Topic
Tobias Topic started producing at 16 in Solingen. Ten years later, “Breaking Me” with A7S had taken him into the UK top three and charts across Europe.
- German DJ and producer Tobias Topic, born 23 March 1992 in Solingen.
- First German hit with “Home” featuring Nico Santos (2016).
- International breakthrough with “Breaking Me” featuring A7S (2019), then “Your Love (9PM)” with ATB (2021).
Topic built his career the long way round: YouTube first, German radio second, the rest of the world after that. “Breaking Me”, his sixth single, reached the top ten in ten countries and gave the Solingen producer his first UK top ten.
Solingen and YouTube
Tobias Topic was born in Solingen in 1992. He started producing at 16 on Logic Studio, guided by a teacher, and found an audience online before any label got involved. His first release, the house track “Light It Up” with Jona Selle, came out at the end of 2014 and passed a million views on his YouTube channel. His debut album, Miles, followed on 31 July 2015 on Takeover Music and charted in Germany and Austria.
“Home” and the German charts
“Home”, featuring Nico Santos, entered the German and Austrian charts in January 2016, peaking at No. 12 in Germany and No. 10 in Austria. Released in Australia that April, it reached No. 11 there. It went platinum in Germany and Australia, and Topic was nominated for Best German Act at the 2016 MTV Europe Music Awards.
In September 2016 he signed with Sony Music/ATV. “Break My Habits”, with Patrik Jean, followed in 2017; “Perfect”, with Ally Brooke, came out in January 2018 and was nominated at the Teen Choice Awards; the Spanish-language “Sólo Contigo”, with Juan Magán and Lena, arrived that spring.
“Breaking Me” and “Your Love (9PM)”
“Breaking Me”, sung by Swedish singer A7S (Alexander Tidebrink), came out on 19 December 2019. It reached No. 2 in Austria and the Netherlands, No. 3 in Germany, the UK and Ireland, and No. 1 in Portugal. In 2020 he followed it with “Like I Love You”, again with Nico Santos (No. 24 in Germany), and “Why Do You Lie to Me” with A7S and Lil Baby, and won Best Dance Act at the LOS40 Music Awards.
In January 2021 Topic and ATB remade ATB’s trance hit “9 PM (Till I Come)” as “Your Love (9PM)”, again with A7S, on Positiva. It reached the top ten in the UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Ireland, and was nominated for International Song of the Year at the 2022 BRIT Awards. The same year brought “Chain My Heart” with Bebe Rexha, “Drive” with Clean Bandit and Wes Nelson (No. 17 in the UK) and “My Heart Goes (La Di Da)” with Becky Hill (No. 11).
Remaking the 1990s
Topic keeps going back to the dance records of the 1990s. In January 2022 he released “In Your Arms (For an Angel)” with Robin Schulz, Nico Santos and Paul van Dyk, a new version of van Dyk’s 1994 track. In June came “Kernkraft 400 (A Better Day)” with A7S, built on a sample of Zombie Nation’s 1999 “Kernkraft 400”. In September “Follow Me”, with John Martin, became his first club track and his first release on Tomorrowland Music. That year he placed 69th in DJ Mag’s Top 100 DJs, and in Tomorrowland’s documentary We Are Tomorrow he talked about “Saving Me”, a reworked “Breaking Me” with Sasha Alex Sloan.
In the mix
For the originals behind his remakes, start with ATB. For another update of a German rave hit, see “Hardcore Vibes” by Global Deejays, and for German dance at its 1990s peak, U96’s “Night in Motion”.
FAQ
Who is Topic?
Topic is Tobias Topic, a German DJ and producer born on 23 March 1992 in Solingen, North Rhine-Westphalia, of paternal Croatian descent.
Who sings on Breaking Me?
Swedish singer A7S (Alexander Tidebrink). The single came out on 19 December 2019 and reached No. 3 in the UK and Germany.
Is Your Love (9PM) a remake?
Yes. Released in January 2021 with ATB and A7S, it remakes ATB’s “9 PM (Till I Come)”. It was nominated for International Song of the Year at the 2022 BRIT Awards.
