Artists exciting us in 2026 / January

Since starting this as a monthly series in 2024, Mixmag Asia has consistently focused on spotlighting fresh and forward-thinking names from across Asia and its far-reaching diaspora. Now in 2026, that approach remains the same.

From those dedicated to cutting-edge electronic and dance music to the occasional left-field pick from another genre, each edition brings together a selection of artists who are making noise in their local scenes or just starting to reach beyond them.

We’re not rigid about sound; if they move us, they belong here. Some names may already be familiar, others less so, but all are surely worth your time and attention.

Keep a look out for these ones.

Farrah is a Hong Kong–based producer and DJ holding it down for East Asia’s bass scene, known for bending genres with a playful confidence and sharp musical instincts. With releases on Pilot Records (UKF), Deadbeats, Jadu Dala, and Bassrush, she’s steadily built global buzz that’s translated from online excitement to real-world dancefloors. She also happens to be an instructor for Sol Passion Music. Her 2025 debut EP ‘Heaven In Hiding’ helped push her sound beyond the Asia-Pacific, with breakout track ‘Automatic Problematic’ with Ooah landing her first international festival slot at the UK’s Bang Face Weekender. Sonically, Farrah lives where bouncy, fun basslines meet a dreamy, feminine touch—light on the surface but heavy on groove, polish, and intent. From Hong Kong festivals like Clockenflap and S2O to underground raves and sets alongside The Glitch Mob, Ivy Lab, and Gyrofield, Farrah keeps things fresh with multi-genre selections and ongoing collaborations that continue to stretch what her sound can be. For those in Hong Kong, catch her at a Valentine’s Day gig.

Pune-based songwriter and producer Karshni has been a mainstay since 2018, building a strong catalogue across SoundCloud, Bandcamp and occasional DSP releases. She’s also recently dropped a haunting and borderline uncomfortable music video for her track ‘MALAPROPISM’. With an impressive run of recent collaborations (Rounak Maiti, Shauharty) and appearances at key festivals across India, she’s also well known in the arts scene for her compositions and scores. When it comes to sound, hers is hard to pin down, with countless genres and textures weaving through her work, and her upcoming project ‘Buck Wild’ is no exception. Straying away from her usual folk-leaning, mellow material, the release dropping January 28 is packed with poignant soundscapes, distinctive moods and a confidence that highlights her range, this time through an electronic lens. She’ll be premiering ‘Buck Wild’ live at Magnetic Fields this year, making Nomads even more tempting. With another upcoming album already hinted to move in a completely different direction, it feels fair to ask what she can’t do.

Louzhang is a key voice in Shanghai’s ritual-leaning electronic underground, mixing tribal rhythms, deconstructed club pressure, and Chinese traditional sound into music that’s raw, physical, and deeply personal. He records his own source material in rural Guizhou—chants, masks, breath, and ritual percussion—then reshapes it through bass, IDM, and leftfield electronics. Active for over seven years between Shanghai and Los Angeles, he’s released standout projects on SOTI Music and Jyugam, founded the experimental band Irrelevant Trio and the label People Pump plus expanded his practice into film scoring at the University of Southern California. His live shows have carried him from Berlin-backed embassy showcases in Beijing to Tokyo’s experimental space Oriental Love and Osaka’s Environmental_0g. With his upcoming album ‘Far East Renaissance’, Louzhang channels the shamanic power of Guizhou’s Nuo Opera into a modern ritual, where forgotten voices collide with the hyper-speed pulse of contemporary East Asia.

Although he’s been DJing for almost ten years, it’s in the last two where the momentum has really picked up for Sho, better known as VECSILLE. The Tokyo-based DJ started his career as a house DJ in 2017, garnering a residency at Shibuya haunt OATH in 2021. In 2024, he adopted the moniker VECSILLE to brand an evolving sound that now included UK garage, breaks, dubstep, and jungle – and along with that came his first forays into production. Fast forward to last July and his debut release ‘Bad Boy’, co-produced with Azumai, was released by Feed the Dragon, followed by a launch party in Hong Kong that took the artist on his first international appearance. Since then, VECSILLE supported Sammy Virji on his recent Tokyo show and is scheduled to support MainPhase and IsGwan next month, alongside other major support bookings that have yet to be announced. What he’s most excited about this year, though, is launching an imprint for his collective AUREKA in the Fall—in addition to sitting on over ten tracks that he's waiting to release.

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