Shows / RA Exchange
RA Exchange
The weekly RA Exchange is a series of conversations with artists, labels and promoters shaping the electronic music landscape.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
RA ExchangeEX.695 Eastern Margins
Get familiar with Southeast Asia's myriad forms of maximalist dance music.Around Asia-Pacific, more producers and DJs are experimenting with popular music…
RA ExchangeEX.694 Crystallmess
"I didn't see myself in French electronic music." The Parisian artist talks about representation, Southern rap and Notting Hill Carnival's enduring influence…
RA ExchangeEX.693 SALOME
"When I first heard electro, I had an epiphany." The Georgian artist and Herrensauna resident talks about the genre she loves most, preparing for sets and…
RA ExchangeEX.692 US Artist Visas
This panel live from Wire Festival examines the insidious costs and possible solutions for a problem that continues to mire touring DJs.Artists applying for a…
RA ExchangeEX.691 C.FRIM
"When I got started, there wasn't much diversity at all." The young DJ discusses Australia's QTBIPOC community, debuting at Dekmantel and more live from Pitch…
RA ExchangeEX.690 Moritz Von Oswald
"Always notice whatever is happening in the background." The acclaimed producer and composer discusses the art of meaningful listening and his latest LP…
RA ExchangeEX.689 DVS1
"All I want to do is express what I love." The beloved Berghain resident talks about learning from failure, putting in the time and how good sound systems have…
RA ExchangeEX.688 Juliana Huxtable
"There's a joy I'm trying to depict in my artwork." The American DJ and producer discusses her latest painting exhibition, the power of poetry and exploring…
RA ExchangeEX.687 Seth Troxler
"DJs don't hit their stride until their 40s." The DJ and creative multihyphenate discusses maturing as an artist, having a family and navigating the worlds of…
RA ExchangeEX.686 SHERELLE
At Kraków's Unsound festival, the London-based ambassador of footwork and jungle opens up about recent musings about legacy and the art of letting go. Since…
RA ExchangeEX.685 Honey Dijon
"I don't complain, I create." The house DJ talks about her new multi-platform project, Honeyverse, and using music as a way to celebrate the Black queer…
RA ExchangeEX.684 ADHD and Dance Music
Dr Michelle and Mahnoor—a psychologist and a DJ, respectively—discuss ADHD and how neurodivergent individuals can find safety on the dance floor.In an age of…
RA ExchangeEX.683 Ash Scholem
"Dancing is never just dancing." The Tbilisi-based DJ talks about nightlife politics, the Left Bank collective and Eastern European club culture live from…
RA ExchangeEX.682 Eris Drew
"I always want to challenge myself as a musician." The DJ, producer and T4T LUV NRG cofounder talks about her new live set and overcoming hearing loss live…
RA ExchangeEX.681 Future Proof with Alex Ives
"You're the master of your own vision." In this collaboration with Rhythm Section, Ninja Tune's head of physical retail gives a masterclass on the inner…
RA ExchangeEX.680 Disclosure
"We've never known what we're doing." Brothers Guy and Howard Lawrence talk about fame, inadvertently ending up on the pop charts and their new album…
RA ExchangeEX.679 McKenzie Wark
"There are books about techno and rave, but let's fill in the blanks." The scholar and activist talks about her book Raving, bringing club culture into…
RA ExchangeEX.678 Nastia
"I'm curious about everything—this is my power." The Ukrainian DJ and label boss sits down to discuss her approach to curating, self-development, parenthood…
RA ExchangeEX.677 Flowdan
"Vocals go hand in hand with the grime I know." Ahead of his appearance at London's Waterworks Festival, the UK artist discusses the significance of MCs…
RA ExchangeEX.676 James Blake
"I've been lucky to work with some of my favourite artists of all time." The Grammy Award-winning producer discusses working with Jay-Z, throwing dubstep…
RA ExchangeEX.675 Donato Dozzy
"These records changed my emotional perspective on music." Recorded live at Dekmantel, the Italian techno artist dissects the records that shaped his approach…
RA ExchangeEX.674 Schacke
"I've always been fascinated with extreme art." The Fast Forward member discusses the Copenhagen techno sound, eroticism and his proclivity for noise and black…
RA ExchangeEX.673 Future Proof with Moxie
"Just be obsessed with music. Love it." The beloved London artist gives a masterclass on how to make it as a DJ and build a sustainable career.Alice…
RA ExchangeRA EX.672 Dorian Electra
"Fandom is the new religion of our capitalist society." The genderqueer pop star discusses economic philosophy, queer aesthetics and the internet ahead of…
RA ExchangeEX.671 Craig Richards
"Devotion is the main aim—to try to encourage commitment in people." The fabric resident and Houghton festival founder discusses his love of the crowd, DJing…
RA ExchangeEX.670 CDR with Rob Gordon
"I approached and signed all of the first Warp acts." The Sheffield record producer and label cofounder discusses starting the UK label and the early days of…
RA ExchangeEX.669 Future Proof with Jordan Rakei
"It's through collaboration that I've grown most with my sound." In this collaboration with Rhythm Section, the multi-instrumentalist talks about how he found…
RA ExchangeEX.668 madison moore
"DJing and lecturing aren't different practices for me. I just fuse them together." The scholar and performer reflects on bringing critical ideas to club…
RA ExchangeEX.667 Cherie Hu
"What is our shared purpose and motivation for being here?" Our guest editor for June discusses community-building, innovation in music technology and more in…
RA ExchangeEX.666 Jayda G
"Singing is super vulnerable, but it's such a big release." The DJ and producer opens up about her new album and how she brings deeply personal issues to…
RA ExchangeEX.665 Héctor Oaks
"Punk is more an attitude than a style of music. And I think that techno is way more punk than punk." The Spanish DJ discusses the ethos of the underground…
