“My stepfather runs the production here, but that didn’t make it any easier to get in,” says Björn Loykens, better known as Loyk. “We’ll be leaving for the UK on tour soon, so this seemed like the perfect preparation.” Loyk is still surprisingly quiet when we talk to him backstage at the fanzone. His team is a big group of friends, all of them are young artists who are happy to be at such a big event.
“It’s mass production,” Loyk says. “We had holograms made of Formula 1 cars and we put our brand on them. It was not an easy feat, it was important to have the latest model of the car and it look beautiful. We still don’t know if it will work right away, so this will be sexy.”
Manzo (Soul) Solomon (24) Loyk’s best friend joined the show, and his trademark is written on a 3D car. “This really is a childhood dream,” Manzo tells us. “I’ve been following Formula 1 for years, so standing here like this and hearing a car like this go by for the first time is really cool.” “We had to do this together,” Loyk laughs. He has nothing to do with this sport himself. But that doesn’t make it any less crazy Naturally.”
manzo soul – © Dirk Christense
Do the two of them get paid to be here? “Yes,” Loyk says. “We get four times the normal wage, but the production is also ten times bigger, which means we don’t necessarily get paid more for ourselves.” The collection is, of course, adapted for the public. Hence, the two will come up with songs full of energy. “You can’t bring slow numbers for a race like this. People come here to have a party. We work with Simon Wumann, great DJ.”
It will definitely be a party. During the performance, there is a dance and the audience is even given a T-shirt from the Loyk merchandise line. He enjoys it, and so does Manzo.
shine
Another artist from Antwerp shines (literally) on the Raidillon, a steep right-hand ramp on the circuit. Best place for all F1 lovers. “It’s great to be allowed to stand here,” the Antwerp woman tells us. “I have to specifically fight to survive, I watched the Netflix show about Formula 1, to get fully involved.”
Mike’s logo? happiness and energy and radiates from them. “He’s new here at the top, but he makes me so happy.” That’s also just what Maaike does, the things that make her happy. In addition to her DJ career, she also runs Studio M at Park Spoor Noord. She also teaches yoga there. “At the end of a full day of running, you suffocate. Fortunately, thanks to this sport, I am in great shape.”
Mike de Wail – © Dirk Christense
Mike has already seen the drivers pass, unlike the other two young men. She has already been allowed to play in the track, where all the teams gather together for the race. “I even got a wink from Lewis Hamilton,” she smiles. “They also have good energy and appreciate having a DJ here.” It is clear that Formula 1 has focused more on the framework this year. And that, according to Mike, is a good thing. “People who know a little about F1 and come to experience also get something extra this way. You make people happy, which is really nice.”
For Maaike, this is “Digest What she was able to do. “If they ask me again next year, I will definitely come back.” (svo)
