Why Tiesto isn’t performing at Super Bowl 58: ‘Family emergency’ prevents music star from being first in-game DJ

The NFL set out to make Super Bowl 58 bigger and better than ever, which included bringing on Tiesto as the first in-game DJ in the event’s history. But those plans are on hold.

Tiesto was named the official DJ of Super Bowl 58 — which, for the first time, meant more than just playing music before and after the game. He was set to become the first in-game DJ to perform at the Super Bowl, playing music during breaks in game action.

Having a DJ at the Super Bowl is not entirely new. This will be the fifth time the NFL has had a DJ, with DJ Khaled (Super Bowl 54), D-Nice (55), Zedd (56) and DJ Snake (57) each serving as pre-game DJs. Tiesto was set to take the role one step further.

Tiesto has an impressive legacy as winner of a Grammy and countless other awards, and he’s been voted as a top-five DJ by DJ Mag during much of his illustrious career.

Here’s what you need to know about why Tiesto won’t be performing at Super Bowl 58, plus more to know about his career as a DJ. 

Why isn’t Tiesto performing at Super Bowl 58?A “personal family emergency” will prevent Tiesto from serving as Super Bowl 58’s in-game DJ, he announced Thursday.

The 55-year-old Dutch DJ has to return home Sunday morning, he said in a social media post. He also expressed his disappointment that he won’t be able to perform.

“Me and my team have been preparing something truly special for months,” Tiesto said, calling it a “tough decision to miss the game.”

Me and my team have been preparing something truly special for months, but a personal family emergency is forcing me to return home Sunday morning. It was a tough decision to miss the game, but family always comes first. Thank you to the @NFL for the collaboration and looking…

— Tiësto (@tiesto) February 8, 2024The NFL announced later Thursday that Kaskade would take Tiesto’s place as the in-game DJ for Super Bowl 58. 

We welcome @Kaskade as the pregame and in-game DJ for Super Bowl LVIII 🎶 #SBLVIII pic.twitter.com/PuFGEvn3jw

— NFL (@NFL) February 9, 2024Who is Tiesto?Hailing from The Netherlands, Tiesto has been a full-time professional DJ since 1994, per his biography. He had an early interest in music at the age of 12 and got his start at a club called The Spock in his hometown of Breda, Netherlands.

In 1994, he started releasing material through Noculan Records under the sub-labels of Chemo and Coolman. Later in the year, he signed with Basic Beat and released music through a sub-label called Trashcan. In 1995-96, he worked with Lightning Records and its sub-labels Bonzai Jumps and XTC, releasing several EPs. 

He paired with another Dutch DJ, Ferry Corsten, in 1999 and created a duo called Gouryella. A year later, Tiesto split off to focus on solo work, and rapidly rose to fame. He released the dance mix compilation, “Summerbreeze,” which reached the U.S. and wound up landing at No. 3 on the Billboard dance chart.

Tiesto started the sub-label Magik Muzik in 2001 and released his first solo album, “In My Memory,” which contained 10 singles and five major hits, including “Lethal Industry.” His popularity propelled in the early 2000s, due in part to his six-hour “Tiesto Solo” sets, solo acts of his where he performed without openers or other DJs. He became the first DJ to perform a solo stadium concert on May 10, 2003, in Arnhem, Netherlands.

His rise continued in 2004, as he was asked to play live at the Olympic Games in Athens, making him the first DJ to play live on stage at the Olympics. He also performed at back-to-back New Year’s concerts in Las Vegas in ’04 and ’05.

In 2007-08, Tiesto went on the Elements of Life World Tour in conjunction with the release of the “Elements of Life” album he released, his third studio album. The album wound up being nominated for a Best Electronic/Dance Album award at the Grammys and was gold in Belgium, Hungary, Netherlands, and Romania. 

Tiesto has since released four other albums: “Kaleidoscope” (2009), “A Town Called Paradise” (2014), “The London Sessions” (2020), and “Drive” (2023). Each album wound up landing on the top 100 charts in the Netherlands, Germany, and the UK, and his latest album, “Drive,” reached No. 87 on the U.S. Billboard top 100. It went platinum in Music Canada and gold in RIAA.

Throughout his career, he has earned plenty of accolades and recognitions. Readers of Mix magazine voted him “The Greatest DJ of All Time,” and in DJ Mag’s Top 100 DJ rankings, he was ranked No. 2 from 2002-04 and was top five from ’02 until ’18, when he dropped to No. 6.

Tiesto nameTiesto’s real name is Tijs Michiel Verwest. He is from Breda, Netherlands, and got his start early in his hometown DJing at school parties and earning residencies in various clubs in his home country.

How old is Tiesto?Tiesto was born on Jan. 17, 1969, making him 55. He began as a DJ in 1994, when he was 25.

Tiesto net worthTiesto has made a fair amount of money in his career. He has a reported net worth of $170 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

His earnings have come not just from his time as a disc jockey, but also as a record producer and for merchandise sold.