Artists exciting us in 2026 / May

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.

Haus of Ralph is the Naarm-based DJ, producer, and curator behind CLUBHAUS; a community-driven platform colliding leftfield Asian dance music, Latin rhythms, and razor-sharp energy across dancefloors. A fierce advocate for East and Southeast Asian sounds and scenes, she's shared line-ups with Manuka Honey, Badsista, and mobilegirl, played Pitch Music & Arts and Beyond the Valley, and completed three Asia tours. Next month she heads to the Philippines and Vietnam for headline shows, before bringing it home for the open-air event CLUBHAUS Openhaus. Hot off all that momentum comes her debut single ‘Es Lilin’, which is everything her dancefloor reputation promised; the wail of the traditional Sundanese trumpet collides head-on with rolling kicks, squelching acid lines, and a Latin-tinged groove that's impossible to resist.

Kamui Wada has only been on the garage tip since last year, but he’s moving quick and it sounds damn good. His debut EP—appropriately titled ‘KAMUI WADA IS IN THE HOUSE’—dropped last month on Osmosis Jones’ label, INTHEHOUSE, showcasing groovy 4/4 UKG that has already been supported by the likes of Jeremy Sylvester straight out of the gate. Inspired by hip-hop, progressive house, rock, R&B and more, Wada is currently cooking up more tunes, including yet-to-be announced collabs and, Mixmag Asia can exclusively reveal, a forthcoming EP via Frontline. On the decks, expect to see the Yokohama-based DJ/producer supporting Osmosis Jones in Tokyo later this year.

Logic Lost is the experimental electronic project of Jakarta-based musician Dylan Amirio who has spent over a decade building a sound that sits at the intersection of techno, drone, noise, and metal. It’s dark, heavy, and rooted in the chaos of Indonesian urban life. But rather than settling into a signature sound, each release is a deliberate turn: from the brooding trip-hop of ‘Forgive Yourself’ and the ominous resonances of ‘Degenerates’ to the full-on, distortion-filled ‘Disposable Gods’. Collaboration is very much part of his DNA, working with Indonesian experimental icons Senyawa and Kuntari, Bristol noise artist Monika Badly and a handful of others. Fresh off a UK run taking in Focus Wales Festival and Nomadik 3D Sound Week along the way, surely the seeds have been planted for bigger things ahead. If his music is anything to go by, restlessness is kind of the point.

Swiss-Vietnamese DJ and producer YCHAN has carved out a distinctive niche with rhythmic textures, sassy vocals and genre-blending sets designed to make audiences “both introspect and twerk”. Drawing from Vietnamese baile funk and V-pop, her sound feels genuinely fresh amid the current wave of global club experimentation. Her commitment to community runs equally deep: her master’s thesis explored the social and professional integration of Vietnamese refugees in Switzerland, while her residency on Transition Radio spotlights second and third-generation Asian-Swiss artists. Between residences at Transition Radio and Paris’ Point Éphémère, she’s built a platform that explores diasporic identity, connection and artistic resilience. Her recent Rinse FM session alongside Laze offered another glimpse into her world, and with European tour dates on the horizon plus news we can't break just yet, keep an eye on her.

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