Max HeyraudWicklow-born DJ and producer Caz has had a breakthrough year, but now, for the first time, he’s publicly opening up about his transition and the journey behind it.
Wicklow-born Caz has had a life-changing twelve months as an artist. Best known for his breakout track Sweet Tea and the successes that followed, the journey didn’t start there. It’s been a long road. Caz began playing music before his teens and has been immersed in sound for as long as he can remember. Influenced by every genre and texture he encountered, he tells me early on, “I was always going to do something in the music space.”
From there, it was about figuring things out, finding the right sounds, and learning how to make them resonate. DJing followed closely after drumming, with Caz playing anywhere he could: birthday parties, local pubs, small clubs across Wicklow. Eventually, he moved onto the Dublin scene, gigging for some time before his name ever appeared on a poster. But the drive never faded. After a handful of early shows, he landed a residency at Tramline. “This is where I really found my feet on stage and got comfortable.”
Fast-forward to today, and Caz boasts millions of streams, major festival appearances, a standout slot at The Warehouse Project, performances at some of Ireland’s biggest clubs—including Index—and a hit release on Patrick Topping’s Trick label. He’s collaborated with Jazzy and gained support from Belters Only, among others. It’s been a wild ride, a lifelong journey to this moment, but it still feels like just the beginning.
That journey hasn’t come without its challenges. In this conversation, Caz opens up publicly for the first time about his transition, something he once described as “a paralysing fear.” For years, the thought of people finding out felt overwhelming. But now, Caz is reclaiming his story, owning it, and sharing it openly:“If talking about this can help even one person struggling with their own journey, and show them that it’s possible to be happy and live the way you want, then it’s worth conquering my fear.”
So let’s start at the beginning. What was your first encounter with dance music?
It would have been as a toddler in the backseat of my da’s Honda Civic listening to his Tiesto CDs. My da has always been a die-hard dance music fan, so that trickled down to me from a very early age, and it was love at first listen. I used to listen to The Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim at the kitchen table when I was doing my homework in primary school.
You were a drummer as a child. How did you get into that?
Again, all down to my da, the man is my hero. He was a drummer from a young age and played in bands up until I was a kid. As soon as I could hold a set of sticks, he had me drumming. I got my first kit at 6 and was in a drumming academy until I was about 11 or 12 when I quit playing. That was my original goal; I had dreamed of being a touring drummer in a band. I was always going to do something in the music space.
When did you first want to start making electronic music?
I think after I had been DJing for two or three years. I knew I wanted to be more of an “Artist” as opposed to just a DJ in the local bar or nightclub. I would have been about 17 when I first opened Ableton and became instantly obsessed. My parents always encouraged any dreams or aspirations I had, no matter how far-fetched they might have sounded at the time, so I owe a lot to them.
What clubs and spaces have been influential in shaping you as an artist?
Growing up in Ashford, I always listened to my family’s stories about the local club Clouseaus, where they went throughout the 90’s so I guess that would have played a big part in the desire to experience a proper club in my early days.
I played in local clubs in Wicklow, such as The Old Forge and The Venue, which have now unfortunately closed, from the ages of 16 to 18, which was my first real experience playing to crowds of people,e and I was so bad haha but it taught me a lot.
The first club I played in Dublin was in 39/40 for Chantel Kavangh’s nights. I was around 20 and that was a real eye opener for me because my name was on a poster and it was such an iconic space to be in, but I was still pretty bad looking back. I think I used a full bottle of Rescue Remedy before playing.
The biggest one for me would be Tramline. I was given a weekly residency as a part of Paul Teeling and Ryan Redmond’s night Fairground. This is where I really found my feet on stage and got comfortable. We sold it out like 13 weeks in a row, which was huge as it was all local DJs on the lineup. They took a bit of a risk with me as I wasn’t really a popular DJ in the Dublin circuit yet, so it meant a lot. Ryan would have been one of the first big Dublin DJs to support my productions, so it was really a full-circle moment to be given that shot by him.
What DJs have helped inform your sound?
God, so many. Calvin Harris has always been a huge inspiration of mine, just with the versatility in his productions. I’m really 90s/ early 2000s obsessed and always have been, so I would say anyone influential from those times really. I never want to sound identical to anyone else, and I think I’m doing ok at being a mix at the moment haha
You’ve been over in Ibiza lately. How’s that been?
An absolute dream. It’s hard to put into words. I cried for like an hour last year when I got booked to play there for the first time. I can’t wait to get back the minute I leave. As much as people say that it’s not the same as the golden years, you still get a completely different buzz playing to people on that island than anywhere else in the world.
There’s a big Irish cohort of DJs in Ibiza this year. Does it feel like Irish DJs are having a moment right now?
