RA Exchange

The Dutch phenomenon unpacks the myth of overnight success and the story behind his debut album, Lost, Found & Forgotten.

They say it takes ten years to become an overnight success, and in the case of this week's guest, that math almost checks out. Born in Leiden, Chris Stussy has been sharpening his tools for over a decade, and in the years since the pandemic, the world has caught onto his sleek, relentlessly groovy strain of house music.

It's been a stratospheric rise for Stussy, culminating in sold-out shows of iconic venues like London's Alexandra Palace, where tickets were gone in a matter of minutes. But if you look past the viral TikTok clips and the fandom that follows him from Ibiza to Coachella, you'll find a dedicated student of the craft—someone who spent his formative years absorbing the grit of the Utrecht underground as well as the foundations of Chicago and New York house.

RA editor Gabriel Szatan caught up with Stussy during a rare moment of reflection. His long-awaited debut album, Lost, Found & Forgotten, which officially lands April 3 on his own Up The Stuss imprint, and it stands as his most expansive and personal statement to date. The project is divided into three interconnected chapters: 'Lost' breathes new life into sketches he started earlier in his production career; 'Found' captures contemporary inspirations; and 'Forgotten' nods to the heads and diggers, focusing on deeper cuts that reward patient listening.

Stussy also traces the arc of his early releases to his current status as a torchbearer for a new generation of clubbers, and considers how club culture has changed along the way. Listen to the episode in full.
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Electroclash icon Tiga talks about the manosphere, the currency of cool and his first album in 10 years, HOTLIFE.

Canadian producer Tiga—born Tiga Sontag—has navigated the peaks and valleys of electronic music for over three decades. A key architect of the electroclash explosion in the early 2000s, Sontag reigned supreme over the indie sleaze era of the dance floor during the 2010s.

But eventually, that momentum stalled. Sontag, one of the scene's most charismatic figures, found himself contemplating retirement while battling a health crisis that threatened to derail his career entirely. In this rare interview, Sontag talks to RA editor Gabriel Szatan about those lost years.

Rather than retracing his anthemic hits ("You Gonna Want Me," "Sunglasses At Night"), the pair discuss why, after stepping back from the public eye for over a decade, Tiga is entering a new chapter he describes as "all answers, no questions." His upcoming LP, HOTLIFE, unpacks personal demons alongside his takes on everything from Elon Musk and the manosphere to the "pornographic" repetition of the music industry's relentless churn. It's out April 17th via Turbo Recordings and Secret City Records, and features contributions from Boys Noize, Maara and Priori and more. Listen to the episode in full.
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The London artist talks about self-doubt, overcoming creative blocks and her forthcoming album on Hyperdub.

Today's guest has spent the last decade proving that electronic music is an insufficient label for what she does. Since her landmark Hyperdub debut, For You and I, in 2019, Loraine James has moved through the world of IDM, glitch and ambient with a rare kind of emotional transparency. Whether producing club music under her own name or making ambient soundscapes under her experimental alias, Whatever The Weather, her work often feels like a diary—not just of her life, but of her creative evolution.

But as any artist will tell you, the path from one album to the next is rarely a straight line. Following the success and personal pride of 2023's Gentle Confrontation, James found herself at a crossroads. In this Exchange, she sits down with RA's multimedia editor, Bella Aquilina, to discuss the difficult second act of her career—a process marked by self-doubt, creative blocks and the surprising freedom found in the word "pop."

James talks about the "11-degree" sound; why the grey, undecided London weather shapes her sonic palette; how she navigated imposter syndrome after a popular record; her "failed" stint as a DJ; her love for Venue MOT and Corsica Studios; and why she's finally ready to leave the bedroom and return to the dance floor. Her forthcoming album on Hyperdub, Detached From The Rest of You, is out on May 8th. Listen to the episode in full.
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The vinyl purist discusses his late-career ascent, the discipline of the marathon set and the shifting class dynamics threatening the underground.

In an era where the word "techno" is often used as a broad marketing catch-all, Alessio Armeni, AKA Freddy K, stands as one of the sound's most uncompromising activists.
The Berlin-based DJ and Key Vinyl label head has spent over three decades operating in every corner of the industry. From his early days on Rome's Virus Radio in the '90s to his legendary 16-hour vinyl marathons at Berlin's now-defunct party Homopatik, he has seen the culture from the perspective of a record store clerk, a distributor, a label boss and now a global headliner.

But as his own star has risen, Armeni has become increasingly vocal about the cracks forming in the foundation of the scene he loves. In this RA Exchange, he discusses the renewed normalisation of all-male lineups, the rising upper-class barrier to entry in DJ culture and the complex economics of vinyl—a medium he champions as the industry's lifeblood, even as it becomes a luxury good.

Armeni also reflects on his own trajectory; at 40, believing his dream of being a successful DJ had passed, he moved to Berlin to dedicate himself to a life behind the scenes. A change in tide swept him into the global spotlight, and more than ten years later, he contemplates the power of perseverance. Listen to the episode in full.
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The contemporary face of garage talks about obsession, overnight success and his turn towards a more mature image and sound.

Over the last few years, Zac Bruce—better known as Interplanetary Criminal—has become the definitive face of a global garage resurgence. He seemingly appeared overnight with his 2022 chart-topping anthem, Baddest Of Them All, made with singer Eliza Rose. But his story extends far beyond this career-defining moment. His journey is one of deep-rooted obsession: from the quiet stillness of producing lo-fi and jungle in his bedroom in Leeds, to co-founding the ATW (All Thru the Night) imprint, a label that has become a lighthouse for a new generation of garage heads.

This last year was a whirlwind for Bruce. He headlined a show at Brixton Academy and played at major festival stages around the world. But as you’ll hear in this conversation with RA editor Gabe Szatan, Bruce isn’t interested in the shallow shine of accolades. He’s a selector in the truest sense—someone who spends as much time digging for obscure white labels as he does A&Ring the next wave of talent.

He and Szatan also touch on the epidemic of “edit culture;” the cost of maintaining artistic integrity; his transition from the "silliness" of his early viral moments to a more mature sound; and the community of peers that make his ATW universe feel less like a brand and more like a family. This one has been a long time coming. Listen to the episode in full.
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