Issey’s vivacious spirit has earned her the intrigue of bass lovers and pop connoisseurs alike. 2024 was packed with live dates spanning a debut tour of New Zealand and Australia, performing in front of 15,000 partygoers at Shy FX and Wilkinson’s takeover at Drumsheds, and a main stage appearance at the mammoth MADE Festival 10th anniversary.

Festival season isn’t over yet for the young talent with the ever-changing hair colour. Issey Cross now prepares to head to the French Alps for Rise Festival’s 10th birthday bash where thousands of ravers are in for treat of global DJ talent – Sammy Virji, Chase & Status and Hedex to name a few – and a week of snow, music and adventure.

Ahead of the event, we caught up with Issey to ask what tracks have soundtracked her year and what would make the ultimate apres-ski playlist. Find out her choices below.

K Motionz & Songer – Beamin’

This song is so fun to listen to and just gets me hyped up to go outtttt! 

KETTAMA – Pretty Green Eyes (Sunset Ibiza Mix)

This song reminds me of good times in the summer with friends hanging round the pool in Ibiza.

Fred again.. x The Japanese House x Scott Hardkiss – backseat

This makes me feel sad and happy at the same time. I love songs that give you that feeling. Also, I love The Japanese House! I remember listening to this on the way back from a show this summer and looking out the window reflecting on how much has happened this year.

BL3SS x CamrinWatsin- Kisses (feat. Bbyclose)

I find this song sooo fun to listen to and it’s so catchy! Banger.

Monrroe & Emily Makis – Never Too Old (Friction Remix)

This one really takes me away in my mind and feels so euphoric to listen to. Every time I hear it, it makes me wanna scream the words! 

Nia Archives – Cards On The Table

I bloody love Nia. Such a big inspiration to me as a woman and I absolutely how artistic this song feels to me.

Sammy Virgi – If U Need It 

I heard this song played everywhere this summer at festivals and it still pops off now. Love Sammy.

Joy Orbison – flight fm 

Something about this song is so satisfying. I was quite late to hearing it, but I remember being on the way to a festival driving past Stonehenge and saying to the driver, turn this upppp! 

Charli xcx – Sympathy is a knife

For some reason this song feels so nostalgic to me and gets me in my feels.

Issey Cross – Sleepwalking (feat. Songer)

I love this song as I wrote it about a hard time in my life so it’s one of my more emotional songs that I love performing live. It’s also been so fun performing it along with Songer this summer at festivals.

Catch Issey Cross at Rise Festival, 7-14 December at Les 2 Alpes, France. For more info, visit www.rise-festival.com

The post Issey Cross Apres-Ski Playlist: Rise Festival Special appeared first on Data Transmission.

Arielle kicks off the festival with the Welcome Party on Saturday, 7th December, at the Muzelle Stage, a unique snowy dancefloor at the foot of the slopes.

Under her Free Your Mind label, which also took over the Wild Corner at Hï Ibiza this summer, Arielle will be joined by label associates BETH, Biianco, Jenn Getz, and Alfie.

Expect a soundtrack filled with uplifting, feel-good house music, ensuring an unforgettable start to the week.

On Monday, 9th December, Arielle returns with Freeze Your Mind at the High Altitude Arena (Pano Bar), 3,000 metres up the mountain, offering breathtaking views of the French Alps.

This special event will see Arielle joined by UK garage star Oppidan as they take the crowd on a musical journey through current and classic dance tracks, creating a one-of-a-kind après-ski party atmosphere.

Arielle Free, known for her infectious energy and renowned productions like the disco-house hit ‘Blow My Mind’ and her remix of Calvin Harris & Ellie Goulding’s ‘Free,’ is the perfect fit for Rise Festival.

“I’m beyond excited to bring Free Your Mind to Rise this year! Get ready for an epic lineup and vibes that will have you dancing all week long,” she shared.

Beyond Arielle’s events, Rise Festival promises a star-studded lineup with Chase & Status [DJ Set], Gorgon City, Sub Focus, and more across three outdoor stages, five indoor venues, and a transformed warehouse. Add skiing, snowboarding, and après-ski fun; you’ve got the ultimate winter adventure.

With only 1% of tickets remaining, visit www.rise-festival.com for more details.

The post Arielle Free curates Back-to-Back Takeovers for Rise Festival’s 10th Edition appeared first on Data Transmission.

Granted, the presence of lyricists within Drum & Bass is by no means a novelty. Traditionally, the culture has always relied on the skills of MCs, especially in live environments, but what we’ve seen in recent years is different. With grime artists joining the scene for the first time, the majority are releasing fully produced songs, with written lyrics throughout. By contrast, MCs have typically improvised live in the rave, giving a different feel to their collaborations with producers.

