Beat Wala

In this episode, Jo Youle sits down with global dance music pioneer Loco Dice to explore the storytelling and return to his hiphop roots with his new album Purple Jam — a project that showcases many new collaborations, community, and plenty of groove.From his early days in the hip-hop underground to unforgettable back-to-back sets with Carl Cox, Marco Carola, and the DC10 family, Dice shares the moments that shaped his journey and the friendships that continue to push him forward. He opens up about the emotional core of Purple Jam — a record built through connection — and how working alongside his long-time collaborator and album co-producer brought new color and freedom to his sound.Together, Jo and Dice reflect on:How Carl Cox’s friendship & mentorship helped define his DJ philosophy.The balance between discipline and improvisation when playing B2B on stage.The energy of Ibiza’s DC10 from Cirillo and his early days on the terrace.It’s a soulful sofa conversation with one of the scene’s most respected artists — a man who continues to innovate without losing sight of where it all began.Follow Beat Wala on Youtube to hear more stories behind the sounds shaping club culture today.Listen to Purple Jam Instagram : Beat Wala

In this episode of Beat Wala, Jo Youle catches up with GoldFish – the South African live electronic duo whose fusion of jazz, dance, and deep house has taken them from the beaches of Cape Town to some of the world’s biggest festival stages.We dive into:🌍 How Cape Town shaped their sound and musical identity🎷 Blending live instruments with beats🎶 Stories from their breakout albums and international tours🎛️ The magic (and chaos) of performing live electronic sets🚀 Their evolution from beach bars to headlining global events and their residency at Pacha in ibiza for fours years💡 What’s next for GoldFish in 2025 and beyond.

We sit down in Ibiza with the legendary Kevin Saunderson – one of the founding fathers of Detroit Techno, a member of the Belville Three along with Juan Atkins & Derrick May, as well as a true pioneer of electronic music.From shaping the sound of techno in the ’80s to his iconic work with Inner City and his groundbreaking sets at clubs and festivals worldwide, Kevin shares an inside look at his incredible four-decade journey and some of the worst jobs he did along the way to buy his first set of decks from a pawn shop to receiving the legend award at IMS this year. We talk about:🎶 How Detroit’s underground shaped the birth of techno🏠 The magic behind Inner City’s timeless hits🚀 The evolution of electronic music and its future🎛️ Kevin’s creative process in the studio and behind the decks🌍 Building a lasting global legacy while staying true to Detroit rootsWhether you’re a DJ, producer, or dance music lover, this conversation dives deep into the culture, history, and future of techno from one of its true innovators.

In this special edition of Beat Wala, recorded live at IMS Ibiza, we sit down with a true trailblazer in electronic music: the world’s first female drum & bass and jungle MC. With raw honesty and vibrant energy, she shares the untold story of carving a path through a male-dominated scene at a time when women on the mic were unheard of. From underground raves to international stages, her voice became the pulse of a movement, inspiring generations to come.We explore the resistance she faced along the way—dismissal, exclusion, and systemic bias that often tried to silence her. But she didn’t back down. Instead, she turned her mic into a weapon and her rhymes into resistance, proving over and over that lyrical mastery knows no gender. This episode dives deep into the resilience it takes to stand your ground, claim space, and challenge the norms in one of the most hardcore scenes in electronic music.Through her stories of persistence, sisterhood, and sonic rebellion, this conversation becomes more than music—it’s a manifesto for any woman who’s been told she doesn’t belong. Whether you’re an MC, a fan of the jungle, or someone fighting to be seen, this episode delivers a fierce dose of inspiration from a woman who broke the mold and never looked back.

In this episode of Beat Wala, we dive deep into the sonic journey of Bushwacka!, aka Matthew Benjamin — a true pioneer of the UK underground, previously one half of the legendary duo Layo & Bushwacka!.From his early roots in the acid house explosion of the late ‘80s to becoming a cornerstone of the global tech-house movement in the 2000s, Bushwacka’s path through music is as iconic as it is evolving. We talk about his London legacy and his residencies at The End nightclub, what it was like shaping a sound that defined a generation, and his transition into a powerful solo career that’s still pushing boundaries today.Mathew is about to release another new album very soon and has just started a monthly Ibiza residency at Pikes, where you can see him in action all summer.

We head to London to meet Kidnap and talk about the release of his second album, Something Lost, Something Gained. The record chronicles his shift from playing endless shows and constantly touring and releasing music to becoming a dad for the first time and explore feeling all the feels of loss relating to his close knit group of friends. Over the past decade, the UK-based artist made a name for himself with his rich, evocative soundscapes, winning over a global fanbase and he is still playing some smaller shows in London and next month in India, but things have calmed down considerably. Matt says last year was mostly him making music at home alone and in his studio, despite collborations on the new record with Leo Stannard again and this year he wishes to work with more outside influences once again. Lost Without You and Feels Like Home both feature female vocalist Gabrielle Aplin and are stand out singles which have been leading up to last years release.

