Tiesto in the UK Singles Charts

 

Some rights reserved by Andrew_979

Tiesto (Tijs Verwest) is regarded as one of the most popular DJs in the World. He has played thousands of sets and has won many awards during his time. One of them was a Grammy for his remix of "All Of Me" by John Legend.

The Dutch DJ has had an interesting time in the UK Singles Charts, from his origins in trance music to his surprise highs in house music. This article goes through Tiesto's 25 year long history in the UK Singles Charts.

Tijs began producing his own songs in his hometown Breda. In the first few years, he started a label named Black Hole with his friend Arny Bink and made a lot of tracks with different pseudonyms such as Da Joker, Stray Dog and DJ Limited.

Around the end of the 90s, Tijs would choose the name Tiesto as his DJ alias. 

As Tiesto performed around Europe, he met another Dutch DJ named Ferry Corsten. Ferry had secured a top 20 smash hit named "Out Of The Blue" under the name System F.

The pair decided to make a song together because they were both booked to perform as a duo for the Innercity Concert in Amsterdam. As Ferry was a fan of nature documentaries, he chose the name Gouryella (means Heaven in Aboriginal language).

The first track would be titled "Gouryella" and was praised for its melody and production. It would be Tiesto's first hit in Britain, peaking at number 15 in July 1999. 

At the time of its placing, another trance song was in the charts. ATB's floorfiller "9PM (Till I Come)" was at its second week at the top spot. It both defeated Whitney Houston and Will Smith to the top, as if it was a reaction against R&B music and soundtrack songs.

Tiesto would depart from Gouryella after the releases of "Walhalla" and "Tenshi". "Walhalla" peaked at #27 in November 1999 and "Tenshi" missed out on the top 40 by five places.

Year after year, Tiesto was getting more popular. This allowed him to DJ all over the world and produce more tunes, this time, under his DJ name.

His early tracks "Sparkles" and "Theme From Norejfell" only found limited success. However, it would be in 2001 when he finally had his own smash hit as he signed to Virgin Records.

"Urban Train" was a vocal version of his track "Suburban Train". Kirsty Hawkshaw sang the vocals, she was well known for singing in Opus III's cover of "It's A Fine Day".

A week after release, "Urban Train" peaked at number 22 in the UK in September 2001. On the same week, Kylie Minogue's "Can't Get You Out Of My Head" debuted at number one.

After that, it seemed that a top 20 hit would beckon for Tiesto. He would be close again with "Lethal Industry" when it charted at #25 in April 2002. Two months later, a vocal version of "Flight 643" was also a top 40 hit (#36 in June). 

Tiesto would leave Virgin after three releases and an album named 'In My Memory'. He would find a home at a dance label named Nebula; it was the British home for another Dutch DJ Tiesto was friends with, Armin Van Buuren.

His first release, "Obsession", was a collaboration with Junkie XL. Junkie had gained recognition for his remix of Elvis' "A Little Less Conversation". It was a number one hit for four weeks in the UK, thanks to its use in a campaign for Nike and the release of an Elvis compilation album.

"Obsession" didn't make it into the top 40. It stalled at #56 in November 2002.

This didn't stop Tiesto. On the same year, he deejayed for 9 hours at a festival in Amsterdam and supported Moby in his Area 2 festival along with David Bowie and Busta Rhymes.

2003 saw the release of his second album 'Just Be'. The first single was "Traffic" and was a number one hit single in the Netherlands. Unfortunately, the song was not a top 40 hit in the UK. It only reached #48 in November.

"Love Comes Again" did make it to #30 a year later in May, with help from Brian Transeau (he produced the music for the first Fast & Furious movie).

From that point, Tiesto would have to wait years for another song to chart higher than "Love Comes Again". Not even his iconic performance at the opening ceremony of the 2004 Olympics in Athens helped him achieve any top 20 hits in Britain. 

He would spend 30 weeks in the top 100 with his cover of "Adagio For Strings". It would peak in its first week at number 37, only for it to dwindle down week by week.

Tiesto's 3rd album 'Elements Of Life' would be the last to don his usual trance sounds. None of the songs released were hits in the UK. Meanwhile, in the Netherlands, songs like "Break My Fall" and "In The Dark" were top 5 hits.

At this point, Tiesto knew it was time to mix things up and focus on recording music of any genre. He was still regarded as a superstar DJ and wanted to evolve along with the electronic music scene.

In 2009, he teamed up with Australian duo Sneaky Sound System with "I Will Be Here". It only made to #44 in October, but it was improvement, nonetheless. He would release 'Kaleidoscope' on the same year as his fourth album.

