Pete Tong's Essential New Tune
Mystery Of Raw
Michael Bibi, KETTAMA & Wu-Tang Clan
CIRCOLOCO Records
14 Aug 2026
Comment
Michael Bibi joins Pete to talk about this week's ENT. 
"In 2018, KETTAMA's first sent me a version with the sample and the track that he did, and I played that. That was my first kind of breakthrough moment. Everything I was playing was just like dang crazy, and that track in particular, I loved it, and I hammered it all the time. Fast forward seven years to last year, and we were chatting. He sent me the stems, so I did an updated version, and it was just like to play and mess around with. We went back and forth a bit, and then it started getting traction. People were like, What is this? Where can we get it? And then one thing led to another, and then the Wu Tang Clan got involved. We never thought it was going to get cleared ever, and then did essentially." 
This week's featured Essential New Tune was featured in last week’s Friday show on BBC Radio 1. Listen again and forward to 25.26 here. 
Contact
Label: CIRCOLOCO
Management: Prime Culture 
Radio: Jacko & James Marsh, Listen Up 
Club: Ned Dickinson, Listen Up
18 Aug 2026
News and Features
  • The BPI announced that applications are open for the latest (26th) round of Music Export Growth Scheme (MEGS) funding. (RotD) 
  • Only Good People has launched as a new home for artists, songwriters and producers, bringing together management, publishing and creative development under one roof. (RotD) It operates across London and Stockholm, with a Berlin footprint through its joint venture with Sony Music Publishing Germany.
  • Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) and global nighttime culture consultancy VibeLab announced a partnership to produce the Nighttime Culture Index (NCI), a new global measure of the vitality of nighttime culture. (RotD) 
Digital
  • Beatport has announced plans to ban tracks that are fully or majority AI-generated. Tracks made with the assistance of AI will also be tagged as such in order to improve transparency. (DJMag) 
  • TikTok LIVE announced the return of Music on Stage, its global music programme dedicated to discovering emerging artists, helping them grow passionate fan communities, and supporting them on the journey from livestream performances to real-world music careers. (RotD) 
  • Kobalt is set to participate in Spotify’s forthcoming AI-powered remix and cover tool. (Spotify) 
  • Spotify is introducing "AI Persona" labels for artist profiles that represent AI-generated identities and will exclude their music from editorial, algorithmic, and personalised recommendations by default. (TechCrunch) 
Live
  • In its first year, Refuge reports hosting attendees from 1,300 cities across 73 countries and six continents. See the lineup for its 15-night anniversary celebration. (Billboard) 
  • Day Zero Tulum 2027 announces line-up: See who’s playing (Billboard) 
  • DJ Snake to headline inaugural 12:XII festival in Marbella. (DT) 
  • London's South Bermondsey Festival reveals 2026 line-up. (RA) 
  • Nine injured after bottle-throwing incident at Palm Springs festival Splash House. (RA) 
  • Houghton Festival says it is “deeply saddened” by an attendee’s death at this year’s event. (Mixmag) 
Comment, Opinion and Analysis
  • Spotify's New Music Friday transformed when we release music. Eleven years later, the industry still hasn’t transformed around it. (Substack - Austin Daboh)  
  • Bandsintown hails growth in fan activity around dance music. (MusicAlly) 
  • Spotify's move to label AI artists 'tackles a PR risk rather than impact of slop'. (ChartingGenAI - Graham Lovelace) 
  • According to MIDiA’s Global Music Forecast 2026-2033, global recorded music revenue is projected to climb 62.9%, from $74.3bn in 2025 to $121.1bn in 2033. The biggest emerging opportunity is suggested as superfans. (Midia) 
  • A new study from Clubcommission in Berlin shows that ticket sales are now the biggest source of revenue at 59%, up from just 20% back in 2017. "Behind this lies a change in nightlife habits. People are planning their club nights more consciously, staying for shorter periods, and drinking less". (ClubCommission) 
Tech
  • Don’t overlook Elektron’s budget electronic music instruments. (Verge) 
  • Vibe coding has come for music plugins – are we witnessing a revolution? (MusicTech) 
Beatport
  • Papa Nugs: “A Bit of Silliness Will Never Hurt a Tune” [Q&A] (Beatportal)
  • Inside “Hope House”: me n ü Share the Tracks Behind Their Sound (Beatportal)
  • K Motionz Is Taking Over a Secret London Location for a Free Show (Beatportal)
  • Beatport Expands Beatdapp Partnership to Detect AI-Generated Music (Beatportal)
  • Label of the Month: Running Back (Beatportal)
  • Left To Indie: Reclaiming the Spirit of Indie Dance (Beatportal)
  • The best Track IDs from Junction 2 (Beatportal)
Clubs
  • Ibiza: 
    Pacha announces Grand Closing Weekend line-up with Roger Sanchez & PAWSA. (IbizaSpotlight) 
    The final ANTSwer: Ushuaïa reveals stacked Closing Party line-up. (IbizaSpotlight) 
  • New venue XTC Nightclub to open in New York. (RA) 
  • Kaskade and Wooli to B2B at Pacha New York as part of ORIGIN// Tour. (EDMTunes) 
Streams & Podcasts
  • Reinventing Madonna: the pioneering DJ and producer William Orbit (BBC Sounds) 
  • Bellaire makes a disco house track from scratch. (DJMag) 
  • Digitalism 'Zdarlight' | The Making of an electro-house hit (DJMag) 
  • 24 Hours With: Indira Paganotto, Tomorrowland Mainstage, Monegros Desert Festival & Hï Ibiza. (DJMag) 
  • RA.1052 The Bug (RA) 
  • Skyla Tylaa | Mixmag Lab London | AlphaTheta Takeover (DJMag) 
  • SOSA DJ set live from DJ Mag Miami Pool Party (DJMag) 
  • Armin van Buuren F2F John Summit live at A State of Trance Poland 2026 (Armin van Buuren) 
Artist and Music Features
  • The Sound Of: On Loop (DJMag) 
  • With an aim to “protect, uplift, and celebrate” its queer community, Cuddles has become Berlin’s answer to non-exclusive, anything-goes clubbing where ticket prices are accessible and chaos is encouraged. We find out more about the community-driven club night. (Mixmag) 
  • How Leviticus’ ‘Burial’ brought jungle’s melting pot of influences together. (DJMag) 
  • In Conversation With: Sonny Hall, Founder of UNLOCKED Shoreditch. (DT) 
  • Creamfields 2026 festival guide: Everything you need to know. (BBC) 
  • Moby at Labyrinth On The Thames | An appreciation of electronic music’s seminal figure (WhyNow) 
  • Orsay talks ‘The Home’, career, albums, and more. (EDMTunes) 
  • Off the back of new single 'Show Me', Kashovski takes on our Q&A, covering everything from Zidane to his greatest fear. (Attack)
  • The hakken, shaved heads, the hard techno boom, uptempo drama, “f*ck you” energy, and where we go from here. DJ Rebekah chats to us about hardcore. (Skiddle) 
  • Inside King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard’s Hard Dance Experiment: ‘This Is Some Mad Scientist Sh–‘ (Billboard) 
  • Takuya Nakamura: top brass (DJMag) 
  • Darude talks peer support, mental health, and dance music community. (Magnetic) 
  • Kraftwerk’s Karl Bartos told us how the German pioneers' embrace of computerisation was the trigger for his departure. (MusicRadar) 
  • Decades after walking away from trance, Tiësto unpicks the machinery behind his own brand, and what a career spent at the top actually costs. (RA) 
  • Can a culture be filled with music while musicians become economically disposable? The answer seems to be an overwhelming “yes”. In fact, that may be the defining contradiction of the modern music business. We are way past the commoditisation of music, folks. (DMN) 
  • Dance music is outpacing most genres in live growth. Bandsintown data reveals a 24% jump in ticket clicks and 1.51 billion artist follows. (Hypebot) 
  • Micro-licensing: How to market your music catalogue. (SynchTank) 
  • Playlist promotion vs artist branding: What actually builds fans? (PFC) 
  • Ben Turner discusses his journey in the electronic music industry, involving countless landmark moments such as co-founding the Association of Independent Festivals, the International Music Summit, helping get Bestival off the ground and helping to extend the Ibiza clubbing season. (AAA) 
Artist News
  • Mayan Warrior Art car will not appear at Burning Man 2026. (EDM) 
  • The Chemical Brothers’ ‘Galvanize’ music video has been remastered in 4K. (DJMag) 
  • Massive Attack team up with Irish club Bohemians for charity football shirt. (RA) 
  • Anyma unveils debut ÆDEN record single, ‘Other Dimension’ with Volkoder. (EDM) 
  • Fatboy Slim is giving his debut album “another lease of life”, reissuing it 30 years after its original release. (Standard) 
  • Santa Cruz Mayor officially proclaims “Oliver Tree Day” in honour of late hometown icon. (EDM) 
  • Danish electronic music pioneer Sofus Forsberg dies aged 56. (Mixmag) 
Recent newsletters

