Joel Zimmerman has spent more than two decades operating outside the usual recording-and-touring lane. He was an early mover in livestreaming, gaming and immersive production, and that side of his career has only grown — to the point where mau5trap’s founder now runs something closer to an entertainment ecosystem than a typical artist project, with content, software and IP ownership all part of the mix.

IAG’s strategy centers on finding film, TV and digital opportunities tied to deadmau5’s existing ventures. That includes relaunching Coffee Run, his digital series featuring candid car-ride conversations with guests like Pharrell Williams, Skrillex, Tommy Lee, Zedd and Dillon Francis. It also covers Oberhasli Games, his video game company, and Auto/Pilot, the live-performance software he built for real-time arrangement, sampling, sequencing and automation.

“Joel is a once-in-a-generation creative force who represents exactly where we believe the entertainment business is going — the intersection of music, technology, content and ownership,” said Jim Osborne, CEO, and Kyle Loftus, President of Independent Artist Group, in a joint statement. “He has been ahead of the curve for his entire career, from the way he approaches live production and streaming to gaming, software and digital experiences. Music will always be the center of what he does, but the opportunity here goes well beyond music.“

“IAG’s proven track record of creating exciting crossover content creation and ownership opportunities for musical artists is what attracted me to them,” deadmau5 said. “As my business continues to evolve across touring, music, technology and new ventures, I’m excited to partner with a team that understands our goals and objectives and can help us build what’s next.“

A Busy Stretch for deadmau5

The signing lands during an active run for the producer. Earlier this year he released ‘Science’ featuring Stevie Appleton — his first vocal single since ‘My Heart Has Teeth’ with Skylar Grey, which appeared on the Resident Evil Netflix soundtrack. ‘Science’ hit No. 1 at U.S. Dance Radio and also charted on Billboard’s Dance/Mix Show Airplay chart and Canada’s CHR/Top 40.

He’s also spent recent years marking his own history, with sold-out retro5pective: 25 years of deadmau5 shows at the Hollywood Bowl, Brooklyn Mirage and Red Rocks Amphitheatre. His Day of the Dead performances at Red Rocks remain a fixture on the electronic music calendar, and his 2025 editions introduced new music alongside pieces of a new touring production. He continues to split his creative output between deadmau5 and his techno alias TESTPILOT.

Across his catalog, deadmau5 has built one of electronic music’s more recognizable bodies of work, including the 2x platinum ‘Ghosts ‘n’ Stuff,’ plus ‘I Remember,’ ‘Professional Griefers’ and ‘Sofi Needs A Ladder.’ He’s a multiple JUNO winner and GRAMMY nominee with seven albums to his name, including where’s the drop?, a reworking of his catalog into orchestral arrangements. He also scored his first film, Jonas Åkerlund’s spy thriller Polar, with the soundtrack released via his own label, mau5trap.

His list of collaborators includes The Neptunes, REZZ, Wolfgang Gartner, Kiesza, Lights, Foster The People, Portugal. The Man and Skylar Grey. The REZZ collaboration evolved into the ongoing REZZMAU5 project, while his long-running partnership with Kaskade produced Kx5. Their single ‘Escape’ featuring HAYLA reached No. 1 at dance radio and crossed onto Top 40, ahead of the duo’s GRAMMY-nominated self-titled album.

As Kx5, deadmau5 and Kaskade headlined the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 2022, in what was reported at the time as the largest single-day concert headlined by an electronic artist in North America. His solo cubev3 tour, built around production he designed himself, landed in Pollstar’s global Top 10 tours during its 2019/20 run.

Beyond his own output, deadmau5’s influence carries through mau5trap, the label he founded, and through TESTPILOT, which gives him a dedicated outlet for underground techno. TESTPILOT debuted alongside Richie Hawtin at SXSW and has since become a steady part of his creative rotation.

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Blending lush synth textures, euphoric basslines, and cinematic atmospheres, ‘State Of Mind’ arrives on the heels of Lipless’ single Incomplete and stands as a defining moment for Colorize in 2025. With early support from electronic heavyweights like Above & Beyond, Chicane, Cosmic Gate, Paul van Dyk, and Oliver Heldens, the single is poised to be a landmark release.

A first major collaboration came in 2016 with a remix of Ry X’s ‘Only,’ a track that would go on to earn a GRAMMY nomination. Since then, their synergy has been undeniable, with Lipless contributing to Kx5’s (Kaskade & Deadmau5) ‘Alive,’ ‘Take Me High,’ and ‘Avalanche‘ while also making waves as a solo artist. Now, nine years after their first hit together, they return with a track that not only celebrates their creative evolution but also highlights their continued trust and chemistry.