Absolutely. It’s so refreshing to see our island finally getting the recognition it deserves. Thanks to the likes of Obskür, Belters Only and Jazzy, who kind of woke the world up to what we can do artistically, people are starting to really take us seriously in the space. It’s also huge seeing these guys reach the heights they are because it gives up-and-coming artists a sort of model to watch and see that it’s not impossible for someone from this tiny island to do huge things.
How did your relationship with Patrick Topping start?
It started with Sweet Tea. I emailed it as a demo and heard back from him within 15 minutes, asking for the extended version. I was on a bus on the way home from work like a giddy child.
You opened up for Topping in Index. How was that?
It was amazing. Playing in Index was a huge goal I had, and getting to support Patrick was the icing on the cake for me.
Do you remember making Sweet Tea? What was the process like? Did it come together quickly? Did you have a feeling it would be as popular as it’s been?
I don’t think I’ll ever forget it haha. I came home from work and sat in my sitting room with a Bluetooth speaker so my partner could listen to what I was making. I had been trying to build a 90’s sounding synth on Serum from scratch and ended up with the main synth sound in the track. I found the vocal in my downloads, and it fit so well. I’d say the whole track took me less than an hour to finish because I had such a good feeling about it. I knew it would do ok, but never anticipated it to be as big as it is. I’m so grateful for every door it has opened for me.
It’s had over 3 million plays across all platforms. How does that feel?
Incredible and extremely rewarding in a sense. I have been doing this for over 10 years now and seeing this track grow the way it has made me think back to all the times I wanted to throw the towel in. I’m really glad I didn’t.
You’ve got new music coming soon. Tell us about your EP 10db.
So it’s three tracks that are quite different to one another, but I think all still really sound like me. Full of energy and big drops. One of the tracks was actually previously rejected by a major label, but I knew it had potential,l so getting it out is a great “ I told you so” moment for me haha.
I know you haven’t spoken much about your journey transitioning, but with Pride coming up, I wanted to touch on that, if you’re comfortable.
Yeah absolutely. I suppose it was kind of something I really struggled with as a kid, always feeling different but not being able to identify exactly what it was. It’s impossible to explain the feeling to anyone who hasn’t experienced it. At first, it terrified m,e and I definitely tried to fight it. It was 100% a big factor in my struggles with mental health as a teen, and even now, it’s something I think I will always battle with.
I’m from a tiny village in County Wicklow full of opinions, which made it hard to comprehend how I was supposed to just put out this huge thing in my life and what if people stare at me or talk about me or whatever. It got to the point where I was like, what am I fighting for my own happiness for? Either I accept this and put it out there, or it’s going to fester and affect me so much that I might not make it through it. Luckily, I reached a point where I was like, who cares what I’m at? Fuck it. So I decided to just live the way I wanted to and not how I was expected to, and it improved my quality of life by a mile. It was never made a big deal by anyone in my personal life, so that influenced me to have an IDGAF attitude, and I think that helped heaps. It isn’t easy, but I am blessed to have an amazing partner, family and friends who support me no matter what.
Is there a reason you haven’t spoken about it publicly before?
I guess it was fear of more backlash or hate. I’m not ashamed of being who I am at all, but it is used against me online in the form of hate comments, which I used to find extremely hard to deal with. At first, when I was getting more popular with music, I was so afraid of people finding out that it was taking over my life. It was like a paralysing fear. I was definitely scared to talk about it publicly today, as it is like kind of putting it out there in the open on a larger scale, but I’m looking at it as taking the power out of the people that use it as a weapon to try and bother me. If talking about this can help even one person struggling with their own journey, and show them that it’s possible to be happy and live the way you want, then it’s worth conquering my fear.
House music has deep roots in LGBTQ+ scenes. For many people, clubs have become refuges and safe spaces. Did that play any role in your journey or draw you into dance music?
Honestly, it didn’t influence my love of dance music, but I acquired such an appreciation for the LGBTQ + roots and how important it was in the birth of the scene. Dance music started as a sort of rebellion, going against the mainstream music, and I feel like that resonates with minority groups and makes our relationship with it special.
Do you feel like dance music spaces are becoming more inclusive, or is there still work to be done?
There’s always going to be more that can be done 100%. I think that we are in a very straight, male-dominated industry, but I feel like there are lots of females breaking down the walls of the industry over the last few years, and I hope we continue to see more and more of that.
Any upcoming projects, collaborations, or gigs you’re especially excited about?
I think Longitude is the one that I’m really looking forward to. I started attending this festival as a teenager, so it feels really cool to be playing it this year. It will be the first time my Ma and Da have seen me DJ, so it’s definitely going to be special.
