Friday Dance Music Guide: The Week’s Best New Tracks From PEEKABOO & Skrillex, Michaël Brun, Anne-Marie & Becky G & More

This week in dance music: We premiered exclusive Northern Nights 2023 sets from Big Gigantic, Megan Hamilton and Forester, and celebrated 20 years of the Dance Mix Show/Airplay chart. Friendship 2024 dropped a lineup featuring Skrilex, Chris Lake and many more, while Loud Luxury, Two Friends and Bebe Rexha ascended to the peak of Dance Mix Show/Airplay.

And yes, we’ve got new music, too. These are the best new dance tracks of the week.

PEEKABOO, Skrllex, G-Rex & Flowdan, “BADDERS”

The Label: OWSLA/Atlantic Records

The Spiel: PEEKABOO has been one of the best bass music producers in the scene for awhile, and today his profile gets another well deserved lift via “BADDERS,” a collaboration with Skrillex, Flowdan and G-Rex. The track brings a constellations of artists back together, as PEEKABOO collaborated on “Hydrate” from Skrillex’s Quest for Fire, and Flowdan of course delivered vocals for QFR’s “Rumble.”

Introduced to the mix here is PEEKABOO’s longtime friend, the producer G-Rex. Together they deliver a dark, wobbly production that’s the result of some kismet, with Flowdan having heard it during a studio session and coming up with lyrics and Skrillex later getting in touch with PEEKABOO to put his own touch on it. The efficacy of this group effort was demonstrated when the group played it seven times in a row during a recent b2b in London.

The Artist Says: “G-Rex, one of my best friends, was going through some personal hardships, so I invited him to Detroit,” says PEEKABOO. “I thought we could channel that emotion into our music, and that’s when we created ‘Badders.’ Working with Flowdan was an incredible experience; he’s such a wizard at creating lyrics… The same goes for Skrillex; he genuinely cares about music.”

The Vibe: Not bad at all.

Michaël Brun, Anne-Marie & Becky G, “Coming Your Way”

The Label: BAYO MIZIK

The Spiel: Consistently great Haitian producer Michaël Brun delivers what’s likely to be one of the biggest songs of his career thus far via “Coming Your Way,” a collaboration with power-lunged British singer Anne-Marie and global sensation Becky G. The song is slinky to the max, with Brun putting the track on slow burn, then layering up horns, percussion and a hot-to-the-touch verse from Becky G. The song comes on the heels of Brun’s FAMI Summer EP, which featured collaborations with J Balvin, Anthony Ramos, Kes, King Promise and more.

The Artist Says: “I wanted to cap the summer off with one of my favorite songs I’ve ever produced,” says Brun. “‘Coming Your Way’ is a mix of so many genres that have influenced me across the years, from electronic music to Caribbean and Latin sounds. It’s also an honor to have global superstars Anne-Marie and Becky G present on this one. It feels like a global anthem.”

The Vibe: Yes, the makings of a global anthem, but also the feel of a really good house party.

Roosevelt, “Rising”

The Label: Counter Records/Ninja Tune

The Spiel: Berlin-based producer Roosevelt, who dropped an official remix of Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” last winter, keeps the momentum going with “Rising.” The lush production goes heavy on the lightness, with passing clouds of synths and a zippy build creating a peppy and yes, uplifting, vibe. The track is the second single from Roosevelt’s forthcoming album, Embrace, coming September 22.

The Vibe: Unlimited mimosa brunch effervescence.

Hannah Wants, “Hard To Breathe”

The Label: Defected Records

The Spiel: It’s Hannah x two here, with British producer Hannah Wants and British vocalist Hannah Boleyn (who’s previously worked with artists including John Summit) teaming up for the deep house cut “Hard to Breathe.” “Don’t worry ‘bout me baby, it only hurts when I breathe,” Boleyn declares over Wants’ club-focused production, which progressively gets more urgent and anticipatory, much like holding your breath.

The Artist Says: “It’s features an insane hook / vocal from Hannah Boleyn and it’s been slappinggg in clubs for me around the world,” Wants wrote on Instagram — alongside a video of the song slappinggg, indeed.

The Vibe: Like taking in oxygen.

Armand van Helden, “I Won’t Stop”

The Label: Parlophone Records/FFRR

The Spiel: One of Boston’s coolest-ever exports, Armand Van Helden, celebrates the 25th anniversary of his classic “You Don’t Know Me” with a fresh production that brings the same mildly heartbroken but still giddy ’90s energy. A tight, two minute wind-up toy of a track, “I Wont’ Stop” is pure ebullience, bouncing merrily along with sirens blaring, until Van Helden ends it with a hard-hitting build that serves as a reminder that while his work has always been really fun, the reason it’s worked so well for decades is the foundation of grit it’s all built upon.

The Artist Says: “I’d been experimenting with American freestyle music and trying to tap into the sound for a long time, so this record is a mash-up of American freestyle and old, big New York club music from 1993 — that’s what I was trying to spin with this track. It’s a song that is ridiculous and I want people to be lit up and live in the ridiculousness when they hear ‘I Won’t Stop’.” 

The Vibe: Lit up and ridiculous in the best way.

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