Kaskade and Lipless Storyline

Few partnerships can carry the depth and longevity like the one of Kaskade and Lipless. What began as a mentorship has evolved into a formidable creative alliance, now culminated in their latest release. Moreover, it features the ethereal vocals of British singer-songwriter Poppy Baskcomb.

State Of Mind arrives as a testament to years of collaboration, mutual respect, and the kind of musical connection that stands the test of time. Not just another entry in their discography, this is a track that celebrates the journey they’ve taken together, proving that the best partnerships only get stronger with time.

Their journey together traces back over a decade, to when a teenage Lipless – then an aspiring producer in Melbourne – was sending demos to Kaskade’s MySpace inbox. Rather than dismiss them, Kaskade listened, offered feedback, and gradually brought Lipless into his creative orbit. In 2014, Kaskade went a step further, helping Lipless move to Los Angeles & it was there that Lipless truly found his sound and his alias was born.

“When I first heard the vocal demo, the lyrics really resonated with me on a deeper level. I felt such a connection with it and how it talks about being in a better place or better ‘State Of Mind’. I was coming out of a tough year and had worked hard to get myself into a better place mentally and physically and when this demo came along it almost felt as if the universe had intended for it to make its way into my hands. I showed the demo to Kaskade and he also felt a connection to it, so we decided to work on it together and did our best to produce it in a way that paid tribute to the overall uplifting nature of the song.”

Lipless

Don’t forget to breathe, and enjoy this new ‘State of Mind:

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‘Jupiter’

As the first deadmau5 offering for 2025, mau5trap went deep into his archives for the mesmerizing ‘Jupiter’. He originally wrote the track in 2017 following the release of the last proper deadmau5 studio album W:/2016ALBUM/. ‘Jupiter’’s beginnings were captured in his studio via live stream which can be found here.  Traverse the solar system past stars and vibrant galactic clouds on ‘Jupiter’’s musical waveforms that ripple through space like visible sound towards the giant gas planet. Innovation, energy and cosmic creativity symbolize the journey through the mau5 universe.

More of deadmau5

Joel Zimmerman, more commonly known as deadmau5 (pronounced ‘deadmouse’), is one of the world’s most respected electronic music producers of modern times. He enjoys international chart success with his 2x platinum-certified single ‘Ghosts ‘n’ Stuff,’ as well as ‘Professional Griefers,’ ‘Sofi Needs A Ladder’ and ‘I Remember,’. Furthermore, he has also released seven critically acclaimed albums. The multiple JUNO Award-winning and GRAMMY®-nominated artist pushes the boundaries of his talent — which grows at an equal rate as his fan base. The latter counts north of 15 million over his combined social media channels.

His latest music offerings include ‘Pomegranate’ with The Neptunes, ‘Bridged By A Lightwave’ with Kiesza, ‘Channel 43’ with Wolfgang Gartner, with REZZ ‘Hypnocurrency’ and ‘Infraliminal’ (as REZZMAU5). Others include ‘When The Summer Dies’ with Lights, ‘Hyperlandia’ featuring Foster The People, ‘this is fine.’ with Portugal. The Man, ‘XYZ’, ‘My Heart Has Teeth’ featuring Skylar Grey and his latest EP, some ep.

In 2022 deadmau5 teamed with longtime friend and collaborator Kaskade on a new music project, Kx5. As a result, they released Top 40 smash and #1 dance music radio single ‘Escape’ featuring Hayla. Consequently, this led to the release of their 2023 GRAMMY-nominated debut self-titled album Kx5. In the live realm, his 2019/20 U.S. cubev3 tour ranked in the Top 10 of Pollstar’s top tours globally. In 2022 he completed the “We Are Friends” North American tour and as Kx5 headlined the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in December. Therefore, they broke records as the largest single-day concert event headlined by an electronic music artist ever in North America. Billboard confirmed Kx5 at the Coliseum as the biggest-ticketed global headliner dance event of 2022.

Up Next

deadmau5’s latest accomplishment in the live music space includes sold-out performances. The venues include the legendary Los Angeles venue the Hollywood Bowl, New York City’s Brooklyn Mirage and Colorado’s iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre. The shows were part of his career celebration “retro5pective: 25 years of deadmau5”.

