Label of the Month: Stil vor Talent

Oliver Koletzki really pays attention to detail. That’s clear from twenty years of flawless releases, intricately designed artwork, beautifully curated events – and it’s even reflected in his choice of window. For our call today, he sits in front of a pane of beautiful stained glass that he installed in his Berlin apartment himself. “I made a church window, “ he says happily. “It’s right in front of my terrace.”

Oliver co-founded Stil vor Talent with Slawjana Ulrich in 2005. Since then, the label has spearheaded and influenced the global sound of house and techno, launching dozens of careers and shaping the music we dance to. The label’s ethos is “creating magical moments,” and they’ve done just that through their commitment to artistic freedom, high-quality productions, and fostering emerging talent. 

“I take A&R very seriously,” Oliver says. “We were the first to release David August in 2006, we were the first to release Marlon Hoffstadt in 2008, we were the first to release KlangKuenstler in 2009, and Reinier Zonneveld in 2013.”

20 years in and they’re nearing the 400 release mark, with music spanning organic house, techno, electronica, all the way to crossover pop. They’ve held takeovers in every major city in Germany and showcases at Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE), Off Sonar in Barcelona, London's Steelyard, and an anniversary showcase tour in over 25 global locations including New York, CDMX, London and many others.

A lot of their artists have gone on to achieve global fame, but by far their most famous release is 2008’s “3 Tage Wach” (3 days awake) by Lutzenkirchen, which skyrocketed into the German charts. The accompanying music video was equally popular, showing Oliver dressed in a white bunny suit and his friend dressed as a dog, roaming the späti's (liquor stores) of Friedrichshain, dancing at house parties and passing out on toilets. They even performed on German TV. 

“This was a huge hit in Germany, it was all over the media,” Oliver says. “It got a little too big, it was kind of scary, so I gave it to Universal. But this helped the label get recognized.” 

Stil vor Talent translates to “style over talent” in English – which is ironic, seeing as all of the artists on his imprint are maniacally talented (Township Rebellion, Hidden Empire, Pavel Petrov, Marlon Hoffstadt, Deer Jade, and David August to name a few). But, as Oliver explains, the name helped him heal from a personal trauma. 

“When I was younger I loved music so much, but not everyone believed in me,” he says. “I always wanted to be a singer and play piano and guitar, but I was thrown out the choir at school because my teachers said I wasn’t talented enough.”

That’s when Oliver decided that if he couldn’t succeed in music because of talent, he could at least succeed through having a unique style. Luckily, Oliver is one of a rare breed of people who finds it motivating when people tell him he can’t do something. “When you say I can’t reach something, I try even harder to reach it,” he says.

Oliver grew up obsessed with music, and ever since he started making it has done so out of necessity every day. Street Fighter was his gateway drug into production, and he used early software from the ‘90s to produce hip hop beats for friends in his hometown of Braunschweig, near Hannover. But when he heard Daft Punk’s Homework in 1997, he immediately turned his hand to electronic music.

Oliver’s singing teachers may not have believed in him, but his friends did, and they begged him to release his music. “They didn’t give up, so in 2005 I pressed one track on a vinyl,” he says. “I drove through Germany with friends and gave five records to every record store, and Sven Väth bought one, and played it on his Asia tour, and got great feedback. When he came back to Germany, he called me and asked if he could release it on his label Cocoon.”

"Der Mückenschwarm” was the best selling record of the year. “Its crazy because I’d been producing music every day for years,” Oliver laughs. “But this changed my whole life. I could tour, I could afford equipment, produce better music, and all because someone gave me a chance. So I decided to found a label and give other people the same opportunity.”

Twenty years on, and that remains the core of Stil vor Talent. Oliver is always on the hunt for new artists, and still finds it one of the most rewarding aspects of his job. He’s committed to gender equality, and striving for a 50/50 split in the office, on the release schedule, on the line-ups and in the crowd. He’ll head to festivals as a punter to unearth new talent, and he’s particularly excited about Frida Darko, a recent signee who’s now booked to play at Fusion, Mystic Creatures, Boom in Portugal and more. “She’s a super, super good DJ, singer and producer,” Oliver says. “I never met anyone who digs so much.”

Other artists Oliver is extremely excited about include (but are not limited to) Kaufmann, Konfusia, Madmotormiquel, HOVR as well as the label’s core, established artists. “These are more techno artists, but lately we always have between four and ten tracks in the indie dance Beatport top 100, so we’re really proud of that,” Oliver says. “There are so many new labels coming up, and some from the younger generation don't even know our label. So I’m always catching up on the sound of now.”

Ultimately, Stil vor Talent’s success is thanks to staying true to their taste, releasing what they love and continuing to champion their values. That’s how they’re able to navigate mainstream success while staying loyal to their underground roots. Oliver’s 2009 track "Hypnotized (feat. Fran)" is a good example, combining pop sensibilities, indie dance and 4:4 beats. “I’ve always had a good relationship to underground and mainstream,” Oliver says. “We still understand ourselves as an underground label, but I don’t judge anyone for making a career with a major label.”

Culturally speaking, Germany is very different to the US. “In America, if you earn money with music and have huge gigs, everyone says congratulations,” Oliver explains. “When you do this in Germany, people criticise you. But I don’t see it like that, I respect every direction an artist wants to go.”

The label has a well-loved HQ and store in Kreuzberg “with big windows,” (Oliver loves windows), and its become a hub for the electronic music community, with a reach that extends way beyond the artists they release. The Stil vor Talent store combines workspace and shop, which means the team can directly interact with their community and fans, creating a strong bond between the label and the people who listen. Stil vor Talent is also a booking agency and management service, as well as a fashion brand of sorts: “We make a lot of merch,” Oliver laughs.

Their release schedule is jam-packed until April 2026, with close to one a week thanks to their 20 year celebrations. They’re remixing the most famous songs in their catalog, including a “3 Tage Wach” remix from Reinier Zonneveld, Oliver’s latest EP Weirdo on June 27th, Kaufmann’s remix of Oliver’s breakthrough track "Der Mückenschwarm” on July 25, and a 20 Years of Stil vor Talent VA out on August 8. 

With Oliver at the helm, Stil vor Talent continues to flourish two decades on – and he has no problem staying motivated.

“It's not easy running a label for 20 years,” Oliver says. “But in the end, we just love what we do.”