Spring has sprung! The seasons are changing and so are a lot of festival dates for 2021! This month was packed with tons of live music announcements for the coming months ahead, so let’s get our vaccines, and keep our fingers crossed for the rest of the year!
However, it wasn’t all bad news in March. Amsterdam Dance Event announced in-person dates for October 2021 and Tomorrowland revealed its winter edition of the festival will return to France in 2022.
In award show news, Kaytranada swept the dance music categories at the 2021 Grammy Awards for the single “10%” ft. Kali Uchi and his soulful LP, BUBBA. Adding to the Grammy announcements was notable dance music talent Imanbek who received the Grammy for Best Remixed Recording for his rendition of Saint JHN’s “Roses.”
In terms of new music, March saw a number of notable releases coming our way from Spinnin Records, Big Beat Records, and Hexagon. Among the standout releases, March’s Track of The Month comes from none other than Don Diablo who released, “Problems” with JLV featuring John K on his notable Hexagon imprint.
Please see below for the complete list of the Best EDM Tracks of March 2021 based on support by some of the most esteemed artists and labels in the dance music industry.
The month of love has come to a close after the industry saw some heartbreaking announcements and uplifting news for live events in the year ahead.
Daft Punk shook the industry by storm by announcing their break-up after 28 years, and the cancellation of Ultra Music Festival for the second year in a row became another major blow to dance music fans around the world.
In the live entertainment sector, there is still an air of hope for 2021 as a number of festivals have announced they will be continuing as programmed while others moved their events to later in the year. Relentless Beats’ destination event WAVES and Electric Zoo Cancun chose to postpone their events to later in the year while Decibel Open Air and Elements Festival will continue as programmed. There were also exciting announcements of the debut of SerotonINN Sound Series and Insomniac’s Abduction 2021 to take place in the coming months.
Appropriate for February, there were a number of emotionally charged releases showcasing the sentimental side to artists amidst a number of catchy vocal tracks to add to the mix. Among them, were undeniable tracks that made their way from Spinnin’ Records, Ultra Music, Hexagon, and Armada Music.
February’s “Track Of The Month” goes to Oliver Heldens’s uplifting remix for Glass Animals’ “Heat Waves” which made its debut at the start of the month via Republic Records.
The following is the complete list of the Hottest EDM Tracks of February 2021 based on support by some of the most esteemed artists and labels in the dance music industry.
Rita Ora x Imanbek – Mood ft. Khea [Effective Records]
This concludes our monthly review highlighting the 30 hottest EDM tracks from February 2021. Be sure to check back at the end of each month for our monthly round-up of news featuring the best in dance music.
It is the start of a new year, which brings an air of hope and optimism to the world. The new coronavirus vaccine is in the midst of being distributed as many wait in anticipation for their turn to receive their dose.
Despite the current grim circumstances of the pandemic, there is still much hope in the live entertainment sector as festivals like Ubbit Dubbi, Exit Festival, Spring Awakening Cancun, and Governors Ball announced that they will continue as planned.
Virtually, there have been a number of options for fans to revel in all of the music at home with David Guetta announcing a United At Home charity livestream in Dubai in February and the premiere of the VR platform Hydeout which will continue with its performances throughout 2021.
January set a precedence for a magnanimous year ahead with a number of major releases by artists. Among those records were from recording labels Spinnin’ Records, Hexagon, Heldeep, Atlantic Records.
Please see below for the complete list of the Best EDM Tracks of January 2021 based on support by some of the most esteemed artists and labels in the dance music industry.
Merk & Kremont x Buzz Low – Do It [Spinnin’ Records]
That rounds out the best dance music tracks of January 2021. Be sure to check back at the end of each month for our monthly round-up of news featuring the best in dance music.
With hopes that 2021 will be the year that the world “goes back to normal,” the live entertainment sector has already begun rolling out its announcements. Shambhala 2021 announced its dates for next year’s edition, BPM Festival Costa Rica announced its 2021 lineup, and Relentless Beats announced a new destination event in Cancun. There were even announcements made for the 2022 festivals Summer Sound and Envision. Be sure to also keep an eye out for the upcoming virtual reality (VR) experiences from Sensorium Galaxy and HYDEOUT which are scheduled to debut in January 2021
We had the immense pleasure of sitting down with two revered acts this month. Plastik Funk discussed the launch of his recent Plastik Funk x WorkiT fashion collection, and Bear Grillz discussed the highly-anticipated review of his sophomore LP, Friends: The Album. To check-out the exclusive interviews, please click here.
Finally, the closure of the year would not be complete without stunning dance music releases. Some of the best dance music tracks of December 2020 include cuts from Spinnin’ Records, Hexagon, and Musical Freedom. December’s “Track Of The Month” comes from Vintage Culture with “It Is What It Is” featuring Elise LeGrow off Defected Records, which can be heard below.
December 2020 – Track Of The Month
Vintage Culture – It Is What It Is (feat. Elise LeGrow) [Defected Records]
Please see below for the complete list of the best dance music tracks from December 2020 performed by some of the most esteemed artists and labels in the dance music industry.
That rounds out the best dance music tracks of December 2020. Be sure to check back each month with more of the best dance music tracks from the industry.
Thanksgiving has come and gone and the holiday season is here. November saw a number of major music announcements. This included the reveal of the 2021 Grammy Award Nominations, DJ Mag’s Top 100 DJ poll results, and the death of iconic producer i_o who died at the age of 30.
In live entertainment, there were a number of hopeful announcements for 2021 as the debut of Breakaway Beach Cancun is expected to take place in June. The new year will also see the return of massive music festivals including EDC Orlando, Sunset Music Festival, and Dreamstate SoCal which were all announced in the month of November.
