Driven by an unwavering determination and passion for his craft, in just under two years, Tim
Wu – best known as Elephante – has amassed a plethora of flawless productions that have
earned him rave reviews from the likes of Rolling Stone, Sirius XM, DJ Mag and Billboard as
well as respect from the cream of the dance music elite. His musical maturity and innate
ability to create genre-defying hits time and time again could have him easily mistaken for an
artist way beyond his years and has seen the dance pop prodigy win the hearts of legions of
fans across the world.
Hailing from Ann Arbor, Michigan, Tim began his musical career as a classically trained pianist
and singer-songwriter, playing in bands in high school and college. Graduating from the worldrenowned
Harvard University, soon after taking his first desk job, Wu soon realized that the
corporate lifestyle was not for him, spending every waking hour producing music to
admittedly keep himself sane. Finally embracing the ‘Elephant in the room’ that was his desire
to break free from the monotonous 9-5 routine, Wu set his sights on the dance music sphere
and Elephante was born - quite literally giving up his day job in order to hone his craft and
make his mark as one of the most innovative progressive and electro house producers around
today.
Releasing his debut independent single ‘Shake The Earth’ in November 2014, Elephante went
on to release his first label single ‘I Want You’ back in June 2015, reaching 1.5 million Spotify
streams in less than two months and earning comparisons with the likes of Alesso, Madeon
and Avicii. Stepping up to remix duties for everyone from Lorde and Katy Perry to Dirty South
and Galantis, Wu achieved a string of Hype Machine #1s for his efforts and has gone on to
receive support from major dance music players including Martin Garrix, Tiesto, The
Chainsmokers and Morgan Page to name just a few.
In October 2015, the burgeoning star released his third original production, ‘Age Of
Innocence’. Released independently as a free download, the single achieved unprecedented
success, reaching #18 on the Billboard Dance/Club Chart and was even added to rotation on
Sirius XM BPM, Music Choice and iHeart Evolution – no mean feat for an independent release.
With over a million plays on Spotify alone, the single caught the attention of Armada Music
who snapped it up for rerelease in January 2016.
When it comes to world-class productions, Wu is well and truly in a league of his own,
singlehandedly breathing life into the electronic music scene with a host of impeccable
releases. Proving there are no limits when it comes to his creative capabilities, over the last
year Wu has showcased his diversity as a producer, deftly switching between the distinctive
progressive house sound that has earned him the respect of some of the biggest names in the
business, to experimenting with stomping future bass curveballs in the form of ‘Black Ivory’
(February 2016). Going back to his roots in March, Elephante dropped ‘Closer’ ft. BISHØP – a
piece of pure progressive house perfection that has since garnered over 5 million streams on
Spotify and earned spins on Sirius XM BPM and iHeart Evolution, propelling the song to a Top
20 chart spot on dance radio. Flexing his creative muscles once again, July saw Wu explore
yet another side of his musical personality with the release of the captivating electro pop
infused single ‘Catching On’ ft. Nevve, a record named ‘Best of the Week’ by Apple Music. The
release of his inaugural ‘I Am The Elephante’ EP in September 2016 heralded a new chapter
in the young producer’s career as he charted alongside some of dance music’s finest. The EP,
which debuted at #2 in the US Dance Album Charts on iTunes, and has so far accumulated
over 15 million plays on Spotify as well as support from Billboard, Beats 1 Radio, This Song Is
Sick, Proxmity, Mr Suicide Sheep and many more – no mean feat for an independently
released project.
Having caught the eyes – and most importantly ears – of talent and tastemakers around the
world, it was only a matter of time before demand for Wu’s live shows prevailed. Signed by
CAA, Spring 2016 saw Elephante take to the road for an extensive tour of North America,
featuring sold out shows from Boston to Jacksonville to Ohio to Vancouver, not to mention a
dozen stops on college campuses along the way. Currently in the midst of his biggest ever
tour to date, the ‘IATE’ tour will see him play 30 dates in 3 months, including sell out shows
in Boston, Dallas, Santra Barbara, New York City and Sacramento, and will see him play major
venues such as Omnia (San Diego), Hakkasan (Las Vegas), Create (Los Angeles) and Marquee
(New York) – to name just a few. Earning a prized spot at Billboard’s Hot 100 Fest last summer,
offers have continued to roll in with appearances at festivals such as Ever After Festival and
Hangout Festival just a few announced so far for this year.
Whether he’s crafting originals or whipping up remixes for the A-list, Elephante has rapidly
carved a name for himself as one of the most exciting producers on the scene of late.
Demonstrating a diversity that has seen him achieve over 45 million SoundCloud plays and a
staggering 100 million total digital streams over his relatively short career to date, with
demand for his unique sound reaching unprecedented heights last year, its safe to say
Elephante’s star is most definitely on the rise.