The eclectic artist will start the year in the Americas. Upcoming shows include Colorado and Puerto Rico in January, Argentina in February, and Quebec, Canada, Miami and Nashville in March.

Are you prepared for launch into the cosmos? Let’s dance around the gas giant ‘Jupiter’:

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The release of the EP drops alongside the announcement and on sale of his popular day of the deadmau5 seasonal shows in Chicago, Mexico City, Washington D.C., and for the first time in Puerto Rico this October.  All dates are listed below and tickets are on sale now.

some ep

some ep features ‘Quezacotl‘ with its beaconing symphonic-like chords. They act as a call to arms as a barrage of melodic synths take flight. The track is a true beacon of return to form with all the makings of a classic deadmau5 track. Moreover, The song made its debut as part of the set of his sold out “retro5pective: 25 years of deadmau5” shows. They took place at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles and the Brooklyn Mirage in NYC this past spring. 

There’s also the epic Techno production ‘Wet‘ from his alter ego TESTPILOT  (the alias of Joel Zimmerman aka deadmau5). For his first TESTPILOT studio production since 2014, the chameleon-like studio maven takes us on a journey through slippery twists. The journey continues with turns around dark corners of pulsating synths and four-on-the-floor beats.  Other tracks on the EP include big serve productions ‘Sever‘ and ‘Input Output,’. The latter was also debuted at his Brooklyn Mirage ‘retro5pective’ show.

The “day of the deadmau5” shows are known for never being the same. From revered staples like ‘Ghosts ‘n’ Stuff,’ ‘Strobe’ and Kx5’s ‘Escape’ to the material on some ep, deadmau5 will perform a unique set. Furthermore, he will perform alongside state-of-the-art production and visuals with spooky flair.  Fans are encouraged to come in costume and show off their custom-made mau5heads.  For 2024, fans have the opportunity to catch both deadmau5 and/or TESTPILOT sets in each market. We can also expect a different line-up for each of mau5trap artists and friends who are on deck to join the Halloween fun.

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Soakin’ ‘Wet’

When you think Summer 2024 can’t get any better, TESTPILOT makes a victoruious return with this delicious release. The song has all the gritty textures that the alias is known for. Moreover, it has similar element’s to Kx5’s ‘Unobsidian’, which will make you act extremely feral. The spooky sounds embellishes you in tribal rhythms that will keep you dancing until your friends try to take you out of the afters, but you won’t let go of the groove.

The track that is over 8 minutes long comes as a surprise, giving that the TESTPILOT project started in 2013 and he hadn’t released a track as such since 2014. Could this be the start of a new era for Joel Zimmerman? His techno sets are rowdy, dark and fun, so we are really hoping that is the case. The song will appear on deadmau5 newest EP some ep coming up next Friday july 19.

TESTPILOT

While Celebrating 25 years of the amazing project that is deadmau5, with a tour and even an exhibit in Las Vegas’ AREA15, The Canadian Grammy-nominated DJ and producer Joel Zimmerman aka deadmau5 is one of EDM’s biggest names. With a snarky personality and music that resonates with a massive audience, it’s expected for the artists to adapt to the times and evolve within his sound.

With his alias, the artist is able to dabble into different sounds. TESTPILOT’s take on techno has fused the tradition and soul of techno with a razor edge, sharpened by years of comprehensive knowledge and exploration of the music and its tools. His sets are haunting, cosmic, and move at prime velocity, ready for the darkest of warehouses. Now with the arrival of “Wet,” expect the unexpected from TESTPILOT. With ten years under his belt, TESTPILOT will make a triumphat return and perhaps take a bigger role in producing smashing tracks.

It’s so humid in here, i feel… so… ‘Wet’!

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Quezacotl

For his first solo release since ‘XYZ‘ in 2022, the extensive instrumental takes the listener on a translucent sonic journey. Beaconing symphonic-like chords act as a call to arms as a barrage of melodic synths take flight. Endlessly, a true return to form with all the makings of a classic deadmau5 track. If you want to experience the og deadmau5, ‘Quezacotl’ is the song for you. An incredibly resonant melody that makes us think of ‘Raise your Weapon’, this track will keep you grooving. Soon we will listen to some ep, the new three-song deadmau5 EP set for release on July 19.

deadmau5

Joel Zimmerman, more commonly known as deadmau5 (pronounced ‘dead mouse’), is one of the world’s most respected electronic music producers of modern times. Enjoying international chart success with his 2x platinum-certified single ‘Ghosts ‘n’ Stuff‘. He has also released seven critically acclaimed albums. The multiple JUNO Award-winning and GRAMMY®-nominated artist’s ability to push the boundaries of his talent grows at an equal rate to his fan base. His fan base counts over 15 million and more over his combined social media channels.

