Nick Schilder - Biography - September 2024

‘Are you sure about that?’ Many people around Nick Schilder were, to put it mildly, not quite enthused when he made the switch from Dutch folk and pop tunes to English singer-songwriter music with electronic influences. Six weeks after finishing the farewell tour of the Nick & Simon duo, Nick released his first solo single Shatterproof. The surprise - or, to some, the shock - was huge. Over the past seventeen years, Nick & Simon had topped the charts ten times, sold about one million records and played to sold-out stadiums. Wouldn’t it be easier to continue his solo career in a similar vein?

He can now safely say: yes, it would definitely have been easier. But those who really know Nick Schilder will agree that he never looks for the easy way out. He wants to learn what he doesn’t yet know, and do what he can’t yet do. So when the train slowed to a stop and he had to choose a new destination, he opted for the road of most resistance. Because that’s where he knows the way.

A few years before, he had suddenly seen it happen - or actually, he felt it happen. How music connects us, moves us, touches us. How remarkable it is that people will gather to listen to it. The pandemic lockdowns were a thing of the past again, and Nick had gone to see his colleagues perform like they did before the years of silence. Of course, he knew the power of music fully well, but it was as if he’d grown immune to it over the years. Now that he looked at the stage from a distance, both literally and figuratively, he finally understood it all over again. That’s where he wanted to be. He was in good shape and spirits, and since he had started learning to look at the bigger picture in life, he succeeded more and more in letting go of his ego as an artist. The shows that Nick & Simon did together right after the pandemic were a bigger joy to him than ever before. This boys’ tale was far from over… But then, Simon closed the book on them.

Of course it hurt. For seventeen years, Nick & Simon had brought him everything he had been dreaming of ever since his eight-year-old self learned to play the guitar. Making music, creating, telling stories that millions of people wanted to listen to. But, in the background, he had quietly begun to find new shapes to pour that dream into.

Maykel Piron, the founder of Armada Music and one of Nick’s best friends, had shown Nick around in the world of electronic music a few years before. Ever since, that type of music had been fascinating him. Particularly because he couldn’t understand it at first, it just kept intriguing him. The Deepend remix of Matt Simons’ Catch & Release eventually opened his eyes: a sincere singer-songwriter piece that was made even more profound by the electronic production. If this was possible, what else could be done with it? And what else could he do with it? The new creative possibilities seemed endless.

In his own studio, Nick recorded a few demos, his first solo steps on those tantalizing crossroads between singer-songwriter and electronic. The exciting rush of something that doesn’t yet exist, reminded him of his early years as an artist. So when one door closed, he knew exactly which one to open next.

In Armada Music, Nick found the confidence and the freedom that he was looking for to reinvent himself as an artist. During dozens of studio sessions with both Dutch and international songwriters and producers, his new sound began to take shape. Writing in English allowed him to explore new parts of his own brain. Fitting, because now that he was going solo, his lyrics could - and should - be a whole lot more personal. Now, he descends all the way into his own core while writing, no matter how uncomfortable that might sometimes feel. In these new songs and lyrics, the artist and the individual are more connected than ever before.

His stage performance was tweaked and upgraded accordingly. In live settings, his sound is brought to life with the help of a DJ booth and a loop station. This set-up requires years of diligent training, but it leads to much more flexibility and agility. And validation. He can do this alone, just watch.

And audiences seem to agree with him. Several dates of his first club show are sold out already. His debut single Shatterproof reached the Top 40 charts and made it to number 12 on the Dutch airplay charts. His singles Realize and Dancing Alone made it into the Top 40 as well. The Realize remix by American producer Angrybaby even saw Nick climbing the US charts. In September 2024, Nick released his debut solo album Shatterproof - a mix of energetic dance tracks and acoustic ballads. About saying goodbye, looking ahead, and coming into your own. He hopes that for his listeners, the album can be a soundtrack to a period in life, just like Shatterproof has been for him.

‘Are you sure about that?’ Nick Schilder is sure. It is scary as hell and fantastic all the same. He is feeling it again, or actually, still: how music connects us, moves us, touches us.

The book isn’t closed. It’s just the start of a brand new chapter.