genre dance
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This week in dance music: Interscope Records announced a forthcoming Avicii compilation album that will feature a new song with vocals from Elle King, and PinkPantheress, 2hollis and Skrillex made moves on the dance charts.
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And to round it out, these are the best new dance tracks of the week.
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Barry Can’t Swim & O’Flynn, “Kimpton”
Ahead of performances at Terminal V festival and Brooklyn Steel this weekend, producer of the moment Barry Can’t Swim has dropped the gorgeous “Kimpton” with London producer O’Flynn.Emotive, enchanting and exotic, the track weaves kalimba and chanting vocals with soft, brooding piano and string parts — and even a subtle harp. Of course, as dance artists, Barry (his real name is actually Joshua) and O’Flynn tie these delicate elements together with a hefty kick drum. It’s easy to imagine “Kimpton” mesmerizing Barry’s crowds this weekend; taking listeners into those oh-so-memorable moments of elation before bringing back the beat and locking them into the groove. The track comes ahead of Barry Can’t Swim’s sophomore album, Loner, coming July 11 via Ninja Tune.
Dom Dolla & Kid Cudi, “Forever”
Kid Cudi earned his EDM stripes almost two decades ago with David Guetta’s legendary “Memories” and Steve Aoki’s party-fueled remix of “Pursuit Of Happiness.” Now, he joins Dom Dolla on “Forever,” a melodic progressive house track that evokes those EDM vibes of old, along with the good vibes approach we’ve come to expect from Dolla. As the Aussie DJ/producer puts it, the pair “went to the studio to write something that takes you to a happier time and place. It’s something a little different from both of us.” Dolla debuted the track at his sold-out March doubleheader show at Madison Square Garden, bringing Kid Cudi on-stage to belt it out live. You can watch the moment in the music video for “Forever”, if you haven’t seen it online already — clips shared previously by Dolla racked up over 20 million views.
Dove & Kehina, “Chroma 009”
Belfast’s underground heroes, Bicep, are back with a mellow, hazy breaks track under their Dove alias, released on the duo’s Chroma label. Joined by vocalist Kehina, the track is laden with rich synth pads, meticulous beats and a glistening synth arp that floats in and out of the track; much like Kehina’s vocals. This track probably won’t be the most floor-filling moment at one of Bicep’s coveted Chroma shows, but instead is prime material for the more pensive moments at the party. Expect to see this accompanied with stunning visuals at upcoming Bicep shows.
Speaking on the track, Kehine says: “It’s a dizzying, trance-like track that weirdly reminds me of a lot of the music my mum used to play when I was a kid, particularly North African Gnawa music. That same hypnotic rhythm, that trance you fall into while dancing” Kehina comments on the new single. “I recorded and wrote this a month or two after vocal surgery. It really helped pull me out of my head and reminded me why I love making music in the first place. It helped me imagine a future in something I’d had to step back from for a while.”
HiTech feat. George Riley, “Take Yo Panties Off”
You might be looking for the “Skip Ad” button when watching the music video for HiTech’s “Take Yo Panties Off ft. George Riley.” But fret not, this is just the intro, which is just as fun and wacky as the rest of the track. The fast-tempo track hits you hard with a collage of bizarre sounds that’ll make you think, “Wait, was that the sound of a player taking fall damage in Minecraft?” (Yes. Yes it was.)
But beyond the fun and freaky sounds in the track, there’s a serious amount of groove in “Take Yo Panties Off” that’ll make you truly want to… Actually, better keep ‘em on. From George Riley’s infectious cadence throughout the track, the rapid walking bassline, smooth synth stabs and, of course, the repeating “Real freak bitches, tho” vocal part, there’s a whole lot to get down to. HiTech, the Detorit trio comprising King Milo, Milf Melly and 47Chops, have released the song via Loma Vista Recordings amidst their HoneyPaqq tour. They’re previewing tracks from the HoneyPaqq VOL. 1 mixtape, so you can expect a whole lot more booty-shakin’ material at their shows.
Surf Mesa, “Holding On”
Los Angeles-based producer Surf Mesa had a lightning in a bottle moment in 2020 when his breakout hit “ily (i love you baby)” had a lengthy run at the top of Hot Dance/Electronic Songs. He’s steadily released singles and EPs in the five years since, the latest of which is “Holding On” with Danish American producer John Alto. The moody track falls square in the lane Bob Moses has long carved out, giving (in the best way) Chris Isaak goes tech house vibes. The track is out on the recently launched Breakaway Projects, the new label and management venture from the company behind Breakaway Music Festival.
“I’m really excited to be working with Breakaway for a few records this year and even more excited to begin that partnership with ‘Holding On,’ a favorite of mine with my good friend John Alto,” says the artist born Powell Aguirre. “This record has been super close to my heart from the moment we started the demo and is the third or fourth idea John and I made one day in the studio. We knew immediately we had to get it out asap.”
Aaron Hibell & Dan Heath, “Odyssey“
Next week, lauded livestream producer Cercle launches its much-hyped touring show, Odyssey, in Mexico City, with the events brand and label releasing the official soundtrack to the shows ahead of the premiere. Created by rising producer Aaron Hibell and Golden Globe nominated composer and producer Dan Heath, “Odyssey” is a sweeping, cinematic scene-setter in the grand tradition of Hans Zimmer, with its swells of violin and drums adding to the already significant anticipation for this show. Odyssey which will have ten nights in Mexico City (with headliners including The Blaze, Beh Böhmer, Jungle and Mura Masa) before heading to Los Angeles then on to Paris. “Odyssey” is out on Cercle Records.