In our last Episode recorded at ADE we hear from NYC born and raised techno Queen Louisa Pilot about her struggles in the music industry and how she is now working with those suffering with mental health issues and to help create a safer dance floor and world where these conversations can be had.

Archie Hamilton joins us at the Amsterdam Dance Event to talk us through his remarkable rise through the ranks of the house and techno world and gives us his take on how Ibiza Summer 2024 went down at Paradise, where he played five gigs, headlining the final affair. Archie used lockdown to create a lot of music and talks to us about those moments he felt his career could have taken a nose dive but luckily he soon re-boarded his International touring train and the trajectory of his has been high rolling ver since. He was an early originator of a new European sound, with his unique take on minimal house and techno: his signature sound of rugged basslines and ethereal atmospherics has established itself firmly on dance floors around the world.
  2022 marked the launch of Archie's MicroHertz label, a venture that curates and releases music from a diverse array of artists within the scene. The label has quickly made its mark as a go-to for cutting-edge music, consistently appearing in the charts across the platforms and regularly included in the DJ sets of the best in the industry.

After nearly a decade producing mostly mainstream artists in LA, Osunlade headed East, took a two-year spiritual sabbatical and launched Yoruba Records. Early on, he established two rules: 1) only sign artists willing to be mentored, and 2) only release works you believe in. In today´s podcast with Jo Youle, he explains how these artists have become his family and he only starts to release records after roughly four years and he really gets to know people. He created five albums in the pandemic and is in the process of putting this music out after a hugely prolific spell whilst the world slowed down. Taking time out to become ordained as a Yorubian Priest also had a huge impact on his sound. He moved to NYC, went to a lot of house parties in the late 90´s and crafted a more folklore focussed style of electronic music we hear in his sets today.

Henrik Schwarz, an internationally renowned music producer and composer known for his eclectic musical approach to composition and sound design, joins us in Ibiza for Episode 11 at Sunset overlooking Dalt Vila. As a producer and performer, he has successfully maintained a balance between electronic music, classical and jazz, and between energetic, highly charged dance sets at huge Techno events and concert performances in seated auditoriums. He explains his love for techno to podcast host Jo Youle in todsays episode and says that when he first heard it in his local club, he found it "horrible," until Jeff Mills turned up one day, took charge and literally "opened the door" for him, so that he could finally wrap his head around it. He says for him techno "is the most open music he can think of," and he hasn´t looked back. Amongst those whose work he’s tailored for the global dance floor are Michael Jackson, James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Boy George, Coldplay and Mary J. Blige. Since 2002, Schwarz has been releasing his own music, and has accrued over 250 music releases.

One half of Groove Armada, Andy Cato, joins us as we celebrate 25 years of House music record label, Defected. The electronic duo, made up of Tom Findlay and Andy, put out their latest EP, Freejamm on DFTD, a sub label of Defected back in May and in this episode Andy shares how they created the tracks and plan to release more new music very soon with them. Tom recently made a trip to New York where he hit A1 records and Andy says they needed excess baggage to return from the trip with the amount of samples they plan to go through to start putting out some new projects, including one featuring Candi Staton. Groove Armada play Defected´s next Tuesday party at Ushuaia on 10 September.

New York-based DJ and Grammy nominated record producer Danny Tenaglia joined music journalist Jo Youle for an explosive start to Series 02 in front of a live audience on the rooftop of W Hotel Ibiza. They first met at DC10 more then twenty years ago and Danny spent an hour revealing some of his finest stories, from starting to DJ at the tender age of 15 after his brothers snuck him into a club to see the scene that would become his life for the next 5 decades. His success came not behind a major label release, or a world tour, or a hit remix. It happened when enough people had the private Tenaglia experience for themselves. He has held residencies at Twilo, Vinyl, The Tunnel and so many other of NYC´s finest establishments, but it was not until he returned from Miami playing at Cheers, that he began to produce his own music. In 1998 Danny released his LP titled Tourism which featured his track “Elements,” which he talks us through the making of in todays conversation, as well as how he "borrowed" a few bits off Moby to craft the song. With his own warped voice providing the narration, “Elements” walked the listener through the different components of a dance track in real time, going from kick to drum loop to snare hit, letting each layer over the other until the track exploded with dark, drum-heavy energy. “Music is the answer” came next featuring Celeda which he explains started over a phone call with the vocalist and after a short get together, Be Yourself was also created during the few spare hours at the end of the session. Music is the Answer is now 25 years old, about the same mental age as Danny´s huge heart and never ending passion for his music, which he still making today, with his the latest release landing on Nervous Records soon.

Bailey has been entrenched in drum & bass and jungle since the earliest chapters of the movement.From his role on pirate station Energy FM to his residency with Metalheadz during its most era-defining Blue Note moments and his 10 year tenure at BBC Radio 1Xtra and RINSE FM, he is one of the pioneers of the scene and has been right in the heart of it for more than four decades. In this special chat recorded at the International Music Summit, he talks us through how his resolute, inspired and dedicated journey have made him one of the most consistent selectors and supporters of the genre in every possible direction.

