When Iio unofficially debuted their song "Rapture" at New York's Club Twilo, they had an idea of the songs success, but nothing could have prepared them for the massive response their hit was about to receive. With a fabulous "disco-esque" beat composed by producer/songwriter Markus Moser, and a story narrated by the haunting vocals of songstress Nadia Ali, the song was an immediate favorite on dance floors everywhere. "Rapture" became a HUGE crossover success. Gaining much of its momentum in Europe, it quickly made its way to the United States and Australia, and eventually into dance clubs all over the world.

Currently signed by Made Records, Iio has finished their new album, "Poetica", released a second hit single, "At The End" and are already working on their third single. On top of a hectic recording schedule, they are also slated to perform live at the 2003 DanceStar Awards being held Wednesday March 19th on the sands of Miami Beach, Florida. They are also in the running for the prestigious Record of the Year Awards for "Rapture (Tastes So Sweet)" - your votes will determine the winners! Vote online at dancestar.com/usa

Despite their busy lives, Annalee managed to get in touch with the duo and ask them a few questions about fame, music and life...

Annalee: Where did you first debut "Rapture" and what was the response?

Unofficially at Twilo. Several DJ’s heard it that night and wanted to immediately work on it. The reception was quite a surprise for us.

It became a huge groundbreaking success - did you ever imagine it would be so widely received by the general public?

No, we felt it was a good song, but you can never really know how it will ultimately be received by the public.

How did you feel when your song started to hit the airways?

It was a great feeling, especially since it took us where we also wanted to have a presence, at radio.

Did you ever imagine that people all over the world would be able to hear your song on the radio?

Sure, we were hoping for it, I mean a part of our plan was always to develop a proper club presence with awesome remixes, the original however, was always produced for mainstream radio.

Is it true that the song was written by Nadia about a guy she met at a club?

It is true that the story was inspired by Nadia meeting someone at a club.

Many artists have remixed your song, Deep Dish, and Creamer, which one is your personal favorite if any?

By now we are well into our 2nd single and we have been remixed by around 20 remixers so far. It is hard to develop a preference as the remixes covers such a broad spectrum.

How did you come up with the name Iio?

Depending on the time of the day versions vary. Seriously though, Iio are the last three vowels of a computer we used during the production of Rapture.

Rumor has it that you and Sony had a little discussion over the use of the name - elaborate a little for us!

Rumors... ;)

How did you and Nadia pair up?

I was looking for a singer to demo another production and a friend recommended her. She demo'ed the song very well and I asked her if she wanted to continue working we me on a professional level. Thankfully she agreed.

I hear she worked at Versace before she was in Iio - did she quit her day job (lol)?

By the time I asked her if she wanted to work with me she had just quit Versace and had tried out with other producers, bands, etc. I suppose she liked me for my smile (LOL)

Nadia was fairly young when all this first happened - how is she holding up to the pressure of being a worldwide success?

She held up fine, she has the sort of personality the allows her to deal with it without difficulties.

Do you two perform live together?

Yes we do.

Where and when are your upcoming shows?

We will be performing in Europe, at the DanceStar USA Awards and then heading back to the studio to record new songs.

Where can people find out where they can see you in the future?

Best to log on to www.maderecords.com/iio For all info on us, dates, new releases, products, merchandise, etc...

How do you think being part of the Universal's Global Hits 2002 has affected your image?

Let’s say we weren't too thrilled about that compilation. I feel we should have gone with a single release from the start, the timing was definitely off.

Were you excited/surprised when they came to you?

No, not really. The record has had so much heat and several labels were interested. Universal sounded the most excited and committed.

What country do you feel has been the most supportive/receptive of Iio?

Hard to say, we have encountered so much positive feedback and every country has both ups and downs.

Where in the US have you performed and how does it compare to other places in the world?

We have pretty much performed at all the major cities, except Los Angeles, it somewhat never materialized, although we were scheduled to perform. We had great shows in the mid west, with reactions way better then some of the shows in Europe. We recently played Sidney, Australia that show was actually the best so far. Awesome comes to mind..

Why you think that Iio has been such a huge success both in the mainstream and in the underground scene?

It was always conceptualized this way by us (Mike and I) to cover both aspects, especially since there aren’t many precedents. It is through his club Twilo and now Arc that he brings a huge amount of credibility to the table, besides knowing who is going to be the next big thing (remixers).

So far in the history of Iio, what has been your most memorable moment, if you had to pick only one?

So far our first concert ever, 10,000 people at a Gatecrasher event, the first time Nadia is on stage ever and she rocked it. After the performance I had to pull her off stage, because the rush must have been so enormous for her, she did not want to leave.

What type of equipment do you use to make your music?

In one word - lots.. I have Several old synths that I have collected and midified, but I also use lots of softsynths (software versions of synthesizers). I program in Cubase and mix in Pro Tools.

Do you use a "classical" approach to songwriting or how do you create your songs?

I write the music according to how I feel and what moves me in that particular moment and then I play it for Nadia to see how she feels and what the music and melodies trigger in her.

Are there any new tracks we can expect to see in the near future from Iio?

Definitely. I just finished the third single and the album is ready to go also. Besides that, I will continue to surprise you with some new material I just wrote and we’re about to have remixed by one of the world’s best. We are very excited.

I hear you are working on a new album, Poetica. Tell us about it!

The album is finally done and has a lot of surprises added. It took us quite a while but I believe it was totally worth it as we are very happy with the outcome. It is a journey through various styles of music we like.

Thank you!

You’re welcome!

-- written by Annalee Stone