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Dispatches from 4 a.m. — underground techno and the wider electronic music scene.
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Contributor

Jazmine Gonzales

Los Angeles stories
Disclosures and conflicts of interest are noted on a per-article basis. See the Editorial Policy for the full standard.
Dolly Parton Understood PLUR Better Than Most Ravers Ever Will
Culture

Dolly Parton Understood PLUR Better Than Most Ravers Ever Will

Dolly Parton died at 80, and the dance world is mourning harder than you'd expect. Her Galantis collab and blessed 'Jolene' remix are only half of it — her real legacy is how she treated people.

Jazmine Gonzales · Sep 13, 2026
Avicii's Final Set Just Surfaced in Full, 10 Years On. Play It Loud.
Artist News

Avicii's Final Set Just Surfaced in Full, 10 Years On. Play It Loud.

A decade after his last show at Ushuaïa, Avicii's complete final set is out for the first time, with unseen GoPro footage. It lands right as dance music is commercially bigger than ever — a full-circle moment.

Jazmine Gonzales · Sep 13, 2026
Swedish House Mafia Got Rained Out, Then Gave Gothenburg a Free Show
Festivals

Swedish House Mafia Got Rained Out, Then Gave Gothenburg a Free Show

Severe weather killed SHM's massive Ullevi homecoming. Instead of sending everyone home, they played a free street-level set in Gothenburg — a masterclass in turning a cancellation into a moment.

Jazmine Gonzales · Sep 4, 2026
Tiësto on the Trance Purists: 'Very Hard to Please' — and He's Not Wrong
Artist News

Tiësto on the Trance Purists: 'Very Hard to Please' — and He's Not Wrong

Ahead of a rumored trance-leaning album, Tiësto owns the gap between his genre-defining past and the pop path he took. It's an honest read on a fanbase that never forgave the pivot.

Jazmine Gonzales · Sep 4, 2026
A $20 Billion Hollywood Composer Just Started an EDM Project. Take It Seriously.
New Music

A $20 Billion Hollywood Composer Just Started an EDM Project. Take It Seriously.

Brian Tyler scored Iron Man 3 and half of Fast & Furious. His new alias Are We Dreaming isn't a vanity crossover — he's writing, directing, and cutting a full audio-visual universe himself.

Jazmine Gonzales · Sep 3, 2026
GTA 6 Just Became the Most Powerful Tastemaker in Dance Music
Culture

GTA 6 Just Became the Most Powerful Tastemaker in Dance Music

Rockstar closed a trailer with a three-year-old house record and sent its streams up 1,070% overnight. That's not a nostalgia bump — it's a new distribution machine every label is about to chase.

Jazmine Gonzales · Sep 3, 2026
Artists Stopped Waiting for a Festival Slot. Now They're Building the Room.
Festivals

Artists Stopped Waiting for a Festival Slot. Now They're Building the Room.

Skrillex took two nights at Navy Pier with an open-to-close set. Knock2 and ISOxo pushed Niteharts to three days. Wax Motif booked Grand Park. Three announcements, one shift in who actually controls the calendar.

Jazmine Gonzales · Aug 7, 2026
The Two Biggest Sets of the Weekend Were About Somebody Who Wasn't There
Culture

The Two Biggest Sets of the Weekend Were About Somebody Who Wasn't There

Dimitri Vegas closed Tomorrowland's Mainstage without Like Mike. Chase & Status stopped mid-set at Let It Roll to say Lenzman's name. Two countries, two genres, same instinct — and it says something about where the scene is at right now.

Jazmine Gonzales · Aug 6, 2026
Spotify Deleted 75 Million Songs. That's Not a Cleanup — It's an Admission.
Opinion

Spotify Deleted 75 Million Songs. That's Not a Cleanup — It's an Admission.

Spotify says it's not banning AI music, just gutting the bot-farmed junk gaming its royalty pool. The bigger story: it took 75 million fake tracks before anyone acted.

Jazmine Gonzales · Aug 6, 2026
Festivals Don't Get Decided by Lineups Anymore. They Get Decided by Airspace.
Festivals

Festivals Don't Get Decided by Lineups Anymore. They Get Decided by Airspace.

Monegros broke its attendance record and Mayan Warrior conquered Chicago. Outline got erased mid-setup over a drone threat. Three festivals, one week, and the deciding factor in none of them was the music.

Jazmine Gonzales · Aug 5, 2026
Kavinsky Made One Record That Outran Dance Music Completely
Culture

Kavinsky Made One Record That Outran Dance Music Completely

Vincent Belorgey died at 50 in Paris this week. The tribute list — Guetta, The Weeknd, Justice, the President of France — is the clearest measure of how far 'Nightcall' got from the club it started in.

Jazmine Gonzales · Jul 30, 2026
Dance Music Is America's Fastest-Growing Genre — and 2016 Is Doing Half the Work
Opinion

Dance Music Is America's Fastest-Growing Genre — and 2016 Is Doing Half the Work

Luminate's midyear report puts dance/electronic ahead of every other genre in US growth. The overlooked detail: a big share of that growth is coming from records that are already ten years old.

Jazmine Gonzales · Jul 29, 2026