This week, Billboard is publishing a series of lists and articles celebrating the music of 20 years ago. Our 2005 Week continues here with a look at the unusual (and decades-spanning) path “Everytime We Touch” took to becoming a college basketball marching band jock jam.
What’s the connection between ‘80s Scottish folk singer-songwriter Maggie Reilly and Duke University athletics? Cascada’s 2005 Eurodance smash hit, “Everytime We Touch.”
20 years ago, German dance music group Cascada – then comprised of frontwoman Natalie Horler and producer-composers DJ Manian and DJ Yanou – found international success with “Everytime We Touch,” an advance single from their 2006 debut album of the same name.
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Before “Everytime,” Cascada scored European hits with “Bad Boy” and “Miracle,” the latter of which earned them a deal with American dance label Robbins Entertainment. After the U.S. release of “Miracle” failed to move the needle, the trio launched “Everytime We Touch” in August 2005. With American airwaves still dominated by sleek R&B/hip-hop fusions, pop-rock crowd-pleasers and Caribbean-flavored riddims, Robbins understood that breaking a Eurodance act in the U.S. would take some time. In fact, just two months before they released “Everytime,” Robbins earned a Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit with Belgian dance group DHT’s cover of Roxette’s “Listen to Your Heart,” which they dropped back in 2003.
As “Everytime” slowly gained traction across dance music clubs and radio stations, the song debuted on the Hot 100 at No. 86 for the week dated Dec. 17, 2005. Curiously, America was the first country to embrace “Everytime” despite its Eurodance foundation being at complete odds with top 40’s dominant sounds at the time. To this day, Horler is still shocked at that initial reception.
“I know that ‘Everytime We Touch’ was quite out there for that time, especially in the States. Dance music just was not played on the radio much back then and generally wasn’t accepted as commercial music,” she tells Billboard. “Travelling to New York for the first time and getting into a cab — I think it was Z100 or KTU – and [hearing the song play] was quite an insane experience.”
By March 2006, the song reached its Hot 100 peak of No. 10, still Cascada’s best showing on Billboard’s marquee singles chart. According to Luminate, in the 20 years since its release, the song has sold over 2.9 million digital downloads and logged over 603 million official on-demand U.S. streams. Many of those streams likely came from Duke University’s Cameron Indoor Stadium during the NCAA men’s basketball season, where “Everytime We Touch” has emerged as a go-to anthem to galvanize the Cameron Crazies.
As “Touch” was making its way up the American charts, Duke marching band director Jeff Au was settling into his new job after previous band directing stints at Elizabeth City State University and Towson University. He got to Duke in June 2005, and for the last 20 years, his philosophy has remained “get suggestions from students, see what works for a band, write [an arrangement] and go from there.”
As with any good college tradition, the origins behind Duke’s adoption of the hi-NRG dance staple are a bit hazy — but the story goes that a group of students (or maybe just Greg Caiola, then a sophomore and the band’s secretary) suggested adding “Everytime” to the band’s repertoire during an officer meeting. Au tells Billboard that the first time he heard the song was when the students played it in that very meeting.
“I thought it could work; it wasn’t going to be something we did a big halftime production to, because it’s not that intricate,” he says of his initial reaction to the song. “But a catchy song, combined with the students’ love for it, is a sure way to sell me on something.”
Making good on his promise to incorporate students’ suggestions and nourishing the top 40 proclivities he teased with the prior year’s interpretation of Kelly Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone,” Au quickly wrote an “Everytime” arrangement. Though “pretty spot on with the original,” Au’s version adds harmonies to the primary melody line and an ultimately unused woodwind section. He says it only took “three or four games” for the song to cement itself as a staple, and legend has it, that’s about how long it took for the accompanying student-crafted pseudo-choreography – dramatic slow claps during the verses and manic fist pumps during the chorus — to spread across the Cameron Crazies.
Several theories attempt to explain why “Everytime” stuck at Duke. Musically, the slow build of the song’s verses paired with its explosive choruses makes for the perfect soundtrack to the adrenaline-infused excitement that engulfs Cameron Indoor Stadium just before tip-off. What’s helped the song’s longevity at the school is that it isn’t tied to a specific moment, but rather a constant sensation that sometimes morphs from pre-game buzz to post-game victory. That feeling is borderline euphoric – the very phenomenon that inspired Maggie Reilly’s “Everytime We Touch,” the foremother of Cascada’s generational dance hit.
In 1992, Reilly ruled the European charts with her original “Touch,” the second single from Echoes, her debut solo album following several successful Mike Oldfield collaborations, including 1983’s “Moonlight Shadow.” Cascada’s version isn’t a straight cover, but it does lift Reilly’s entire chorus, which was inspired by the literal static shock she felt after hugging her boyfriend in an elevator at New York’s Mayflower Hotel — their first meeting in a long while.
“When somebody comes up with something new to add to [your song], it’s always quite exciting to hear,” reflects Reilly. “When I heard [Cascada’s version], it was very refreshing – and the video looked great as well. Within a very short period of time, I was told that it was doing amazingly in America for them, which was obviously exciting. It was like having a baby!”
