In a music industry where its easy to label artists as “sell-outs”, Thomas Schumacher has defied the title. In 2001 he had gained pop stardom with a string of hits in Germany and his name was becoming well known internationally as well. Instead of continuing on in the direction he was going, he finished his label contract and took a breath. A two-three year breath. In this time he took a step back to look at the bigger picture, regroup and start something new. He teamed up with Stephan Bodzin in 2006 for a year long collaboration under Get Physical, then split from that as well. He is now set to release his own record in 2010 after a couple of years of working mostly solo, with some collaboration with DJ T. Schumacher is constantly following his instincts, examining his decisions, and exploring his voice in the music industry. Check out his full interview with Resident Advisor, where he talks about how he has produced music on his own terms, and what his regrets are, if any.

Resident Advisor recently sat down with Danny Tenaglia to talk with him about how Winter Music Conference has changed, his plans for the next year, his reputation as a marathon DJ and who he’s been listening to lately. Tenaglia has performed at every Winter Music Conference except the first one, making him a 24 year veteran of the event. He talks about memorable years and how WMC has evolved into the giant week long party that it is today. When RA asks him when he plans on stopping he says no time soon, but the 48 year old producer wants to take a new direction once he hits 50, which he considers both a milestone and a time to change.

Resident Advisor has finally released its poll of the Top DJ’s of 2009. Richie Hawtin garnering the top spot is just another indication of his burgeoning influence on the electronic music scene. His influence goes beyond music into areas of technology. Working with music production equipment manufacturers to create and modify devices and software, Hawtin has changed the face of DJ’ing and music production. His forward thinking applications of technology often creates amazing moments of sound that would not be possible just a few years ago. Other artists that record on Minus, including Loco Dice, Magda, Marco Carola, and Troy Pierce also made the list.

If you’re looking for some new music to download, Resident Advisor has posted the top 50 tracks for November 2009. The list includes a ton of great, innovative producers on the scene right now including Claude VonStroke, Oxia, and Johnny D, who tops of the list at number 1 with his track “The Point of No Return.” You can see the whole list at Resident Advisor’s website.

Resident Advisor’s latest podcast is dedicated to Hello?Repeat co-founder Jan Krueger. The Düsseldorf born producer/DJ just moved to Berlin and RA asks him about his recent trip to New York City, his upcoming t-shirt line, and what he’ll be doing next. The 90 minute podcast is like one of his afterhours shows – a “slinky and hypnotic minimal house groove.” To download and listen to it, head over to RA’s website.

Resident Advisor recently sat down with Nicolas Jaar to talk to him about his music and his plans. At 19, Jaar is not only one of the youngest producers, but one of the most promising with his experimental, piano-heavy EDM. He has releases coming up on Circus Company, Wolf + Lamb and his own label, Clown and Sunset. You can read the whole article at Resident Advisor’s website.

Resident Advisor has picked the Top 10 Electronic Music Festivals for next month from all over the world. The results are: 10. Sunwaves (Mamaia, Romania) 9. Burning Man (Nevada, US) 8. Voltt Loves Summer 2009 (Amsterdam, Netherlands) 7. Wire (Tokyo, Japan) 6. South West Four/Get Loaded in the Park (London, UK) 5. SonneMondSterne (Leipzig, Germany) 4. Audioriver (Plock, Poland) 3. Nachtdigital (Olganitz, Germany) 2. c/o pop (Cologne, Germany) and 1. Freerotation (West + Wales, UK). For complete descriptions and lineups of each festival click here.