RA ExchangeEX.664 Black Minds Matter UK: Charisse C and Conducta
"If you feel like you're not progressing, the likelihood is that everyone else you're looking at is going through exactly the same thing." Conducta and…
RA ExchangeEX.663 Emma Warren
"The dance floor is a portal and a transmission tool in addition to being a technology of togetherness." The British author’s new book, Dance Your Way Home…
RA ExchangeEX.662 Shanti Celeste
This episode of the RA Exchange originally ran in 2022.Shanti Celeste is one of those artists whose personality matches her DJ style. Her fun-loving nature and…
RA ExchangeEX.661 New York Nightlife In The '90s
"We were doing parties in Staten Island that were completely packed; Manhattan didn't want anything to do with us." Three New York visionaries discuss the…
RA ExchangeEX.660 - Herrensauna
"You realise you're not just playing music. You give people the power to empower themselves." Cofounders CEM and MCMLXXXV discuss the revered party series and…
RA ExchangeEX.659 Critics’ Roundtable [May 2023]
"You can trace techno's origins to the seminal 1988 album Techno! The New Dance Sound of Detroit, which featured many producers that are now regarded as techno…
RA ExchangeEX.658 Source Material: 15 Years of PAN
"It feels like every artist is presenting their work in the same way that a gallery or an art institution would." Seven artists share their thoughts on the…
RA ExchangeEX.657 Tzusing
"This is me dealing with how to be a progressive man in this era." The Sea Cucumber boss discusses his new album on PAN in this live Exchange from…
RA ExchangeEX.656 Tama Sumo & Lakuti
"Going back-to-back makes sense. We live together, we really love the same music." The Berlin-based duo discuss their partnership behind the decks—and in…
RA ExchangeEX.655 Surgeon Talks Live Performance and Improvisation
"Live improvised hardware connects so directly to the fundamental rawness of electronic music." UK techno lynchpin Surgeon reflects on his connection to…
RA ExchangeEX.654 Critics' Roundtable [March 2023]
"Dance music artists are creating in an environment where they can be more outspoken about their queerness, which means that their work becomes extensions of…
RA ExchangeEX.653 Tony Andrews on Sound and Spirituality
“I actually believe that humans are made for more than what we're currently doing. We just need to switch on parts of our brains that we're not." Funktion-One…
RA ExchangeEX.652 dweller festival with OK Williams
Since the pandemic and the murder of George Floyd, there have been renewed efforts to shine a light on dance music's roots in Black communities. Still, there's…
RA ExchangeEX.651 Source Material: Music and Iran's Fight for Women's Rights
"I don't know what I would do if my life was on the line." In a new audio documentary, female Iranian musicians reflect on the implications of speaking out…
RA ExchangeEX.650 Critics' Roundtable [February 2023]
In 2023, we're refreshing our Critics' Roundtable format, inviting RA's in-house staff writers and industry specialists to reflect on the releases that…
RA ExchangeEX.649 Irvine Welsh: 30 Years on From Trainspotting
In this week's episode of the RA Exchange, we host an exclusive talk with Scottish novelist and playwright Irvine Welsh, who's best known for his 1993 book…
RA ExchangeEX.648 Source Material: The Power of Radio in Times of Crisis
In honour of World Radio Day—which landed on February 13th—this week’s RA Exchange celebrates the power of radio in a documentary-style deep dive. UNESCO…
RA ExchangeEX.647 I. JORDAN
London-based musician I. JORDAN—a disciple of fast-paced, high-energy dance music—has undergone a creative renaissance since 2021. Last February, they were…
RA ExchangeEX.646 DJ Perception and Timehri Records
DJ Perception is lauded as one of the leading voices in the contemporary UK garage landscape. His sets are widely known for being jam-packed with exclusive…
RA ExchangeEX.645 25 Years of Rush Hour
Amsterdam-based DJ Antal Heitlager needs little introduction. As a co-founder of Rush Hour—a globally respected label and distributor of rare and collectable…
RA ExchangeEX.644 Source Material: Scottish Music's Mythic Imaginary
In a scene dominated by thundering techno and its industrial iterations, Scotland’s experimental electronic landscape often goes unnoticed. This niche…
RA ExchangeEX.643 Peggy Gou
Peggy Gou is one of electronic music's biggest celebrities. Her catchy productions, high-intensity DJ sets and personal style have propelled her to the upper…
RA ExchangeEX.642 Critics' Roundtable [January 2023]
There's a lot to be excited about this year. For the first Critics' Roundtable of 2023, RA staffers sat down to discuss the events, DJs, producers and…
RA ExchangeEX.641 Source Material: Plants and Electronic Music
Since at least the 1970s, artists have composed music for plants. From Mort Garson’s Plantasia to dublab's Plant Music compilation, albums recorded with nature…
RA ExchangeEX.640 Slimzee
Slimzee is a legend in every sense of the word. He launched Rinse FM alongside Geeneus and Uncle Dugs in 1994, running the station for three years out of his…
RA ExchangeEX.639 Critics' Roundtable [December 2022]
Dance music deepened its presence in pop culture this year, expanding into TikTok's nichest corners as well as Billboard Hot 100 charts. For the December…
RA ExchangeEX.638 Byrell The Great
Byrell The Great is a name synonymous with New York's ballroom scene. The Harlem native is known for his story-telling prowess and cheeky edits that span…
RA ExchangeEX.637 Source Material: Sustainable Promotion
Faced with shrinking margins and higher rents, event organisers are finding new ways to keep the party going.As the cost of living crisis continues to eat into…
RA ExchangeEX.636 Mala
"I hate being recorded," Mala says nine minutes into this interview. "I don't like my sets being recorded, I don't like being video recorded." The Deep Medi…