With her legal team’s permission, Yanou and Manian, who both prefer to keep a low profile and are no longer a part of Cascada, interpolated Reilly’s chorus and wrote entirely new verses and production arrangements. Cascada’s rendition replaces Reilly’s yearning with decidedly more bombast, but the ecstatic feeling of connecting with a lover – whether on an elevator, dancefloor or basketball court – remains at the center.
“I get goosebumps every game, because I run our in-game experience for our men’s basketball program,” says Duke director of sports marketing Meagan Arce, “As the clock is ticking down and we get closer to me hitting the lights in Cameron, we play a [highlight reel] of past seasons, our fans and our students with ‘Everytime We Touch’ [in the background] and it’s one of my favorite moments of the game day experience. The song makes such a huge impact.”
Horler became aware of the song’s popularity at Duke “a few years ago” after getting tagged in videos on Twitter. Her manager explained to her Duke’s stature in the States, but she wouldn’t get a chance to connect with the school until 2020. For that year’s graduation, the university organized a virtual ensemble rendition of the song led by Horler and featuring members of the graduating class. “I had a lot of fun doing this during lockdown because, obviously, we weren’t very busy,” she reflects. “I thought they did such a great job. It was funny but also endearing. To use my song for that was pretty special.”
Now squarely a part of Duke tradition and lore – upperclassmen routinely pass the “Everytime” torch onto incoming freshmen – Cascada’s megahit has also become a foundational building block for any reputable nightclub playlist. In 2023, Billboard‘s staff honored it as one of the 500 Best Pop Songs of All Time (No. 211), and this week also named it the No. 8 Best Song of 2005. The song’s success – and that of follow-up Hot 100 hits, “What Hurts the Most” (No. 52) and “Evacuate the Dancefloor” (No. 25) — has allowed Cascada to embark on a fruitful career. The group’s first three LPs each reached the top 10 of Dance Albums, while Horler has successfully toured and played shows for the past two decades both with Cascada and as a soloist.
“I think music comes around again, and when you listen to ‘Everytime We Touch,’ you can actually [hear] those elements [like the synthesizer] coming out in modern music now,” says Horler. “It does not feel like 20 years — I’m still performing this song to this day!”
A forthcoming compilation album will feature a collection of many of Avicii‘s biggest hits, along with a never before released song. Titled Avicii Forever, the compilation will be released on May 16 via Interscope Records. The compilation is a project by Interscope, the Avicii Estate and Pophouse, which acquired 75% of the late producer’s recording […]
Anyma surprised fans at Coachella by joining Yeat during his set, and we had the opportunity to sit down with the DJ as he shared his excitement about the conclusion of the Genesys trilogy with the release of his album End of Genesys in May, the inspiration behind his Coachella set, and more!
Tetris Kelly:
So from Sphere to Coachella, Anyma, bro, I don’t think people are ready for you to come out joining Yeat, even though you guys have the track together. So how was that whole vibe?
Yeah, no sh*t. I wasn’t ready for it. Like, honestly, like, it’s been just, like, surreal working with him. Like, so talented and like, we just, like, directly went for it, made the song in a few weeks, studied the visual, the whole universe we wanted to make collide, you know? My world, his world, his world’s crazy, like the energy was insane, like it was, for sure, an experience and some crossover even I didn’t expect I would have done this in my life, you know.
And I mean, you have, obviously, through your career, created a really awesome world which people saw at Sphere. So how do you come into like his world and like do your own thing?
Well, I feel like artists such as me, and yet we have such strong vision for our brands and our art and what it means to be an artist into this contemporary world that when, when two universes like that collide, it or works very well, or is it like a disaster, you know, like, because it’s not obviously something we did for necessary, for commercial purposes, or just to make it happen, you know, we really wanted to see if we can, like, do something next level and sort of like, you know, makes, you know, make people say, Like, what is this?
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The long tail of Brat is visible to the naked eye at Coachella 2025, where this weekend a not insignificant portion of the crowd is dressed in the kind of asymmetrical ruffled skirts, wraparound sunglasses and black knee-high boots that Charli XCX has popularized during her culture-shaking marathon run around the album, which came out two months after last year’s Coachella.
Given that we’ve all been living through the many seasons of Brat ever since, it felt apt, reasonable and more or less expected that Charli kept her Saturday night performance almost entirely album-centric, using the slot on the Coachella mainstage — where she last appeared in 2023 — to spotlight the LP’s music, collaborators, aesthetic and attitude. The biggest twist came at the end, when she raised questions about whether or not it might be coming to a close.
The set began promptly at 7:20 p.m. with strobe-light black and white graphics on Coachella’s giant screens building a feeling of hype. Then began the strains of “365,” with Charli appearing at the center of the giant stage dressed in black micro-shorts with a chain belt, black knee-highs, a black bra, sheer black over shirt and black sunglasses, which, per usual, stayed on for the duration of the show.
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She then went directly into “360” and then “Von Dutch,” during which she strutted through the crowd before returning to the stage and demanding “You ready to sing? Louder b—h!” before launching into the chorus and then going directly into “Club Classics.” By this point, the “I want to dance to me, me, me” refrain felt thematic in the sense that the entire show was kept very spare in terms of production, with the only major set piece being a riser that was used to once or twice lift Charli off the stage so she could be a bit higher while she danced. It was altogether a stark contrast to the absolute maximalism of Lady Gaga’s set on the same stage the night prior.