The single best, and most exciting example of this is Chase & Status’ newest release ‘Backbone’, with Stormzy, arguably the UK’s most famous rapper. Having been teased and rumoured for months, the single was eventually released in early August 2024, and performed, by the rapper himself, in front of 45,000 ravers for the producers’ biggest ever headline show, at the Milton Keynes Bowl the following weekend. The song serves as a showpiece, the pinnacle of the fortunate, developing marriage between Drum & Bass and Grime. Because Stormzy is not the first Grime artist to dabble in Drum & Bass.

The relationship between the two has developed in the space of the last few years, driven by pioneers like P Money, who is now one of the most established rappers in the Drum & Bass world. Gaining notoriety in the early 2010s as a grime MC, P Money first jumped on a Drum & Bass tune in 2019, collaborating with Kanine on ‘Point ‘Em Up’. He went on to team up with British producer Whiney, with whom he has now released a whole host of songs, including October 2023’s collaborative album ‘Streets, Love & Other Stuff’. Consisting of 14 songs, the album represents the coming together of the two influences beautifully – the lead track ‘175 x 140’ is indicative of this clash of cultures, beginning in the tempo typical of Grime and building seamlessly into the faster tempo of Drum & Bass. Throughout the song P brags of his multi-genre ability, and the success of the new sound developing out of the two influences. “175 or 140 I’m a Grime MC on DnB”, he raps. “They ain’t got this sound boy, this is one of a kind. They ain’t ready for this, this is D&B and Grime”, he repeats throughout. The pair have taken their album around the world, touring with Hospitality in Europe, North America, Asia and Australasia. 

And P Money seems to have paved the way for other grime artists to follow. Within the same album, high-speed rapper Ocean Wisdom features on ‘Junkyard’, while P appeared on stage with JME, Dizzee Rascal and D Double E during Turno’s Drumsheds set back in November 2023. Clips circulated from the set showing grime legend JME spitting lyrics from one of his biggest songs That’s Not Me (2014).

Within the scene as a whole, there are already a healthy number of well-established lyricists, including some who deviate from the traditional role of an MC. Rappers like Duskee, Bru-C and Degs have strong foundations in the Drum & Bass world, and new artists like Songer (with his recent collaborations with K Motionz, Issey Cross and Bru-C) are joining the fold. But the introduction of those coming from the world of grime is contributing to the development of something special. An aggressive yet skilful twist on the up-tempo beats of Drum & Bass is being produced by adding the Grime flavour to the Drum & Bass recipe: the hard-hitting lyrics of grime laid over the heavy-hitting sounds of DnB is evidently a match made in heaven. It remains to be seen how far this crossover will be taken. While it’s unlikely that a world-famous rapper like Stormzy will double down on his successful DnB debut any time soon, there is certainly the opportunity for this developing sub-genre to grow. P Money will certainly continue to carry the torch as Grime’s ambassador to Drum & Bass, and it’s not out of the question that more artists of his ilk might be tempted to join the movement. Whatever happens, the future of Drum & Bass is exciting and inevitably diverse.

The post The State of the Scene: A Match Made in Heaven – Drum & Bass Meets Grime appeared first on Data Transmission.

Now bringing all acts together for one almighty birthday party from midday to 11pm on Saturday 3rd August in The Digbeth Triangle in the heart of Birmingham, MADE’s 10th delivers a mouthwatering lineup for all fans of drum & bass, bass, UK rap, garage, house, disco and more.

Midlands party people can explore the huge, multi-venue inner city, 10-stage site to enjoy headline sets from Bru-C, Dizzee Rascal, and Bou, and an array of talent including Ewan McVicar, K Motionz, Holy Goof B2B TS7, Jaguar Skills, Skepsis, A Little Sound, Window Kid, 24hr Garage Girls, 4AM Kru, Serum, La La, General Levy, Issey Cross, DJ Q and many more.

Check out last year’s official MADE Festival aftermovie below:

Independent promoters, Weird Science, run club events for over 150,000 people annually and MADE Festival began as their passion project in the creative hub of Digbeth. The intention was to provide a platform for local artists and an opportunity for local businesses. MADE expanded and outgrew Digbeth’s multitude of evolving spaces, moving across the city in 2018 to the greenfield site of Perry Park, where 20,000 festival fans helped put MADE firmly on the national map. After enforced moves to Sandwell Valley, then Wolverhampton Racecourse, MADE Festival made a triumphant return to its spiritual home of The Digbeth Triangle in 2023 and laid the foundations to celebrate 10 years this summer.

Saturday 3rd August sees the perpetually rising star and multi-platinum-selling MC and rapper, Bru-C take over the MADE Stage. With a slew of underground cuts and crossover bangers including his UK top 15 smash ‘No Excuses’ and Nathan Dawe collab ‘Oh Baby’, Bru-C drew huge crowds at his last MADE appearance in 2022 and earned his invite back to headline the 10th edition. 

