| Will Sparks | |
| Birth Name: | William James Sparks |
| Birth Date: | 1993 3, df=y |
| Origin: | Melbourne, Australia |
| Instrument: | Ableton Live, guitar, piano |
| Occupation: | Producer, musician |
| Years Active: | 2012–present |
| Birth Place: | Melbourne, Australia |
William James "Will" Sparks (born 15 March 1993) is an Australian DJ and music producer from Melbourne, Australia,[1] who is best known for his 2013 single "Bring It Back" with Joel Fletcher and his 2014 single "Ah Yeah So What!" featuring Wiley and Elen Levon.
He attended Camberwell High School and Caulfield Grammar in Melbourne, but dropped out at the end of year 11 to pursue a musical career.[2] His debut EP, Another Land, was released in Australia and debuted at number 35 in December 2014.[3]
Sparks has toured America, Europe and Asia and played at festivals such as TomorrowWorld, Tomorrowland, Stereosonic and Future Music Festival.[4]
He was named the No. 1 Australian DJ in 2014.[5]
In January 2014, Will Sparks partnered with electronic music lifestyle brand Electric Family to produce a collaboration bracelet for which 100% of the proceeds are donated to Beyond Blue, a company that is working to reduce the impact of anxiety, depression and suicide in the community by raising awareness and understanding, empowering people to seek help, and supporting recovery, management and resilience.
In May 2014, Sparks embarked on a month long European tour.[6] He has continued to tour Europe every year until 2020.
From August until November 2014, Sparks alongside Timmy Trumpet and Joel Fletcher toured North America as part of their Bounce Bus Tour. [7] Following the tour he returned home for a homecoming tour.[8]
In September 2017, the video Spinnin' Records produced for Sparks' song called "Take Me" was discovered to consist almost entirely of footage from award-winning and Oscar-nominated animated short film "Requiem for Romance"[9] [10] Spinnin' Records did not seek permission to use visuals from the creators of the film, including animator Jonathan Ng. While Ng's takedown notice of the YouTube clips of the music video succeeded, Spinnin' Records continued to use images from Ng's video on their website and publicity material. Ng is exploring legal options against Spinnin' Records. Sparks claimed he had no knowledge of the alleged copyright, as he only produced the music for the accompanying video.[11]
Since 2015, Will Sparks has polled in the DJ Mag Top 100 DJ's poll.[12]
| Year | Poll Result | |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 78 [13] | |
| 2016 | 73 [14] | |
| 2017 | 83 [15] | |
| 2018 | 56 [16] | |
| 2019 | 57 [17] | |
| 2020 | 58 [18] | |
| 2021 | 56 [19] | |
| 2022 | 62 [20] |
In 2018, Will Sparks launched his own festival, Sparksmania.[21] Since the inaugural show, Sparksmania has been held in Adelaide and Brisbane featuring artists Marlo, Joel Fletcher, HP Boyz and Masked Wolf.[22]
On 30 September 2021, Will Sparks announced Sparksmania's first national tour which included shows in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide in January and February 2022.[23] Will Sparks was supported by Melbourne artists Short Round and Eric Sidey as well as Queensland's Yanzo.[24]
On 3 June 2022, Sparksmania was brought to Gothenburg, Sweden for summerburst festival. The first ever international Sparksmania.
| Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| AUS | |||
| Another Land |
| 35 |
| EP details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| AUS | |||
| Nothing More, Nothing Less |
|
| Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Label | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [26] | FRA [27] | NZ | |||||
| "Ah Yeah!" | 2012 | — | 51 | — | Hussle Recordings | ||
| "Bring It Back" (with Joel Fletcher) | 2013 | 33 | — | — | |||
| "Catch"[29] | 2014 | 22 | — | — | Sony Music Entertainment | ||
| "Ah Yeah So What!" (featuring Wiley and Elen Levon) | 4 | 116 | 34 |
| Ministry of Sound Australia | ||
| "Sick Like That" (featuring Luciana)[31] | 2015 | 97 | 137[32] | — | Ultra Records | ||
| "—" denotes an album that did not chart or was not released. | |||||||
| Title | Year | Original artist(s) | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Get Free" | 2013 | Major Lazer | Self-released |
| "Hello" | Stafford Brothers featuring Lil Wayne and Christina Milian | ||
| "Blurred Lines" | Robin Thicke featuring T.I. and Pharrell Williams | ||
| "Afterturn"(with Matt Watkins) | Chadio | Self-released | |
| "Ode To Oi" | TJR | ||
| "Canto Della Liberta" | 3rd Face | Self-released | |
| "The Darkness" | Satoshi Tomiie | ||
| "Dynamo" | Laidback Luke and Hardwell | ||
| "Melbournia" | Timmy Trumpet and Chardy | Hussle Recordings | |
"
| 2014 | The Chainsmokers | |
| "Maps" | Maroon 5 | Self-released | |
| "Uptown Funk" | Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars | ||
| "In Control" | 2015 | Yvng Jalapeño featuring Muki | |
| "Be Together" | Major Lazer | ||
| "Lights Out"(with Joel Fletcher) | 2016 | 360 | Self-released |
| "I'm in Control" | AlunaGeorge featuring Popcaan | ||
| "Mo Bounce" | 2017 | Iggy Azalea | |
| "Stand Together" | Toneshifterz featuring CAYO | Big & Dirty Recordings | |
| "Leave The Lights On" | 2018 | Meiko | Clubwrk / Teamwrk Records |
| "Back In The Game" | |||
| "Anything More"[33] | 2019 | Steve Aoki featuring Era Istrefi | Liberator Music |
| "Song I Sing"[34] | 2020 | Armin van Buuren and Haliene | Armada Music |
| "Little Things"[35] | Louis The Child featuring Quinn XCII and Chelsea Cutler | Interscope Records | |
| "Devotion 2020"[36] | Bingo Players, Felguk, and Fafaq | Musical Freedom |
The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), "honouring composers and songwriters". They commenced in 1982.[37]
! |-| 2014 | "Bring it Back" (Will Sparks & Joel Fletcher)| Dance Work of the Year| | [38] |-
The Music Victoria Awards are an annual awards night celebrating Victorian music. They commenced in 2006.! |-| 2014| Will Sparks| Best Electronic Act| | [39] [40] |-