By comparison, Charli’s set was truly a spotlight on and a showcase for her and her stage presence. While she was able to carry the massive mainstage on her own without many bells, whistles or a single backup dancer, it also demonstrated that things are more fun with friends, as a litany of Brat collaborators joined Charli at various points to perform their respective album cuts.
The first of these moments was from Troye Sivan, Charli’s co-headliner on the 2024 Sweat Tour, who came out to sing their jaunty sex romp duet “Talk Talk” — with the great chemistry these two have palpable throughout and Charli seeming a bit more overtly joyful while performing alongside her pal.
After this came Charli’s solo performances of “I Might Say Something Stupid” and then “Apple,” which in extremely Brat fashion she sang while walking around the stage while carrying the party world drink vessel of choice, a red Solo Cup. Meanwhile, the camera panned to regular Charli associates Gabbriette, Alex Consani and Quenlin Blackwell doing the viral Apple dance in front row.
Then it was Lorde‘s turn, with the Australian star (whose jeans and t-shirt contrasted with Charli’s more club-ready outfit), coming out to sing her part on the “Girl, so confusing” remix. It was a pleasure to see the pair strutting side-by-side down the stage’s catwalk, with the moment reminding one of the power and beauty of these two working it out on the remix and catharsis in the duo’s confessional edit of the song. “Make some f—ing noise for Lorde,” Charli demanded from the crowd, before declaring “Lorde summer 2025” into the mic and Lorde then exiting after a big hug between the two.
It was moments later that Billie Eilish (wearing baggy shorts, an oversized polo shirt and a backward baseball hat) was onstage to do her part on the undeniable “Guess” remix, with the crowd having one of its biggest bursts of energy of the entire show during the song’s electro build. Quick cut edits of the pair dancing in strobe-ey lights flashed on the screen with the word “GUESS” intermittently transposed over them.
After Eilish’s exit, Charli literally crawled down the catwalk, with the crowd cheering as she thrust her hips on the stage and then crawled back towards the camera while screaming. She then stood up and just headbanged, her signature long black hair flailing. The show then shifted into softer, lovier territory while Charli sang her 2019 Lizzo collab “I Blame It On Your Love,” one of a three non-Brat songs that made it into the show. “Unlock It” from 2017’s Pop 2 had come earlier, with Charli then closing the entire performance with her classic 2012 Icona Pop collab “I Love It,” a crowd favorite and a high-energy closer.
But that wasn’t quite the end of the show. After the music, Charl stood onstage flanked by the giant screens that flashed messages seemingly beamed directly from her stream of consciousness: “Does this mean that Brat summer is finally over?” the words asked. “Idk? Maybe? Wait was it? No?? Yeah cuz duh it was already over like last year. Wait. Was it? NO??? I don’t know who I am if it’s over???” F–KKKKKKKK.”
Then the declaration momentarily took hold of itself, declaring “Wait. I remembered. I’m Charli” with images of the her name in various fonts flashing on the screen before the statement resumed by saying “and honestly… I just want this moment to last forever.” After a series of images at Charli at various points throughout her career, the screens flashed a clip of a green flag emblazoned with “Brat” waving, and then consumed in flames.
“PLEASE DON’T LET IT BE OVER,” the statement declared, at which point the show was officially done. But rest assured, Charli will be back next Saturday — same time, same place — for Coachella’s second weekend.
This week in dance music: PinkPantheress shared the tracklist for her upcoming mixtape, we caught up with DJ Koze about his new album Music Can Hear Us, John Summit, Skrillex and more made moves on the dance charts, we spoke with Sherelle about her debut album With a Vengeance, Poolside shared their set from CRSSD spring 2025, Create Music Group acquired venerable indie electronic imprint !K7, IMS announced that it will honor dance world power agent Maria May with its Legends Awards at the event later this month in Ibiza and we chatted with Spanish psytrance star Indira Paganotto ahead of her Coachella debut this weekend.
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And in addition to all that, of course, these are the best new dance tracks of the week.
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Charlotte de Witte, “The Realm”
Techno fans have been waiting a long time for this moment, with genre titan Charlotte de Witte this week releasing the first single from her forthcoming album — the first LP from her 15-plus year career. “The Realm” is just that, a windy, sleekly tough track that functions as a sort of space to move through, and in. “The lyrics capture the essence of what I believe music can do,” the Belgian producer says. “Techno, and by extension clubbing, has always been about more than just dancing for me. It’s about connection, transcendence and exploration. It’s a way of accessing something unseen, something powerful. There’s a tension and release in the structure that mirrors the feeling of letting go, of stepping into something bigger than yourself.”
De Witte’s eponymous 11-track LP is coming November 7 through her own Kntxt label. Ahead of that, she’s touring heavily across Europe, the U.S. and Asia this spring and summer.
Bob Moses, “Time of Your Life“
Bob Moses return with their first new music in three (!) years via “Time of Your Life,” a song the duo wrote in a few hours at their L.A. studio. In a joint statement they say “the song is about the devil on your shoulder. The one whispering to you to indulge in the moment and worry about everything else later. That impulsiveness can feel intoxicating. We felt that feeling in the moment, embraced it, and wrote the song from that perspective: throwing caution to the wind and having the time of your life.” While the theme seems to be fresh for them, the song itself is the classic plodding, sleek and sexy synthwave the pair have long been known for. Bob Moses will play the Do Lab stage tonight (April 11) at Coachella.
Röyksopp, True Electric
The latest album from Norway’s finest Röyksopp collects 19 studio versions of music from the duo’s 2023 True Electric tour in 2023, with an emphasis on the club-oriented elements of a catalog that goes back almost 25 years. True Electric also features a previously unreleased track, the oversized and deliciously cacophonous “The R.” Out on their own Dog Triumph label, the project also includes the previously released and very essential update to their 2014 Robyn collab “Do It Again,” among other favorites.
Walker & Royce, “Death By Love”
Walker & Royce have been longtime torch bearers for underground West Coast tech house, with their latest being one of their coolest contributions to date. Out on Insomniac Records, “Death By Love” is a textural multi-movement heater with a heft and style that makes it feel longer than its two minutes and 50 seconds. The L.A. duo will surely play it out a lot out on a spring and summer tour that includes dates at EDC Las Vegas, Movement, Dirtybird Campout x Northern Nights, HARD Summer and Outside Lands.
Haai, “Shapeshift”
The latest from Haai slowly pulses to life, with a long burn intro built with the Australian producer’s own vocals and a repeated note that sounds like the sonar on a submarine. But oh, how it takes off. Lyrics from Kam-bu take the song into its second movement, with the London rapper stating “still don’t got love for cages, feel like we haven’t spoke in age” as the beat builds and the production takes a darker, clubbier turn and then takes off into sub-bass hyperspace around the 3:06 mark. Haii herself says the track is about the “duality of being both the person you are onstage and the person you are at home, in the normal world,” a theme that will play out when she plays Coachella twice this weekend, once on the Quasar stage and once in the Yuma Tent.
When we speak, Indira Paganotto is in a Chicago hotel room where earlier today she woke up and brushed her teeth while blasting Rammstein.
This choice jells with the Spanish psytrance producer’s generally hard aesthetic: her intricate music — laced with a spiritual chants and loaded with kickdrum — is intense, as are looks favoring latex and snakes as accessories.
But while her brand can be heavy, Paganotto herself is effectively a ray of sunshine — cheerful, chatty and deep as we talk over Zoom before her show tonight at Radius. She’ll play clubs like these across the U.S. over the next few weeks, until tour routing takes her to Indio, Calif., where Paganotto will make her Coachella debut in the festival’s Yuma tent.
Before she left on this U.S. run, a film crew from the festival traveled to Paganotto’s home on Spain’s Canary islands to interview her and her parents about her rise, a moment that makes her so proud as she talks about it that she tears up.
As she tells it, it’s been a long road from working for cash in Madrid afterhours clubs to the success she’s achieved as a DJ and producer, a trajectory that’s included two slots on the Tomorrowland mainstage, closing sets at Serbia’s influential techno festival EXIT, a 2025 residency at Hï Ibiza and upcoming shows across South America and Europe, some of them showcases for her label, Artcore. With this rise Paganotto joins the league of techno and techno adjacent stars like Nina Kraviz, Amelie Lens, Charlotte de Witte, Sara Landry and Ida Engberg who are among the biggest and most influential artists of the genre.
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Here, Paganotto talks about bringing “the hippies with the Rastas with the LSD in the mountains” vibe to techno, playing Coachella and more.
1. Where are you in the world right now and what’s the setting like?
Now I’m in Chicago. I will play tomorrow night, and the next day I go to New York because we have our own showcase of Artcore. And later next week, I go to Texas, and later I will make my own showcase again of Artcore in Miami, in Factory Town. Super cool. These are busy weeks.
2. What is the first album or piece of music you bought for yourself, and what was the medium?
So the first was Talamasca’s Musica Divinorum and also Ian Pooley’s Meridian. They’re really different styles. One is really psytrance and Goa trance, like me. The other one, which my father give to me, is house music. It’s really different styles, and it really [affected] my beginning, because it was house music and psytrance. I was really obsessed with these two albums.
3. What did your parents do for a living when you were a kid?
My father was a doctor with Doctor Without Borders. He was living in India for 10 years, helping people. He was working with Mother Teresa of Calcutta, for the war and with the kids without arms and all this s—. But in the meantime, his hobby and his passion was also playing in the beaches of of Goa and making parties and also making photography. He loved photography. He was getting lost in the villages in India and living with the local people and making photos and helping them with cures if they were sick. He was a really nice guy.
My mom, she was a super romantic girl. She loved Spain, she [studied] at University to be a professor of literature, but later she meet my father and she left everything, and she went to the Canary Islands because she was so in love. She started being [a flight attendant.] Later she left the work because she was not happy. And now she paints, she has a prayer group, because she’s super Christian. My parents are really different, but they are really spiritual. They are really into art and [exploring] the world. So, yeah, I was super lucky.
4. What do they think of your career?
They are super proud. It was a long path. My father supported me since the beginning, but my mom was like, “You need to make a career.” Actually, in the beginning I started being a lawyer, like for one year. But I was like, “No, it’s not my style.” So I just followed my dreams.
