Van Helden was born in Boston on February 17, 1970 to a Dutch-Indonesian father and a French-Lebanese mother, but travelled around the world as a child spending time in the Netherlands, Turkey and Italy, as his father was a member of the US Air Force. At the age of thirteen, he bought a drum machine and started DJing two years later.
He returned to Boston in 1988 but also moonlighted as a DJ in Boston clubs. He attended Boston University. He quit his legal review job in 1989 to work as a remixer/producer for Mega-Mixx Productions DJ Remix Service (co-founded by his long time manager, Neil Petricone) where he reworked and re-edited a number of club records for the DJ-only service, including Shawn Christopher's "Another Sleepless Night." He also took up an occupancy at 'The Loft', Boston's leading nightclub.
Mega-Mixx's success was short lived. Mismanagement brought the company to a halt in early 1991. Later that year, he and Petricone, along with founding A&R coordinator, Tony Zeoli, launched X-Mix Productions, a similar DJ Remix service, which still exists today (http://www.xmix.com). Catching the attention of legendary Strictly Rhythm and Nervous Records A&R guru, Glady Pizarro, in 1992 Van Helden released his first official single "Stay On My Mind" under the psuedonym Deep Creed, through Nervous Records.
He released "Move It To the Left" (credited to Sultans of Swing) in 1992 on the Strictly Rhythm label, which became a moderate club hit. His first track to make the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart was "Witch Doktor" which made the top 5 in 1994.
The success of "Witch Doktor" led to opportunities to remix acts such as The Real McCoy ("Another Night", New Order ("Bizarre Love Triangle"), Blondie ("Atomic), Capella ("U Got To Know"), Lightning Seeds ("Jackie Lucky"), Deep Forest ("Marta's Song"), Jimmy Somerville ("Heartbeat"), Deee-Lite ("Dewdrops In The Garden") and Faithless ("Insomnia"). However, it was the "Professional Widow" remix that established him and became a dance hit around the world as well as a number one hit in the UK. Unfortunately, Van Helden did not receive a penny for this mix as he presented it uncommissioned, and thus was not entitled to compensation. However, it led to work remixing The Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, Britney Spears and Puff Daddy as well as Daft Punk and the Sneaker Pimps, and adding to his reputation as one of the world's top house musicians.
Within dance music circles, Van Helden is widely credited for the introduction of the U.K. bred Speed Garage sound to the U.S. club scene with incredible set of remixes. The sound, identifiable by its deep bass subtones, long melodic breaks, and devestatingly hard hitting beats are exemplified in the following remixes beginning in 1995 with Jimmy Somerville "Heartbeat"; CJ Bolland's "Sugar Is Sweeter"; Faithless "Insomnia"; Tori Amos "Professional Widow"; Apollo 440 "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub"; and Sneaker Pimps "Spin, Spin, Sugar."
"Cha Cha" was another top ten dance hit from his first album Old School Junkies released in 1996, along with "The Funk Phenomena". A greatest hits album appeared the next year followed by a breakbeat album later in 1997. "U Don't Know Me," a collaboration with vocalist Duane Harden from the album, "2 Futur 4 U," was a number two hit on the Billboard dance chart, a Number one in the UK and a top 20 single on the pop charts in Australia and Canada.
In 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh, Armand Van Helden explained, "You Don't Know Me was a perfect example of putting 2 simple things together, the beats from Jaydee's Plastic Dreams and a disco loop from Carrie Lucas."
Van Helden released the Killing Puritans album in 2000 which contained the dance hit "Koochy". His single "Why Can't You Spend Some Time" made the number 34 in the UK in 2001. His New York: A Mix Odyssey album released in 2004 produced two hits:
* "Hear my Name" reached number 7 on the Billboard dance chart, was top 30 on world and internet charts, made number 34 in the UK, and reached the top 40 in Australia; and
* "My My My" reached number 4 on the world internet charts, number 5 in the Belgian and Dutch charts, number 6 in Australia, number 15 in the UK and top 30 in the world dance charts.
In 2010 Van Helden teamed with A-Trak to form the duo Duck Sauce. They had an international smash hit with "Barbra Streisand," which used an ingenious sample from Boney M.
My My My
Armand van Helden Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My, my, my
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
Ooh, wee (whoa)
How we gonna make it through it?
What's it gonna take to do it?
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
Whoa (whoa)
How'd we ever get this way?
Where's it gonna go?
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
Ooh, wee (whoa)
How we gonna make it through it?
What's it gonna take to do it?
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
Whoa (whoa)
How'd we ever get this way?
Where's it gonna go?
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my
Shakin'
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
Ooh, wee (whoa)
How we gonna make it through it?
What's it gonna take to do it?
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
Whoa (whoa)
How'd we ever get this way?
Where's it gonna go?
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
My, my, my (my, my, my)
Shakin'
My, my, my
The lyrics to Armand van Helden's song My My My appear to be somewhat cryptic and open to interpretation. The repetition of "My, my, my" throughout the song gives the impression of something that is deeply personal or intimate. The opening lines of the song ask, "How we gonna make it through it? What's it gonna take to do it?" These questions suggest that the singer is facing some sort of challenge or obstacle, and is unsure of how to overcome it. The subsequent lines, "How'd we ever get this way? Where's it gonna go?" suggest that there may have been a turning point or a moment of change that brought the singer to this point.
As the song progresses, the repetitious "My, my, my" takes on a new meaning, almost as if it is a mantra. The lines "My, my, my (my, my, my, my) / Ooh, wee (whoa)" sound like a joyful exclamation, as if the singer has found a solution or a way forward. However, the subsequent line "How we gonna make it through it? What's it gonna take to do it?" undermines this sense of triumph or confidence, suggesting that the journey is still ongoing.
Ultimately, the lyrics to My My My speak to the human experience of facing challenges and seeking solutions, while also acknowledging the uncertain nature of this process.
Line by Line Meaning
My, my, my
Expression of excitement or amazement
Ooh, wee (whoa)
Additional expression of excitement or amazement
How we gonna make it through it?
Uncertainty about how to survive or overcome a problem
What's it gonna take to do it?
Questioning the effort or resources required to solve the problem
Whoa (whoa)
Expression of concern or confusion
How'd we ever get this way?
Questioning how things got to this point
Where's it gonna go?
Wondering what the future holds
My, my, my (my, my, my, my)
Reiteration of initial excitement or amazement
Shakin'
Implies physical or emotional excitement or energy
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Gary Wright, Armand Van Helden, Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind