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‘Is It Beautiful?’, which fuses classic and modern trance elements, drops ahead of the pair’s debut back-to-back set at A State of Trance Festival.
Trance pioneer Armin van Buuren and Ben Hemsley, a leading figure in the modern trance movement, have released their highly anticipated debut collaboration: ‘Is It Beautiful?’ featuring iconic trance vocalist Lucy Pullin. Written during a live streamed session in 2024, the track culminates a growing creative partnership between the two frontrunners and their shared passion for pushing trance music forward.
Doubling as the official anthem for A State of Trance Rotterdam 2025—a yearly tradition since 2010, releasing around the time of each annual A State of Trance event in February—‘Is It Beautiful?’ captures this year’s event’s Transformation theme, which celebrates innovation and evolution within the genre. The track features a melodic, nostalgia-inducing production layered with Lucy Pullin’s emotive vocals, creating a powerful and anthemic listening experience. Following a teaser appearance on the ‘A State of Trance Year Mix 2024’ mix album, the full release has already generated excitement among fans.
As the pair prepare for their debut back-to-back set at the annual A State of Trance Festival in Ahoy, Rotterdam, Ben Hemsley shared his excitement about the collaboration: “Working with Armin has been a dream come true. He’s been a massive influence on me, and his support has meant the world. When we started this track, I had Lucy Pullin’s voice in mind from the beginning. Vocals are such an essential part of trance music, and Lucy captured the heart and soul of this track perfectly.”
Lucy Pullin, known for her work on iconic trance tracks such as Simon Patterson’s ‘Blink’ and ‘Now I Can Breathe Again,’ delivers a stirring performance that elevates ‘Is It Beautiful?’ to a transcendent level.
Armin van Buuren praised Hemsley’s contributions to the genre: “Ben is bringing trance to the forefront for a new generation. It’s inspiring to see how he’s breathing new life into the genre while staying true to its core. We should celebrate and appreciate these fresh takes on the music we love, which is what A State of Trance is all about.”
Tickets for A State of Trance Festival Rotterdam on February 21-22 are available now via https://enter.astateoftrance.com/
Armin van Buuren & Ben Hemsley feat. Lucy Pullin - Is It Beautiful? 10
Summary
The highly anticipated trance anthem ‘Is It Beautiful?’ marks a remarkable collaboration between legendary trance icon Armin van Buuren and rising star Ben Hemsley. This track, featuring the ethereal vocals of Lucy Pullin, not only serves as a testament to the creative synergy between the artists but also embodies the spirit of transformation and innovation celebrated at this year’s A State of Trance Festival. From the first note, ‘Is It Beautiful?’ captivates with its masterful blend of classic and modern trance elements, a fusion that is both nostalgic and refreshing. Lucy Pullin’s voice soars above the lush, melodic production, delivering a performance that is both powerful and emotive. Her contribution elevates the track to a transcendent level, capturing the heart and soul of trance music. Co-written during a live-streamed session in 2024, this piece stands as a monumental achievement for Hemsley, who expresses his admiration for van Buuren and gratitude for the opportunity to work alongside such a pioneering figure in the genre. Van Buuren’s influence is evident in the track's production quality, yet Hemsley’s unique touch breathes new life into the genre, making trance accessible and engaging for a new generation of listeners. ‘Is It Beautiful?’ also doubles as the official anthem for A State of Trance 2025 in Rotterdam, perfectly encapsulating the festival's theme of Transformation. The track’s anthemic nature and its melodic intricacies make it a fitting soundtrack for a festival dedicated to the evolution and innovation of trance music. Fans of the genre will find ‘Is It Beautiful?’ to be a fulfilling listening experience, a track that not only honors the roots of trance but also pushes its boundaries. With this release, van Buuren and Hemsley prove that while the core of trance remains unchanged, there is always room for creativity and evolution. This track is a must-listen for any trance enthusiast, promising to leave a lasting impression both on the dancefloor and in the hearts of its listeners. #PureGold Love iT10.0
Beat and Rhythm10
Basslines and Groove10
Melody 10
Synths 10
Breakdown10
Climax / Drop / Crescendo / Pay off moment10
Intensity, Drive and Energy10
Sound-design and Arrangement10
Overall Atmosphere10
Goosebumps / Shivers moments10
Emotional affinity and heartfelt moments10
Originality and Inventiveness10
Radio Friendly10
Vocals & lyrics10
You can’t get this memorable track out of your head10
It has potential to become an anthem or a classic10
About Ben Hemsley:
http://www.benhemsley.com
Connect with Ben Hemsley:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benhemsley_/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@benhemsley
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BenHemsleyMusic/
X: https://x.com/benhemsley
Ben Hemsley is making waves with his daring and captivating productions. Based in Newcastle, he has quickly become one of the most sought-after artists, selling out shows and capturing audiences nationwide.
With two highly successful Ibiza residencies to his name and numerous headline shows across the UK, Ben's career has been nothing short of remarkable. In 2023, his CONNECTION TOUR sold out nine UK dates, including record-breaking performances at Liverpool’s Blackstone Street Warehouse, where he moved over 7,000 tickets. His shows have shattered venue records, such as a lightning-fast sell-out at The Warehouse Project in Manchester, where general tickets vanished in just five minutes. The tour brought him close to 30,000 ticket sales. In 2024, he returned to headline Liverpool's massive 12,000-capacity "On The Waterfront" show.
With a sound that blends enticing melodies and nostalgic elements of 90s dance music, Ben's tracks are highly sought after by leading labels like Ministry of Sound, Trick, Arcane, and his own imprint, Bebé. His music has garnered attention from heavyweights in the industry, including Armin van Buuren, Calvin Harris, Tiësto, and Patrick Topping.