In the beginning it was super tough. My parents didn’t support me too much in the beginning. I was alone in Madrid with €150, and they were just waiting for me to come home. I started working in restaurants and in afterhours for money. It all happened so slowly. Now, they’re the proudest parents in the world. They live in my home when I’m touring, because I bought a big home, and they live there with my sister and my animals. Every time I come from the tour, my mama picks me up in the car. She makes me chicken soup and we talk. So it’s nice.
5. What is the first non-gear thing that you bought for yourself when you started making money as an artist?
The first I bought a snowboard [deck], because before that I was buying second hand, super destroyed stuff. I brought the coolest one. It was so expensive. Later, I spent money on big monitors for my studio, and I bought painting for my studio. It’s really like a dream coming true, the first money [you get] and you’re investing in the studio and feeling like a pro all time.
6. If you had to recommend one album for someone looking to get into dance music, what album would you give them?
In psytrance I would recommend Kumeda is insane. Tristan, Mark Day, Interactive Noise. These kind of artists are really cool. And Talamasca. For me Talamasca is like the masterpiece, because it’s really emotive and romantic, but at the same time with this bassline that will break your heart. And later, for the young generation that are more into hard electro, I could recommend Gesaffelstein, Moderat, Kris Wadsworth, Luna City Express. These artists are known nowadays but did something in me in the beginning.
7. What is the last song you listened to?
This morning when I was waking up, I put on “Sonne” from Rammstein.
8. What’s your take on the current state of psytrance in the U.S.?
I mean, we’re working for that. It depends on the regions, for example, New York, they love. In Miami, we have a really big crowd. Chicago, we are in the process. Texas, let’s see. I’ve never played there before. I think Coachella, for example, I will play this year. This kind of big festival is really a super good opportunity to send this message.
9. Does playing Coachella hold any special significance for you?
For me, it means a kind of conquering of the electronic music scene with my sound, because it’s in the top of festivals in America. I feel super proud when I look back to when I started, and I’m like, “Indira, you did it.” For me it’s a dream, because even my mom knows what Coachella is.
Indira Paganotto
Alberto van Stokkum
10. You have such a striking fashion sense. How would you describe your style?
I had a lot of styles when I was small, but I was also emo for a lot of years. I love a punk, Green Day, Evanescence. I’m really into this alternative, underground style from the 2000s. Nowadays you don’t see this style, and I’m super sad, because all the young people look them same. I don’t see any skaters in Europe, for example. I miss this. But also, I love the classic style from my mom, who has perfect makeup at 8 a.m. Super perfect, elegant style, like in Italy. So I have these two sides, and it depends on how I feel, but I love the art of it. I think fashion is art. For example, now I’m the resident in Hï Ibiza. We have like, 14 shows and for every show I designed my own clothes that will be latex.
11. Isn’t it really hot to play a nightclub in latex?
Yeah, but you know, I choose this look for Hï because there is a lot of air conditioning.
12. You mentioned your label Artcore. What are you aiming to create with it? What’s the ethos?
Just to create a community where everyone has their own shine. I’m the creator of Artcore, but all our artists have their own light. If they want to release on other labels, for example, we let them. A lot of label don’t do that. It’s a space for freedom. I see all the time in electronic music there are a lot of rules, but me, a hippie vibe and soul, I was struggling. All the time I was like, “why I can’t make this like this?” So I created my own label, like pirate label.
13. It’s intriguing what you’re saying about running into rules. What rules you think you’ve broken?
For example, no one accepted psytrance in techno festivals before. This is the number one. Psytrance was something alternative, but not a cool scenario for the techno people. [Psytrance people] were like the hippies with the Rastas with the LSD in the mountains. But now, no. I’m hippie, but I love to wear Prada too. I can have both. The techno scene was missing these kind of feelings, of music, of smiling, of community.
14. What feeling does a psytrance crowd and sound bring to an event?
It’s when you listen to opera, or when you go to church, or when you listen to flamenco, there is this kind of divinity feeling. I don’t know how to express it in words, but in psytrance there are these kind of uplifting feelings that in techno there is not, because techno was was created in the concrete, in the cities. It was also political. But the psytrance was created for sharing, for smiling, for the kids, for the soul. It’s like bringing the forest and the beach and the nature into the concrete city.
15. You mentioned wanting to make people proud. What are the proudest moments of your career so far?
One was actually the other day. Guys from Coachella were coming to my home to make a video. It was a video of my life, how I started. I was super proud, because my parents were talking in it too, and I saw their faces.They were talking and so super proud that I almost cried. I feel emotional now. This for me is everything.
16. What would you say are the key moments that lead you to this point?
Playing EXIT Festival. I did the closing set two years ago. At home with my ex-husband, I used to look at videos from the festival on YouTube and was like, “One day I will be there. I’m sure.” I did it, and I did the closing set with the Nina Kraviz also. This year, I will go there again with Sara Landry. For me, EXIT was like the temple. And of course playing Tomorrowland two times on the mainstage. This was like, wow. And now, this year we have our own Artcore stage at Tomorrowland. So it’s arriving step by step. And now I am a resident of Hï Ibiza, and this in my career is insane. My new album is coming this year too.
