From Academy LA to "Turn It Up" STVN LEON Finds His Sound

Sometimes the best records aren't planned months in advance. They're born from a single moment that completely shifts an artist's perspective. For STVN LEON, that moment came after returning home from Los Angeles, where he had just opened for AC Slater at Academy LA after winning Insomniac's Discovery Project.

Inspired by the energy inside the room, he walked back into the studio with one goal: create a bass house record that could recreate that same feeling every time it hit a dancefloor.

Released on July 31, "Turn It Up" is the result of that vision. Built to work equally well inside dark clubs and on festival stages, the record combines aggressive bass house grooves, high-energy drums, and sharp synth work that STVN LEON considers the clearest representation of his sound today. More than the drop itself, it's those synths that define the record, reflecting the direction he has been steadily developing over the past decade.

That journey began nearly ten years ago during the golden era of Big Room. Inspired by artists like Avicii and Hardwell, STVN LEON became fascinated with music production after watching Avicii's legendary Future Music studio video. That moment introduced him to FL Studio, and from there, producing quickly became more than a hobby. It became the foundation of the career he continues building today.

Music, however, had already become part of his life long before he opened a DAW. At just 14 years old, STVN LEON played his first nightclub, immediately falling in love with performing. What started as a teenager's dream eventually turned into a personal milestone. Years later, he says he has officially played every major club in Chicago, the city where he developed both his confidence behind the decks and his identity as an artist.

Those experiences continue shaping the way he approaches every performance. Rather than simply mixing records, STVN LEON feeds off the crowd's energy, constantly interacting with fans and building momentum throughout a set. That connection reached another level when he opened for Tiësto during the Beyond Wonderland Afterparty at Radius Chicago, a night he still describes as one of the most memorable moments of his career. Playing his own productions in front of that audience and seeing the reaction firsthand reinforced exactly why he creates music in the first place.

That philosophy also explains why "Turn It Up" sounds the way it does. STVN LEON never set out to make a record that only worked in one environment. He wanted something DJs could confidently drop in clubs while still delivering the scale and intensity expected from modern festival stages. Every production decision supports that objective, but none more than the synth work, which he points to as the element that most clearly captures who he is as a producer.

Away from music, his interests remain just as creative. Fashion has become one of his biggest passions, and he admits to constantly following the latest apparel trends while growing an ever-expanding sneaker collection. Ironically, despite producing bass house, much of his recent listening has been dedicated to revisiting classic Linkin Park albums. The nostalgia, he says, takes him back to the music he grew up with and reminds him why those records continue to resonate years later.

Looking ahead, one goal remains at the top of the list. STVN LEON dreams of performing at Tomorrowland, not only because of its legendary stage designs but because of what the festival represents: thousands of people from around the world coming together through dance music. It's exactly the kind of environment he imagined while creating "Turn It Up."

For longtime listeners, "Turn It Up" represents the clearest version of STVN LEON's artistic identity so far. For new listeners, it's an introduction to the aggressive stabs, energetic drums, and festival-ready grooves that define his sound today. And as he puts it himself, if you're discovering STVN LEON through this record, welcome to the journey.

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