In addition to his production work, he aims to support emerging talent through his label Bebé, creating a space for innovative sounds within the dance music community.
http://www.benhemsley.com
Connect with Ben Hemsley:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benhemsley_/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@benhemsley
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BenHemsleyMusic/
X: https://x.com/benhemsley
About Armin van Buuren:
It takes little to recognize that Armin van Buuren has been one of the world’s biggest DJs and producers in electronic music for over twenty years. His life-long dedication to the scene has earned him a Grammy® nomination for ‘This Is What It Feels Like’ (feat. Trevor Guthrie) and critical acclaim for global hit singles such as ‘Blah Blah Blah’, ‘Great Spirit’ (with Vini Vici), ‘Leave A Little Love’ (with Alesso) and ‘Music Means Love Forever’ (with Steve Aoki). Additionally, he claimed the number one spot in the annual DJ Mag Top 100 DJs poll for an unprecedented five times, contributing to the twenty-one consecutive top 5 spots to date (the most recent being a #5 in the DJ Mag Top 100 DJs poll of 2023).
His two-hour radio show, A State of Trance (ASOT), is broadcast weekly from his own radio studio in the Armada Music HQ in Amsterdam to over 44 million listeners in more than 80 countries, as well as online via audio and video live stream on YouTube, Facebook and Twitch. ASOT, which surpassed the milestone number of 1000 episodes in January 2021, has grown from a small radio show into a complete dance music brand with stages and events across the globe.
Armin van Buuren has launched several ‘Armin Only’ world tours throughout the years, including the ones based on his albums (‘Imagine’ in 2008, ‘Mirage’ in 2010, ‘Intense’ in 2013 and ‘Embrace’ in 2016) and ‘The Best Of Armin Only’ in 2017. In June 2022, two years later than originally planned due to the Corona pandemic, Armin van Buuren played his most personal and intimate live shows yet through four sold-out shows in the Ziggo Dome: ‘This Is Me – Feel Again’.
In addition to all of this, Armin van Buuren is the co-founder of Armada Music, the biggest independent dance music label in the world. The Amsterdam-, NYC- and London-based record label, which was founded in tandem with Maykel Piron and David Lewis, is acclaimed internationally for releasing music across the electronic music spectrum, was voted #7 in Mixmag’s “Label Of The Decade” poll in 2017, and is the six-time winner of “Best Global Record Label” at the International Dance Music Awards in Miami, the sixth of which was won in 2018.
As a performer, Armin had headlined countless shows at leading festivals and venues around the world, including Electric Daisy Carnival (Las Vegas, New York), Ultra Music Festival (Miami) and Tomorrowland (Belgium) plus residencies at Hï Ibiza, in Las Vegas and numerous others.
On December 16, 2019, Armin van Buuren joined forces with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) to motivate millions of people to join the movement and fight against plastic pollution. As a Global Oceans Ambassador, Armin will contribute to the worldwide #BeatPlastic campaign: www.arminvanbuuren.com/beatplastic.
In December 2022, Armin van Buuren launched an exclusive, web3-based community: Armin’s All-Access. Created to strengthen the connection with his fans, the community is accessible upon purchase of a limited-edition community token – a piece of digital art designed by renowned Dutch designer Rik Oostenbroek – and grants many fan-desired perks, including (early) access to various forms of exclusive content (e.g. previews of unreleased music, exclusive DJ sets in audio, exclusive merchandise items), a private, AAA-community-only space within the existing Armin van Buuren Discord channel and direct contact with Armin van Buuren himself.
To date, Armin has seven full-length artist albums to his name: ‘76’ (2003), ‘Shivers’ (2005), ‘Imagine’ (2008), ‘Mirage’ (2010), ‘Intense’ (2013), ‘Embrace’ (2015) and ‘Balance’ (2019).
About Armada Music
Armada Music is the biggest independent dance music label in the world. Founded by Armin van Buuren, Maykel Piron (CEO) and David Lewis, the label manages an ever-growing catalog of over 40,000 tracks, built up across twenty-plus years of specialized dance music exploitation.
Representing artists such as Armin van Buuren, ARTY, D.O.D, Eelke Kleijn, Jan Blomqvist, Loud Luxury, Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano, Tensnake, THEMBA and Yulia Niko, Armada Music amasses more than one billion streams per month, airplay on leading radio outlets such as BBC Radio 1 and Sirius XM, and top positions in the world’s most notable charts. The label also takes great pride in major achievements such as Armin van Buuren’s GRAMMY nomination for ‘This Is What It Feels Like’, Loud Luxury and Brando’s ‘Body’ surpassing one billion streams on Spotify and breaking artists such as Lost Frequencies into global stardom.
Across offices in Amsterdam (HQ), New York, London and Laren (NL), Armada Music offers a truly global appeal to its growing roster. The label has its own club, radio studio and multiple production studios, and hosts various live formats. Producer platform Armada University, which offers educational products and opportunities, shows the label’s sustained effort to nurture the next wave of talent.
In 2023, Armada Music launched BEAT Music Fund, the world’s first dance music investment company, that acquires catalogs with the mission of honoring, representing and reinvigorating them. BEAT’s portfolio will continue to grow; in the first six months following its launch, BEAT acquired the catalogs of, among others, electronic music star ARTY, house and techno pioneer Kevin Saunderson’s KMS Records, legendary NYC-based house label King Street Sounds and chart-topping producers Chocolate Puma.
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