17. What are you currently finding the most challenging in all of it?
I think still being pure in myself. When I was in the mountains in Madrid with my animals and just making music, there was no option to be corrupted. But now, I’m always touring with a lot of energy from people and a big team that all have their own opinions. I accept those opinions if they’re good, but the biggest struggle is still being pure in myself. Sometimes I cry because it’s like, “maybe the set was no good. Or maybe this track is not really pure. It’s kind of mainstream, cheesy,” you know? But my team is honest with me, and I’m like, “okay, that’s true,” or I see it myself.
18. What’s the best business decision you feel that you’ve made so far?
You can fight the war, but you can’t fight too much, because you will be burned. It’s super nice now that I have a team around me. That makes my mission easier. And also working with my manager and booker Alex Avanzato. He’s like my husband, but with nothing intimate. He’s the best manager in the world. He’s a super hard worker, and he loves me, and he loves the team. This year we bought an office in Ibiza together 50/50, for me, the team and all our artists to come visit us. It’s a meeting point. I’m super excited.
19. What do you think the most exciting thing happening in dance music right now is?
The freedom for all the generations that are coming in. There are a lot of sounds, and these new generations can experiment with no fear of what artists from the ’90s will say, because they don’t care. They are like, “this is me, this is my Instagram. I make whatever I want.” It’s good because they share and make whatever they like and they don’t have this pressure from the patriarchy that there was in the beginning.
20. If you could give one piece of advice to your younger self, what would you say?
For every failure, there are 10 victories Indira, so stop crying and go work.
Longtime dance/electronic world agent Maria May of CAA will be honored with the Legends Award at IMS Ibiza 2025 for her notable contributions to electronic music culture.
With her career extending back more than three decades, May helped develop and legitimize the electronic music scene, bringing it out of warehouses to large-scale venues and events worldwide.
May currently represents a flurry of dance world stars, including David Guetta, Sara Landry, Marlon Hoffstadt, Róisín Murphy, Paul Kalkbrenner, Robin Schulz, Icona Pop, The Chainsmokers, Jonas Blue and Black Eyed Peas, among others. She’s also worked with artists including Frankie Knuckles, David Morales, Layo and Bushwacka, Hercules and Love Affair, Azari and III, Moloko, Soulwax, 2manydjs, Lee Burridge, and X-press 2.
“To receive this recognition is both humbling and very exciting,” May said in a statement. “Not merely because of what it represents for my career, but because of what it stands for in the wider culture of electronic music. The first woman to be publicly recognized for her efforts with an award of this gravitas has been a long time coming. Watching electronic music evolve from underground rebellion to a global movement and being one of the many architects of the global business phenomenon that we have created and now being recognized for these efforts is something I never imagined when I went to my first rave.”
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Beyond her work as an agent, May is being honored for advocacy work that includes her role as a board member of Lady of the House, a collective that works to amplify women in the dance music industry. She has a position on the board of Beatport, a position on the advisory board of the Frankie Knuckles Foundation, was a founding advisory board member of the Association For Electronic Music (AFEM) and has been a longtime board member of the Night Time Industries Association.
May has also been included multiple times on Billboard‘s International Power Players and Women In Music power lists.
The award will be presented during The Beatport Awards, happening at Atzaró Agroturismo on the evening of April 24. It’s one of the many gatherings happening on the island in conjunction with IMS Ibiza. There will also be an industry lunch in May’s honor during the three-day dance industry gathering.
“I have enjoyed watching Maria’s career grow from my first meeting with her in the offices of ITB in 1994, seeing her develop with her acts into a global force of nature when it comes to agenting talent,” says IMS and AFEM co-founder Ben Turner. “Her role behind the scenes in affecting how the industry operates may not be seen by so many, but is felt by everybody. She challenges the industry to think and be better. She cares as much today as she did as a passionate agent in her early 20s on the dancefloor at Liquid in Miami listening to Frankie Knuckles and David Morales — which is how I will always visualize her! Both IMS and the clubbing industry of Ibiza are truly proud of her achievements. Electronic music is in a better place because of the person that is Maria May.”
“Maria May has been a transformative force in electronic music for over three decades,” adds Robb McDaniels of The Beatport Group, which acquired a majority stake in IMS in 2023. “Her work behind the scenes has helped shape the careers of some of the most iconic artists in our culture. At Beatport, we’re proud to recognize her contributions and leadership, especially her tireless advocacy for women in our industry. Maria has not only opened doors, she’s helped rebuild the very rooms where decisions are made. She embodies the spirit of this award.”
IMS Ibiza happens at the Mondrian Ibiza and Hyde Ibiza hotels this April 23-25. The event will feature three days’ worth of panel discussions from experts across many sectors of the industry, along with mixers, networking opportunities, performances, a robust wellness program and much more. See the complete IMS Ibiza 2025 schedule here.
When Poolside stepped onto the Ocean Stage at San Diego’s waterfront CRSSD festival on March 2, it was unlike any show the longstanding SoCal outfit had ever played. The performance marked Poolside’s first since frontman and co-founder Jeffrey Paradise lost his Altadena home and all of his possessions in the Los Angeles wildfires two months […]
In recent years, SHERELLE has made herself something of a leader in the U.K.’s electronic and dance scene. Through her DJ sets, original material and radio hosting gigs, the 31-year-old’s passion and curatorial skills have been instrumental in celebrating jungle, footwork and breakbeat, and ensuring the genres’ well-deserved place at the forefront of contemporary dance culture.Early in her role as a curator, SHERELLE championed the BRITs-nominated junglist Nia Archives, as well as avant-garde creator Loraine James on her radio show, and she was co-signed by the influential late designer Virgil Abloh. SHERELLE’s name is synonymous with an original, head-spinning sound, as well as being a passionate and thoughtful voice in a crowded space.