18 Aug 2026

Mystery Of Raw - Michael Bibi, KETTAMA & Wu-Tang Clan
Michael Bibi joins Pete to talk about this week's ENT. 
"In 2018, KETTAMA's first sent me a version with the sample...

11 Aug 2026

Love Forever - Max Styler & Kuuda
"This is taken from his new six-track EP, 'I Don't Think I Can Stop', on his own label, Nu Moda....

04 Aug 2026

The 11th Hour - Brunello
"Now one of our favourites, hotly tipped and surging U.S. talent, Brunello drops another heavily requested ID from his set...

28 Jul 2026

No track listed this week

21 Jul 2026

Whisper To Me - Jimi Jules
"It comes from Jimi Jules as he teams up with Modern Tales on a track called 'Whisper to Me'. It's...

14 Jul 2026

Blowin' Up The Spot - Bontan
"Our choice of ENT is 'Blowin' Up The Spot' by Bontan. We've known him for years. The first time we...

About IMS

IMS: International Music Summit is a global educational and motivational thought-leadership platform dedicated to the continued development of electronic music primarily through the presentation of global summits for the industry. 

About Beatport

Beatport is the worldwide home of music for DJs, producers, and their fans. Founded in 2004, the Beatport family of companies includes Beatport, the preeminent store for electronic music DJs, Beatsource for the open-format DJ community, and Loopmasters, Loopcloud and Plugin Boutique for music producers. Follow us on Twitch, Facebook and Twitter, and Instagram.

About AFEM

AFEM: A global voice for electronic music; representing our culture and commerce. AFEM's membership spans all industry sectors, with over 250 company members across 25 countries, the organisation connects its worldwide membership to develop opportunities and enable change.

About ROTD

Record of the Day has produced a subscription-based daily publication for the music industry for over 23 years, featuring all the best news and comment, along with an editorially-chosen future hit. Sign up for a free trial here.
Submit your news stories here.
About Industry Insider | Get in contact | Privacy policy | Terms and conditions
Brought to you by: www.recordoftheday.com