10 Reasons Why We Shouldn’t Be Hatin’ on Headhunterz
Recently, there has been a lot of fiery debate regarding one of the most legendary hardstyle producers and DJ’s. Other than the fact that out of nowhere this guy went from being bald to having a full head of hair and some pretty impressive biceps, Willem Rebergen AKA Headhunterz, has been continuously slammed by dedicated hardstyle fans all over the world.
After signing with Ultra Records (a renowned house music label) in mid 2013, fans were infuriated to take on the scrutiny that one of their most loved idols was suddenly “converting over to house music.” To further the hate, after releasing his single “Colors (Feat. TaTu)”, in August 2013, extreme backlash was ensured as many die-hard fans labelled the track as “EDM” and “soft”.

Writing this introduction, I found myself cringing in dismay and sadness – mainly at the fact that there are so many people out there who find it necessary to voice their negativity at the expense of such talented and creative producers, such as Headhunterz.

So let me embark on this journey by beginning with a short message for all of the keyboard warriors responsible for the unnecessary hate:
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

I am here, endeavoring to put a stop to this hatred and give you guys the cold hard facts about Headhunterz and his career. By the end of this article I can assure that some of these “haters,” will be biting their fingers next time they proceed to hiding behind their computers and writing some half-witted response that aren’t even spelt correctly.

For those of you who have read other articles written by myself, you will know for sure that I LOVE lists, and what have I got for you? Yes, I have got a very exciting and highly informative list that will indeed be getting down, and analytical…

1. Headhunterz loves and cares for hardstyle as a genre and as a scene: From the moment Willem emerged into the hardstyle scene, he has worked on his sound to the point of perfection because he genuinely wants to release only the best music for his fans. For this one guy to take hardstyle and spread it practically all over the world is such a huge achievement and I definitely take my hat off to Heady as he has done such unique things for the scene and has made the genre reach such great heights. Most recently, Heady has taken the honour to compose “Hard With Style – Origins,” which is a showcase of his journey through hardstyle. Consisting of his greatest hits in the highest quality, “Origins” is a true celebration of the genre.

2. He is a loyal entrepreneur for the scene: He is one producer and representative that people think of when they hear the word “hardstyle”. Ensuring that the genre has a good representation, Headhunterz has worked incredibly hard to guarantee that hardstyle is viewed as a positive and unique genre of music in modern society.

3. He is in fact extremely talented and versatile: Working with other huge names such as Zatox, Wildstylez and Psyko Punkz, Willem has proved to be an extremely talented and versatile producer who is dedicated, creative and has the ability to bring something original to the table. His talent extends outside of hardstyle too, proving to the world that he has appreciation and an open mind towards all genres of music. His tracks have transcended so many years, the sound he created in his tracks never gets old and still has shivers running down my spine whenever I hear “Doomed”. Just because Headhunterz isn’t creating music with his late 2000’s sound, does not mean that he lacks production skills – those production skills don’t just magically disappear…

4. He loves what he does: Otherwise he would never have pursued a career in music. You can hear in his “Hard With Style” podcasts, which he presents monthly that he truly enjoys all avenues of providing music to mass amounts of people. To ease all of the critique, if Heady was only in this industry to make money and nothing else – he could of actually retired from music all together years ago. He genuinely loves performing and creating and if he didn’t have a love and passion for music, every single track that he released would have been boring and mediocre which are two words that definitely DO NOT describe his music.

5. His label provides great opportunity for upcoming artists: Hard With Style, the record label he established in 2013 has been an absolute success and has provided such great opportunity for aspiring hardstyle producers. He has assisted young artists such as Adrenalize, Rebourne, Crystal Lake, Phrantic and also well established artists such as Audiofreq and Hard Driver. Mind you, all of the releases on Hard With Style Records have been exceptionally great!

6. He gives back to the community: In 2012, Headhunterz released his 3rd studio album “Sacrifice,” in which he donated all profits to the international initiative “Dance4Life,” which encourages young people’s awareness and prevention of HIV/AIDS. He didn’t just donate half of the profits from this album… And if that’s not enough, his release “United Kids Of The World,” a collaboration he did with Krewella was created with a special anti-bullying message, reaching out to children and youth of the world, letting them know that they aren’t alone on this fight. Such a heart-warming track that delivers a powerful message, evidently Willem is in hope for a brighter future for youth worldwide.

7. He is an excellent role model: He is highly intellectual and so positively minded, despite all of the hate that has gravitated towards him. In some of his podcasts, he gives special messages to aspiring producers, urging them to never give up and always stay true to themselves and their goals. For a producer of such a high status, it could be easy for him to become disconnected to his fans, yet he stays humble and down-to-earth and also encourages a healthy lifestyle, outlined in various social media posts.

8. The song “Rock Civilization” deserves its own bullet point: BECAUSE IT’S F*CKING AMAZING!!!! An absolutely legendary, mind-blowing track that has transcended so many years, still capturing the hearts of every single listener. I suggest you all go and listen to this masterpiece, NOW.

9. He can perform for any type of crowd: From the most recent Stereosonic tour in Australia to EDC Las Vegas to Qlimax in The Netherlands, Heady has surely proved one thing – he can perform and cater to any crowd! Being the only DJ to break the fourth wall at Qlimax and jump over the decks to dance along with the crowd, it is no secret that this musical genius is a natural born performer. His stage presence is exceptional, his sets are always 100% original and can inject crowds all around the world with an infectious boost of euphoria.

10. His productions are of the highest quality: Although Headhunterz isn’t jumping on the hardstyle bandwagon and “producing music for the market,” his productions never lack their quality. His recent tracks such as “We Control The Sound” with W&W and also “Shocker” are incredibly catchy and demonstrate a highly versatile sound. Regardless of whether Willem is planning on continuing with sounds at 150BPM or pursuing a career in house music, the fact is – he refuses to release low quality music in general. If you listen to his entire discography, you will find that there are no tracks that lack an overall love for music.

So there you have it, a true representation of how legendary Headhunterz is, a tribute to all of his passion and dedication for the scene and some valid reasons to try and cease the absurdly vindictive backlash that this talented producer does not deserve.
Unless you can magically pull out over 900,000 Facebook fans, create 3-4 outstanding albums consisting of a range of 100% perfectly crafted tracks (and donate all proceedings to charity) and most importantly capture so many hearts worldwide then please, keep the hate off the keyboard and keep those feet on the dance floor…