Around this time, Tiesto left Nebula and released his music worldwide through Black Hole recordings.

Two years later, Tiesto's shift in sound paid off as he worked with Diplo and Busta Rhymes on the track "C'mon (Catch 'em By Surprise)".

It was Tiesto's first top 20 single under his own name. It debuted at #77 in February. On its fifth week, thanks to Busta's fast rapping, "C'mon" rose to number 13. 

Tiesto would be relieved as it bested his work on Gouryella and his early tracks. He would also dip into drum and bass with help from High Contrast and Underworld on the track "The First Note Is Silent" later that year.

It would be in 2014 when Tiesto would enter his most successful era. "Red Lights" was his first song for his fifth album 'A Town Called Paradise'. 

While the song was released to mixed reviews in March, it surpassed Tiesto's expectations as it peaked at #6 in the UK. It was also Tiesto's biggest hit in the USA at #56.

As June came by, Tiesto would release "Wasted" with vocals from Matthew Koma (he would marry Hilary Duff of Lizzie McGuire fame in 2019).

"Wasted" would blow expectations, thanks to its music video and promotion. It peaked at number 3 in the UK, becoming Tiesto's first top 5 hit single in the country. It also surpassed "Red lights" in the US Hot 100 as it made it to 49.

Around this time, a lot of jaded fans of Tiesto's trance sounds jumped off while some fans from then were fine with where the DJ was going.

2016 would see Tiesto partner up with Oliver Heldens, a popular Dutch DJ at the time, and Natalie La Rose. "The Right Song" would just make into the top 40 at #39 in its seventh week in the UK charts.

A collaboration with John Legend, "Summer Nights" stalled at #60.

From 2018 to now, Tiesto has made a lot of appearances in the UK Singles Charts. This is due to his collaborations with high profile singers such as Rita Ora, Post Malone, Tate McCrae and many more.

 

He also released his sixth and seventh albums 'The London Sessions' and 'Drive' in 2020 and 2023.

In 2018, he released "Jackie Chan"; it was a #5 hit and featured Post Malone, Dzeko and Preme.

Collaborations with Jonas Blue, Rita Ora and Mabel both were top 40 hits in 2019. "Ritual" peaked at #24 in 2019, thanks to a performance on Soccer Aid (an annual charity football match). "God Is A Dancer" was a top 15 hit and featured vocals from Mabel.

As lock-down occurred in 2020, Tiesto finally secured his magnum opus. 

"The Business" was released in September and would become his first number one hit in the Netherlands since "Traffic" 17 years ago.

In the UK, it debuted at #83. As weeks went, "The Business" continued to rise and rise. In January 2021, it entered the top 40 at #31. A month late, it broke into the top 10 at #7.

And, finally, it peaked at number 3 in March. While it ties with "Wasted" as his highest charting single, "The Business" is Tiesto's most well known and most played song on social media. 

There are two reasons why the song was in the charts for a long time. By January, the UK went back to lock-down, and many saw the song as a way to keep them motivated. Whether it was a family achieving new year resolutions or a student coping with doing schoolwork at home, "The Business" was released at the right time as the lyrics made it sound like working was fun. 

It was also a massive hit on TikTok, at a time where almost all songs in the UK charts would chart thanks to the app.

"The Motto" with Ava Max charted at #12 on April 2022. It had originally stalled at #61 in November. Another song that charted was "Hot In It" (#24 in August) with Charli XCX. Both songs took weeks to peak at its highest position.

As of writing, Tiesto's latest hit is "10:35". It features Tate McCrae, who is recently enjoying recent success in the music industry. 

Tate was 17 when she made her debut in the UK with "You Broke Me First", charting at #3 in October 2020.

While the "10:35" wasn't the biggest hit for both Tiesto and Tate, it was nonetheless a top 10 smash and charted at #8 in its 16th week in the UK Singles Charts.

As of 2024, Tiesto has amassed 16 top 40 hits in the UK Singles Charts. 

In the 2000s, he embraced the sounds of trance and would make appearances in the lower reaches of the top 40. In the 2010s, he would change his sounds and experience success in the top 10. And in the 2010s, he collaborated with some of the biggest singers at the time and stayed relevant with catchy and memorable tracks.

This month, Tiesto is set to become the first DJ to perform at the Superbowl during the match. It shows that the Dutch superstar DJ shows no signs of stopping.

It's likely that we'll still be seeing him in the UK charts and still enjoy his presence for years to come.