man talked about how God was his ‘co-pilot’ , and that struck me as a beautiful thought. A co-pilot doesn’t do everything for you, but points out directions and helps you navigate. That’s what I see God doing in my life. The song was musically inspired by DJ Tiësto’s ‘Flight 463’.
As humble his beginnings might have been, Tony Foxx’s vision for his music is worldwide, as reflected on several instrumental tracks on the album. With these, the DJ embarks on a musical ‘round-the-world’ trip. “Holland is a country that has truly embraced dance music” says Tony. “Germany and the United Kingdom have massive club circuits, and where Italy’s taste veers towards the ‘harder’ styles, Scandinavians tend to prefer the more mellow dance. The music is growing fast in countries like Brazil and Argentina. Its appeal goes beyond culture.”
“The majority of our youth spends its partying with this music. I want to see people dancing to similar music, but in the presence of God” says Tony Foxx. “There is great power in music: also in dance music. Everybody responds to it one way or the other. ‘Faithfulness’ is, in a manner of speaking, my ‘response’ to the world. To show that there can be ‘normal’ dance music with a positive message!” One listen to ‘Faithfulness’ will prove to the most outspoken sceptic that with that vision, DJ Tony Foxx is a force to be reckoned with! Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
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