Danny Avila

From:Spain

DJ style: “Mainstage techno.”

Best known for:“Mainstage Techno.”

“My main goal is to make people feel a lot of energy,” Danny Avila said last year in our How I DJ video series. It’s a straightforward MO, but it’s one that the Madrid DJ and producer has executed seamlessly around the world in 2023. With tours across the US, China, South-East Asia and Europe, the Mainstage Techno brand founder has been busier than ever, and he’s still managed to find the time to record a regular radio show and make music of his own. He clearly has enough energy to share.

He kicked off the year with a technofied remix of Skrillex, Fred again.. & Flowdan’s hit, ‘Rumble’. His Soundcloud is kept generously topped up with edits like this, all available as free downloads. His official remix of John Summit’s ode to excess, ‘Chicago’, landed in February, followed by a VIP remake of his own 2019 anthem ‘Chase The Sun’, and a collab with Heerhorst, ‘The Procedure’. “I’m so happy with how things went in 2023,” he says. “But I’m really excited about what is coming next: big collaborations, big singles for MT music, new music from amazing artists on MT music, a new visual show, new production. Get ready for Mainstage Techno 2.0.”

Hero of 2023:“Michael

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Le Shuuk

From: Stuttgart, Germany

DJ style:“Hard dance / electro / hardstyle / techno / EDM.”

Best known for: “The tracks ‘Sandmann’, ‘Toast Hawaii’ and ‘Konje’, as well as being a resident and face of WORLD CLUB DOME Festival.”

A mainstay of the electronic scene for almost 20 years now, Stuttgart native Le Shuuk is no stranger to the rigours of touring. In the last 12 months, he decided to overhaul his lifestyle, committing to exercising regularly and abstaining from drinking during his shows. As a result, the DJ and producer, who is a favourite of the German festival circuit, says that he is having more fun on stage than ever. He credits these changes with allowing him to connect on a deeper level with his audiences, as well as redefine his career goals and look with renewed focus to the future.

The new healthy habits clearly agree with him. As well as recently performing at festivals and clubs across Europe, and holding his own Le Shuuk & Friends parties in his home city, he continues to build on the momentum of tracks like 2020’s peak-rave, German language tune ‘Sandmann’ and 2021’s hypnotic ‘Goodbye’ (featuring Xillions). This year he had another star turn with the explosive ‘Konje’, a collaboration with B-Stylezz that combined modern techno and EDM with the traditional elements of Bulgarian folk songs, with the track receiving big support from the likes of Armin van Buuren, Amelie Lens, and Joyhauser.