She’s now surprise-releasing With A Vengeance, her debut LP via London-based label Method 808, and over the past few weeks has been touring extensively with her club night SHERELLELAND in Newcastle, Edinburgh and Sheffield. This Friday (Apr. 11) she takes over London’s historic Roundhouse to complete the tour; tickets are capped at £10 ($13), with the goal to improve access and ease costs for music lovers.
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This period sounds as frantic as her preferred music mode (160 BPM is the benchmark), but she says a period of stillness and recalibration was what inspired her next phase. “I finally found myself in a place to be able to make [the LP],” she tells Billboard U.K., dialing in from the Media Centre in Salford, where she’s appearing at the BBC Radio 6 Music Festival. “I was in a good headspace, and had chosen things in life to make sure that I was looking after myself.”
SHERELLE had what many in the electronic space would consider a dream start. In 2019, a viral Boiler Room set quickly elevated her name and kicked off a whirlwind period of touring. She had little time to catch up with the enormity of the change, but saw bookings surge, and in late 2023 took on a presenting slot on BBC 6 Music on Saturday nights.
On reflection, however, she says she was overworked, and was spread too thin to enjoy the moments and to stay present. She calls that time “a blur” and speaks candidly about the toll it took on her wellbeing. “I basically had to silently deal with depression,” she says, adding that turning 30 triggered complex emotions. “All of a sudden I thought, ‘Oh my god, I’m going to be 30, and my life isn’t where I want it to be’ — or I was assuming it would be so much more different.”
The balance between vulnerability and the role of the DJ – bringing immaculate tunes and vibes – is a unique demand. Performers in the more traditional concert setting are permitted space for complex, knottier emotions seldom translated to a club performance behind the decks. “We have to put on a happy face — because if we don’t, then it will affect the crowd and their enjoyment,” she says.
Being revved up for a slot means that DJs and producers are putting up barriers and neglecting their mental health. “That can be quite dangerous, because then when you are constantly putting on a face when you are you are essentially acting,” she says. “Our scene doesn’t really lend many opportunities to check in on people.”
The period culminated with her laptop being stolen, which included all of her recorded music and demos – her livelihood as a musician, presenter and DJ was compromised. Understandably distressed by the theft, SHERELLE protected herself by avoidance, and kept music listening to a minimum. She changed management teams and sought to enter a new, healthier period of creativity. A desktop computer – a throwback for millennials – helped improve productivity, while a shift to a vegan diet gave her new energy.
Ready to create again, she also retooled her studio practices, and found creative inspiration in soul and funk greats Earth, Wind & Fire and jazz flutist Bobbi Humphrey. Advice came from jungle legend Tim Reaper, who encouraged her to work with efficiency, and not to spend more than 15 minutes on any song section. “Then lo and behold, I was just pissing out tunes left, right, and center — and then actually making stuff that I really liked,” she laughs.
Those tunes are With a Vengeance, a debut LP that continues the journey from her 2021 double A-side 160 Down the A406, and captures specific moments in her recovery period. The LP’s two-song suite “XTC Suspended” and “XTC,” for example, are evocative renderings of the burnout and depression, as well as the recovery period.
The former is emblematic of the moments where she would push through the chaos to put on a happy face, while the latter is brighter, warmer, and indebted to garage and two-step. SHERELLE wants people to feel the “raw energy and emotion” of her productions and songs, but also not feel overwhelmed either.
“I really hope people like it, but I’m not mad if they don’t get it,” she adds. “It’s personal to me and I’m just happy that I’ve got to the point of making something I actually really like. I really love all 10 songs and it’s not manufactured at all. I’m glad to add something authentic basically back into a space that can feel quite manufactured at times.”
SHERELLE’s vulnerability and candour stays true to her commitment to community. Growing up in Walthamstow, east London in a working class background, her experience of some of the dance scene and some of the more corporate, commercial trappings has given her renewed focus and drive to give back. She launched BEAUTIFUL in 2021, a community that supports Black and LGBTQIA+ creators, and over the years has hosted workshops and sessions to help demystify pathways for creators.
As industry discussions about music education in schools continue, SHERELLE is firmly on the side of fellow Brit artists Ezra Collective and Myles Smith, both of whom called upon the decision-makers and governments to empower young musicians. “It’s such a sad thing. There could be so many talented people who are just not going to get the same investment,” she says. “We need to allow for kids that don’t have the funds and the means to be able to create and create freely with no time constraints.”
SHERELLELAND culminates on Friday (Apr. 11) with the Roundhouse show and with its lower entry point for tickets. As reports say live music in the U.K. is booming, SHERELLE – and her new team and live agent – knew that someone had to buck industry trends. “Unfortunately the DJ scene makes a lot of money for people and they want to protect that at all cost. I would say that they do like music, but they definitely like money more.”
It is, she says, an opportunity to weave together the disparate threads of her career as a performer, curator and activist, but also just a testament to her mindset. “The main groups of people that I’ve worked with on this idea are all people who have come from a background where community is really important,” she says of the new era. “I felt supported, loved and that my ideas were protected; after that it was very easy and simple.”