New Year’s Eve will provide dance music fans with a number of live stream options including Beatport & Absolut’s 20+ hour live stream with Carl Cox and Tomorrowland’s New Year’s Eve Celebration. For those who would like to venture to an in-person show to ring in the new year, deadmau5 will be hosting five Park N Rave events, which will kick-off on New Year’s Eve and continue into January 2021.
In music news, there have a number of notable releases from Hexagon, Spinnin’ Records, and Musical Freedom. November’s “Track Of The Month” comes from Hexagon’s Castion & Chester Young with the release “Breathing,” which can be heard below.
Please see below for the complete list of the best dance music tracks from November 2020 performed by some of the most esteemed artists and labels in the dance music industry.
Black Caviar – Do The Damn Thing (feat. Blackway) [Big Beat Records]
The leaves have all turned! Halloween is officially here, and events like Insomniac’s Boo! Park N Rave and Meadow Of Lost Souls were a massive success for socially distant events.
This month saw a number of major music industry announcements both in live entertainment and in artist news. This included the death of iconic dub-step DJ Cookie Monsta who died at the young age of 31.
The Recording Academy made an announcement that The Grammy Awards would be making a return to The Staples Centre in 2021 “rain” or “shine” with a “COVID-19 vaccine or not,” which will set a precedent for other live events next year.
In other awards show news, the 2020 MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA) announced its nominations, which is scheduled to take place virtually on Sunday, Nov. 8 with performances by Sam Smith, Maluma, YUNGBLD, and the recent reveal of David Guetta.
The National Independent Venue Association brought to light that it could be facing a mass collapse and a special live-stream event, SOSFEST was put in place to support local independent venues. Adding to the virtual events this month was the 25th anniversary of ADE, which garnered millions of viewers from around the world.
October’s “Track of the Month” came from esteemed DJ/producer Mak J who earned the title with his release “Green Light” via Armada Music, which can be heard below.
Please see below for the complete list of the best dance music tracks from October 2020 performed by some of the most esteemed artists and music labels in the industry.
COVID-19 continues to pose a threat throughout the world as the UK recently instated new curfew restrictions throughout its regions. The virus also has wreaked havoc upon live entertainment as it was reported this month that concert revenue was down 64% but is anticipated to bounce back by 2024.
With that being said, 2021 has some promising events in store for the industry including Electric Zoo Cancun, which recently announced its full lineup, EDC Portugal which will celebrate the 25th anniversary of Insomniac’s Electric Daisy Carnival, and ADE which also announced dates for 2021 and is expected to host its conference virtually next month.
September 2020 has seen some of the best dance music releases of the year. Just last week Tiesto hosted a virtual dance party at the historic venue, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, where he announced the release of his new single, “The Business” which has also become our stand-out track of the month. Please check out the new single below, which is out now via Atlantic Records.
Who can believe the summer is actually coming to a close? It has been one for the history books as live music has come to a halt, artists are scrambling to be heard anyway that they can.
Claude VonStroke announced the launch of Dirtybird Live TV and live-streaming has become the new norm. August saw live-streams from Burning Man 2020 where fans from across the globe could watch the man burn for free, Disclosure announced the release of their new album, ENERGY, and Florian Picasso honored his late great-grandfather Pablo Picasso.
Life Stream, a live streaming event from Exit festival announced its lineup, which is scheduled to take place in Europe in September, which is something to add to the calendar.
In terms of live events, EDC Las Vegas announced its postponement to May 2021, and Electric Zoo Cancun announced its headliners for April 2021.
As always, music continues to be released. August saw a plethora of summer vocals and sounds, many of them being very familiar to dance music aficionados. Among the most prominent came from Toolroom Records with KC Lights’ “Girl” which has become our track of the month. Please enjoy the track below.
Welcome to the midway point of summer 2020. As temperatures begin to rise, COVID-19 continues to spread in the United States and around the world forcing a number of festival cancellations including Electric Zoo in New York City and Exit Festival in Serbia. Further, The IMS Business reported this month that the Electronic Dance music industry is estimated to lose 56% of its worth this year due to COVID-19.
Yet, despite these grim announcements, there has also been a breakthrough in live streaming events. Sensation 2020 put on a livestream on July 4 while Tomorrowland Around the World garnered over 1 million paid subscribers marking it the first “virtual” festival ever.
On top all of this, the music has not stopped being released, which allows those who can’t attend events to breathe a sigh of relief. Among the top tracks, the one that stands out the most comes from Holland’s two most respected acts, Sam Feldt and Fedde Le Grand. Their track, “You Should Know,” which saw its release just last week has become our top pick of the month, which is sure to become the song of the season.
Sam Feldt & Fedde Le Grand – You Should Know (feat. Craig Smart) [Heartfeldt Records]
In these troubling times, thank god for music this June. This month has seen some unprecedented matters, whether you are quarantining from COVID-19 or protesting in the effort for #BlackLivesMatter, the one salvaging constant for audiophiles around the world is that the dance music industry continues release stellar tracks.
Although the experience of live entertainment has been put on hold for much of the rest of the year, artists continue to perform virtually on social media or through live stream events like Tomorrowland Around The World or Sensation’s Monument of Light.
Despite this hold on the live music experience, June has seen some amazing summer releases to kick-off the season including the following twenty who have been hand-picked by our team.
Our number one pick this month comes from Toolroom Records titled, “Blah” by Iglesias. We found it to be so infectious that it had to make the cut for this month’s top release.