Roger Shah: “For me, music is all about emotion, something I do really miss nowadays”

For more than two decades, Roger Shah has been painting sunsets in sound. Known around the world as the Balearic master, the German DJ and producer has built a career on melodies that feel as much like memories as they do music. Whether under his own name or through beloved aliases like Sunlounger, Shah has given Trance some of its most iconic moments with tracks like White Sand, Lost, and Who Will Find Me.

His Magic Island series became more than just compilations; they inspired a generation of fans and DJs to fall in love with Balearic trance. Along the way, Roger collaborated with voices that span genres and eras - from Bryan Adams and Moya Brennan to JES and Susana - always finding new ways to blend emotion with euphoria. From headlining massive festivals to soundtracking intimate beach sunsets, Shah has proven that his music belongs wherever hearts are open and melodies can soar.

Q: For a lot of people, their love of trance started with your classics like “Who Will Find Me” and “Going Wrong.” Do you feel like those tracks define you, or are they just one chapter in your much bigger musical journey?
Roger Shah: I think these tracks are some of my biggest tracks and define me as an artist in the trance genre, although they are indeed just one chapter, especially since I originally come from orchestral music and do a lot of non-trance/dance-related music.

Q: ‘Balearic’ is a word that gets thrown around a lot, but you’ve built a whole universe around it with your Magic Island series. In your own words, what does ‘Balearic’ really mean to you, both in sound and in spirit?
Roger Shah: For me, Balearic is only a spirit and has nothing to do with sound at all; it’s that warmth and magical feel when you step on a Balearic island, especially Ibiza. It even has a very specific smell and in a way, I translate all of that into sound.

Q: Through your Sunlounger alias we’ve had some of the most iconic trance anthems like “White Sand,” “Try To Be Love,” and “Lost.” What does Sunlounger let you express that "Roger Shah” can’t?
Roger Shah: I won’t even call the Sunlounger sound trance. This is exactly the magical Balearic sound, slow, deep, with a lot of organic warmth. I guess for Sunlounger I use a lot of times some Spanish guitars as well, so I would say Sunlounger is my deeper Balearic and chill out project, while the Roger Shah sound is more trance and uplifting and peak time or festival sound.

Q: You’re famous for showing up with wireless keyboards and blending live elements into your DJ sets. Do you think the future of Trance is now heading more towards performance and live energy rather than just decks and mixers? And how important is that “human touch” to you in a world that sometimes feels ruled by technology?
Roger Shah: I can’t talk for others, but since I come from a musical background, I enjoy playing some live keys and sometimes just jamming along during my shows. A lot of times it also depends on the crowd's reaction, but it’s my way; I enjoy performing and interacting with the crowd.

Q: You’ve often said it’s not just about making music, but about creating experiences. When someone walks away from a Roger Shah set, what’s the one feeling you hope stays with them for the longest?
Roger Shah: It’s the emotion they hopefully feel during my set. For me, music is all about emotion, something I do really miss nowadays when I stroll around festival grounds where it’s all noise or gimmick-driven performances, and not about music at all. I try to give the audience emotion and a little bit of a journey.

Q: You’ve been on the DJ Mag Top 100, headlined massive festivals, and also played intimate beach sunsets. Where do you personally feel most at home as an artist?
Roger Shah: I enjoy playing both and it’s almost not comparable. The intimate or open to close sets are perfect to take people on a journey, while the big festival stages are usually 1h of pure fun and playing the big hits and maybe trying out a few ID tracks.

Q: You’ve worked with legendary voices like Moya Brennan, Susana, JES and Bryan Adams and even co-wrote “Going Wrong” with Chris Jones and Armin van Buuren. Which collab ended up surprising you the most, by pushing your music into a place you didn’t expect?
Roger Shah: I think every collab is surprising and exciting in its own way. When I wrote the music for Going Wrong, I had no idea that it would end up being a collaboration with Armin. Originally, I wanted to create a dance track but with the feel of U2's (The Edge) guitars. Then, I found Chris Jones, the perfect rock singer, and ended up releasing the track together with Armin. While Moya Brennan is my favorite artist, it felt more like an unbelievable but big honor working with her, even flying over to her house and studio in Ireland where all these iconic Clannad hit records were made. So in every collab there is an influence that makes me create and compose music in a different way.

Q: “Memories of Space” is your latest release, but definitely not the first time you’ve teamed up with Kristina Sky. How did the connection between you two first spark?
Roger Shah: That’s a good question and I don’t know exactly anymore, but I guess I had Kristina opening for one of my shows and realized that she’s probably one of the best DJs I’ve ever heard and I don’t know anyone else who would put so much thought into a set by considering the crowd, venue but especially the other artist’s sound. Besides that, she’s just an amazing person and I’m grateful for our long-lasting friendship after all these years.

Q: And now you’ve brought Evan Henzi into the mix for the very first time. What was it about his voice that made you go, ‘yep, this is the one’ for this track?
Roger Shah: Actually, for this one, the credits go fully over to Kristina. She sent me that track she started with Evan and I was like “awe” and in initial goosebumps mode. I actually had that track sitting on my desk for a few years since I have been too busy with other projects, especially during the time of my Tribute to Earth project and immersive tour. There was no space to release anything else in between, so I had to wait until this year and I’m excited to finally be able to share it with the world.

Q: Your career spans so many projects, aliases, and sounds. If Roger Shah’s journey was a book, what do you imagine the next chapter would look like?
Roger Shah: I actually just started a few new chapters. Last year, I spent almost the whole year networking and working towards the Hollywood Movies trailer bizz and I’m creating trailer cues (which are very specific) for one of the leading companies in LA, which is something I'm planning to do in the long run as my retirement bizz after I’m not touring anymore. In addition, I recently signed a new alias with the management team who oversees artists like Artbat and Argy, and we just had our world premiere, which I announced two weeks ago at David Guetta's Galactic Circus show at UNVRS in Ibiza, which was a massive start to the project and I'm looking forward to taking it forward.

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