BRIT, MOBO and Mercury Prize-winning MC and rapper, Dizzee Rascal is another MADE fave, tearing it up on his last appearance in 2018 for the 5th edition of the festival. Dizzee led the way for generations of UK rap scoring 5 UK Top 10 albums, 5 UK no.1 singles including ‘Dance Wiv Me’, ‘Holiday’ and possibly the biggest festival tune of all time ‘Bonkers’. He remains as relevant as ever with new album ‘Don’t Take It Personal’ crashing into the charts this year.

Trailblazing star of drum & bass, Bou, steps up to MADE main stage and undoubtedly deserves his slot. With one of the biggest tracks of the year ‘Baddadan’ with Chase & Status to his name, a major label deal, and a slew of massive DJ sets under his belt, Bou can confidently stake a claim as D&B’s next-gen superstar. His big USA / Canada tour will warm him up, just in time to get MADE crowds bouncing.      

The MADE Stage also sees quality garage vibes from 24hr Garage Girls, infectious bars from Bru-C collaborator Window Kid, UK jungle from 4AM Kru, sweet vocals from breakout ‘Bittersweet Goodbye’ star Issey Cross, and more.

The house heads are fully catered for on the Raw Stage with in-demand talent, Ewan McVicar dropping a funked-up headline set, while La La is sure to up the tempo and show why she’s recently delivered mixes for Feel My Bicep, Boiler Room, and Radio 1. Look out for some other big artist announcements coming soon for this stage.

Weird Science presents a stage full of drum & bass stars, hosted by Inja, SP:MC, IC3, Carasel, and Comma Dee. Birmingham’s fast rising star K-Motionz headlines as one of the genre’s most exciting artists, in high demand across the globe. His productions including ‘Only You’, ‘High Note’ and last year’s banger ‘Vino Bandit’ have seen his stock rise even higher. Serum is ⅓ of Kings Of The Rollers and knows how to get a crowd jumping. He’ll be dropping his summer anthem ‘Spray Tan’ for the MADE massive. DJ and vocalist A Little Sound is carving her own lane in D&B and going from strength to strength. She lands at MADE as part of a packed summer schedule. Drum & bass legends Dillinja and Randall step up for a special MADE 10th Anniversary B2B set, while rising star Kara shows she deserves her Drum & Bass Award for Best Female Producer.

The 02:31 Stage sees another very special B2B, this time between the mighty Holy Goof and TS7. Expect major sonic fireworks. Skepsis performs, continuing his rise after slamming into the UK charts with ‘Rave Out’ and ‘Green And Gold’. This stage is guaranteed to be jumping as DJ Q, Girls Next Door, and Burga Boy all line up for turntable duty.   

A real treat is the House Of Legends & Thirty Present Fish Tales Stage where some bonafide legends of the scene are ready to showcase their skills. Bringing the positive vibes from TikTok, Fish56Octagon plays alongside hard dance pioneer Fergie for a world exclusive back to back set. Very special guest Jaguar Skills brings his ‘tribute to The Prodigy’ set to MADE – this one should not be missed. When Utah Saints step up to the decks the crowds know that something good is going to happen. Plump DJs land at MADE with their unique brand of beats and breaks mixing old school with the new. 

There’s plenty more jungle and D&B as RCE Presents 10 Years Of Jungle Cakes. Headlining this stage is the one and only General Levy who never disappoints. Another highlight is the 10 year B2B special – Deekline B2B Ed Solo B2B Benny Page. This trio guarantees the highest quality tune selection. Special guest Bryan Gee will dig deep into his coveted record collection to drop a massive jungle set.

MADE Festival continues to heavily support local promoters and talent, providing opportunities for stage takeovers and connections to local clubbers. The 10th edition of MADE sees a range of styles and genres with something to get everyone dancing. The 2Tekky x Serious Selectas Stage brings a host of UKG, wobbling basslines, and breakbeat NRG. There’s a mix of house, tech, and minimal goodness at the CNTRL x ESVDRA x SHUBZ Stage, while the RE:CORD x Discotech Stage takes an underground trip into house. Duck DnB x Selecta bring some scorching drum & bass with a selection of up and coming local stars.

Digbeth Dining Club are on hand to ensure a quality selection of delicious food options from local traders, and expect some seriously talented graffiti artists from the region to be on hand to create art live throughout the day.

MADE Festival knows better than anyone how to make the most of The Digbeth Triangle’s unique mix of outdoor and indoor spaces. From midday through to 11pm, the whole area will be alive with music, arts and the sound of people having a good time. MADE Festival turns 10 and everything is ready for the celebration of a decade. 

The post Complete Lineup Unveiled for Spectacular 10th Edition of MADE Festival appeared first on Data Transmission.