His latest music offerings include ‘Pomegranate’ with The Neptunes, ‘Bridged By A Lightwave’ with Kiesza. More tracks include ‘Channel 43’ with Wolfgang Gartner, with REZZ ‘Hypnocurrency’ and ‘Infraliminal’ (as REZZMAU5). Furthermore, he released ‘When The Summer Dies’ with Lights, ‘Hyperlandia’ featuring Foster The People, ‘this is fine.’ with Portugal. The Man, ‘XYZ’ and ‘My Heart Has Teeth’ featuring Skylar Grey. 

Kx5

In 2022 deadmau5 teamed with longtime friend and collaborator Kaskade on new music project Kx5 releasing Top 40 smash and #1 dance music radio single ‘Escape‘ featuring Hayla. This lead into the release of their 2023 GRAMMY-nominated debut self-titled album Kx5. In the live realm, his 2019/20 U.S. cubev3 tour featuring production of his own design and implementation ranked in the Top 10 of Pollstar’s top tours globally. In 2022, he completed the ‘We Are Friends’ North American tour and as Kx5 headlined the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in December.

In effect, the duo broke records as the largest single-day concert event headlined by an electronic music artist ever in North America. Billboard confirmed Kx5 at the Coliseum as the biggest ticketed global headliner dance event of 2022. His latest accomplishment in the live music space includes sold out performances at legendary Los Angeles venue the Hollywood Bowl and  New York City’s Brooklyn Mirage.

All in all, we can’t wait for deadmau5’s newest chapter, and we know ‘Quezacotl’ is just the beginning:

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A dance music sensation, Hayla has been elevating dance floors around the world with her infectious songs and powerhouse vocals.  ‘Escape’ and ‘Where You Are’ each landed Hayla back to back #1’s on US Dance Radio and currently each have over 100 million streams on Spotify alone. Coming out of the most recent Miami Music Week, the industry and fan favorite garnered four awards: EDMA’s for ‘Dance Track of the Year’ for ‘Where You Are’ and ‘Dance Vocalist Of The Year,‘ EDM Maniac presented her with ‘TikTok Track of the Year‘ for ‘Where You Are’ and Nexus Radio celebrated her with their ‘Future Of Dance‘ award.

‘Embers’ is sure to have the commanding singer-songwriter following in the footsteps of the success of these tracks. “’Embers’ is all about that tiny bit of love you still have left for someone,” shares Hayla.

‘You can burn everything that reminds you of a person but sometimes the last thing that remains glowing is that tiny ember that only time will put out.’

-Hayla

Hayla is a Grammy-nominated, British singer and songwriter, with an extraordinarily powerful voice hailing from Formby, Liverpool, UK. Over the last couple of years she has emerged as one of the most in-demand vocalists and songwriters in global dance music, featuring on a number of significant records alongside high-profile artists such as: Wilkinson, John Summit, Sub Focus, Example, Ben Nicky, Kx5 (deadmau5 & Kaskade), and more.

Hayla has performed headline shows including with Kx5 at the Coliseum in LA which broke records as the largest single-day concert headlined by an electronic music artist in North America per Pollstar, with Billboard confirming the show as the biggest ticketed global headliner dance event of 2022. Other 2023 headline performances included: Creamfields, Red Rocks, Brixton Academy, EDC Las Vegas and throughout the UK with Pete Tong & The Essential Orchestra.

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GRAMMYs

The Stutter House producer won Best Dance/Electronic Album for Actual Life 3(January 1 – September 9 2022). His second award is Best Dance/Electronic Recording for ‘Rumble’ with Skrillex and Flowdan. The news come in support to a wild 2023 for Fred Again… . He toured all over the world and sold out shows in LA and NYC. His mark in the EDM scene is now forever honored by this massive accomplishment. As of now, Skrillex became the EDM artist with the most GRAMMY wins, tallying a stunning 9 awards. This year was tough competition with nominees like James Blake, Aphex Twin, Disclosure, Kx5, and The Chemical Brothers.

We are happy for Fred Again… and we can’t wait what he has in store in 2024.

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deadmau5 admits he has been pretty busy for some time now. Fans know he’s been juggling major projects, all while performing for some of the world’s largest festivals and venues. Earlier this year, he and Dance music veteran Kaskade even released their debut album under their collaborative project, Kx5.

