Terilekst: ‘It’s not polished’

He wrote his music album Turquoise looking at the Meuse panorama: ‘The ships passing by, the glistening water. They have influenced my music’. Now Dennis van der Meijden, aka producer Terilekst, calls himself a Rotterdam resident. ‘After living in Amsterdam for three years, I relocated to Rotterdam in 2005, where I lived above Jazzclub Dizzy on the ’s Gravendijkwal for a while. I ended up there because of my sister, but I also had a girlfriend here. Rotterdam is less crowded; people are not so “in your face” and they are much more down to earth – there’s no pretentious bullshit here.

My studio is right next to the HipHopHuis near the Central Station. That’s where I created my latest album “groot” for the most part. The studio also houses many other musicians, which is inspiring. Standing on the fire escape, I have a view of the Biergarten and can see the trains passing by. We are right in the heart of the city here, and that is really inspiring, especially in musical terms. I like that raw thing about Rotterdam. Hiphop music is not particularly polished either; it often has a raw edge to it. You can absolutely recognise that Rotterdam vibe in my music’.

Dennis continues: ‘I really love that Rotterdam demolishing mentality. The people of Rotterdam are not averse to tearing something down and building something new. You can see that mentality reflected in the city and also in my music. The cosmopolitan vibe of this city inspires me; this is the place where it happens. It was in Rotterdam that I lost my heart to my girlfriend and this is where we have started our family. My family have tied me to Rotterdam forever’.