Róisín Murphy has been performing live for almost 30 years and her music has always stood out in terms of the eclecticism from record to record. As she has morphed from one half of being Moloko, to striking as a solo artist, her sound has changed dramatically, especially with her latest and sixth studio album, Hit parade, that came out last year. A brand new remix package of some of those tracks has also just dropped, which forms part of the exploration of this conversation. From working with Moodyman and his unique vision for his version of What Not To Do, to artists she already has relationships with like Ruf Dug, Roisin says "no amount of begging will get you a good remix," and that it is down to an artists vision for the track. She gave all those who worked on her Remixes free reign to choose which, if any, songs they wished to work on and the results are a series of tracks that will fire up any dance floor. Join us for our FREE launch party in Ibiza this weekend as our second guest of the series, NYC House legend Danny Tenaglis will be joining us for a LIVE interview and then play at W Ibiza. Sign up for the Guest list Here

Today we are joined by Matt Black, one half of Coldcut, who are renowned as pioneers of pop sampling in the 1980s. The duo are also considered the first stars of UK electronic dance music due to their innovative style, which features chopped up samples of hip-hop, soul, funk, spoken word and various other types formats as well as video and multimedia.... The British born electronic duo also started Ninja Tune an English independent record label based in London. We caught up with Matt at the IMS in Ibiza after he featured on a panel discussing the labels success stories.

Our very first Episode of Beat Wala is Live featuring New York Artist, DJ and producer OVEOUS, who tells us how the death of his brother inspired him to create the uplifting music and words he shares today.His younger brother Carlos Paul, who used to go by the name of Ziiinc Blue suffered from depression and tragically ended his time with us on October 6 2002.OVEOUS says he was an incredible lyricist and he wished to take him to the Nuyorican Poets Cafe and felt he could be discovered. When he went to clear his apartment he found a book of rhymes and he says his brothers spirit came in and guided him to use his own voice and find his way to performing for the first time - which landed him a standing  ovation.The rest as they say is history, but today OVEOUS uses his poetry and lyrics in live performance to enhance his musicianship and creativity at festivals and live shows.For the full story head to Spotify on the the link in our @Beatwalamusic instagram Biog to watch the video & hear the episode.

In this special Beat Wala conversation recorded at International Music Summit in Dubai, I sit down with London born DJ/producer, songwriter and Femme fest founder, Megatronic. She has been immersed within the music scene for over 20 years, fortifying her unmatched talent and know-how around the industry. From her roots in techno and electro to her long-running work as a broadcaster and scene connector, Megatronic shares honest reflections on longevity, integrity, and what it really means to build a career in electronic music over time. We talk about the evolution of club culture, the responsibility of selectors, and why staying curious — musically and personally — matters more than ever.

In this special live edition of Beat Wala recorded at the CultTech Summit in Vienna, host Jo Youle sits down with French electronic artist and producer , DeLaurentis, also known as "The Woman Machine" — to explore how artificial intelligence and human emotion can co-exist in the creative process.  DeLaurentis shares her journey from classical piano to crafting her own unique “musicalism” — a synesthetic world where colour, texture, and sound merge into cinematic, electronic storytelling. 💬 Topics in this episode:  - The birth of “Musicalism” — composing through colour and emotion  - How AI becomes a creative partner, not a threat   - Recording in Spatial Audio - Voice Manipulation - Finding authenticity in digital artistry  - The role of storytelling in sound and visual identity  - What the future looks like for hybrid musicians  💻 More episodes on our ⁠YouTube ⁠🔗 Follow Beat Wala: @beatwalamusic 🔗 Follow DeLaurentis: ⁠@delaurentismusic⁠

Episode 24 is a very special edition of Beat Wala recorded in front of a LIVE audience on the rooftop of The Standard Ibiza overlooking Dalt vila for our first collaboration with Beat Hotel. It was a pleasure to explore the intersection of sound, identity, and creativity in this very special release and mixtape from Nightmares on Wax, Echo45 Sound System. The Tape comes as the latest release from the very much loved island resident George Evelyn whose legacy spans three decades, almost two of which have been spent here in Ibiza. Host and music journalist, Jo youle, was joined also by his art director and collaborator on the tape, British Menswear Designer, Nicholas Daley - renowned for exploring the interplay of fashion, music and culture.

In this episode of Beat Wala, we speak with leading neuroscientist Dr. Julia Basso as part of AlphaTheta’s documentary: We Become One.Julia shares her research into how the brain processes music, how rhythm and sound influence emotion, and what happens neurologically when people experience music together and dance. We explore how music affects memory, mental health, and why shared musical moments feel so powerful—both individually and collectively.This conversation brings a scientific lens to the emotional experience of music and opens up new ways of understanding connection through sound.