Although the electronic artist took some time to shift his focus away from his deadmau5 solo project, fans can now be reassured that new music will soon arrive. The question is, are fans safe to hope for a new solo LP?

Deadmau5 hasn’t released a studio album since the release of his 2016 Mau5trap LP, W:/2016Album/, which contains songs such as ‘Let Go‘ with Grabbitz, ‘Imaginary Friends‘, and ‘Snowcone‘. He hasn’t remained completely quiet, as he did release a few compilation albums including his mau5ville series. However, fans are eager to have a full album in their hands soon, so will 2024 officially be the year?

Stay tuned for updates on new music.

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10. Reinier Zonneveld – Heaven is Mad (For You)

Getting us started is the Dutch producer Reinier Zonneveld with his fourth studio album. Zonneveld has become a force to reckon with in the Techno space. Heaven Is Mad (For You) is his most significant artistic development yet. The 18-track collection is a treat to your ears, as it ranges from Trance to Hard Dance genres.

9. Yotto – Growth

It’s been half a decade since Yotto last released an album. This year came his sophomore album Growth. The album displays Deep House hits and is a perfect blend of the euphoric and the ethereal. Many of these tracks have been lighting the dancefloors on fire, especially the collaborations with Booka Shade and Julia Church. Check out the album if you haven’t yet!

8. Le Youth – About Us

About Us takes you on an emotional ride. Le Youth, the man of the people, brings out his most raw and authentic body of work so far. His 12-track album stemmed from his crowd-focused live show concept. This album is centered around the idea of it just simply being for everyone. If you want to feel the energy of this album come to life, check out his About Us tour dates here.

7. Tiesto – Drive

Veteran DJ Tiesto surprised us with his seventh studio album Drive this year. This album brings a good mix of old-school remixes and new collaborations. I am sure you have tapped your feet to ’10:35‘ with Tate McRae’s vocals or ‘Lay Low’ which is more of a catchier church choir vibe. The album has showcased a new direction for Tiesto with a strong influence of House music. All of us Trance-devoted ‘Adagio for Strings‘ lovers are hoping to get more of Trance Tiesto in 2024, but until then enjoy Drive.

6. Skrillex – Don’t Get Too Close

Our beloved Skrillex has had one of his best years so far. His major comeback was nothing short of extraordinary. With numerous sold-out shows to headlining Coachella with his buddies Fred Again.. and Four Tet to the release of two studio albums within a day of each other. Of course, both of which hold two spots on our Top Albums this year. Don’t Get Too Close brought us Sonny signing on his album after eight long years. This album strung out more Hip-Hop and Pop with star-studded collabs. Give it a listen down below if you haven’t yet.

5. Gorgon City – Salvation

Salvation is truly a masterpiece album. The Gorgon City boys deliver not just club favourites through this album but also delicate tracks. The ten-track Salvation LP highlight their versatile artistry from ‘Heartless‘ to ‘Lost & Found‘. Their Salvation tour has been burning up the dance floors around the world this fall. Give the album a listen if you’d like to groove through some bangers that will surely become a staple in sets.

4. Camelphat – Spiritual Milk

An experience of genre-bending sounds through a 16-track journey comes Spiritual Milk. This album serves up a brand new direction for the British duo, our favourite lads: Camelphat. Most of the tracks fit the club scene like the glass slipper on Cinderella’s feet, but the duo set out with the intention to provide a great listening experience. Some amazing collaborations that stood out were ‘The Sign’ with Anyma and ‘Higher’ with London Grammar. We knew this album would make it to our Top Tunes of the Year. Hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. Camelphat will be on tour for Spiritual Milk in 2024, be sure to catch them live.

3. Kx5 – Kx5

It’s only fitting that we have Kx5 as one of our top albums after ‘Escape’ was one of our top tracks last year. deadmau5 and Kaskade released the most anticipated album of the year, self-titled Kx5. The duo created some of the everlasting Dance anthems the crowds still go wild to, namely, ‘I Remember’ and ‘Move Me’. Their collaboration and release of Kx5 stays true to their individual sounds blended together giving birth to a few more Dance anthems. It has been a mainstage album with tracks that have been most played at festivals during the summer months. And these music legends have also been nominated for the Best Album Grammy, if you had any doubt about the LP. We can’t wait to see what the duo has in store for us next year.

2. Skrillex – Quest For Fire

Sonny is back in the spotlight with his Grammy-nominated album Quest For Fire. Skrillex releasing not one but two albums in the span of mere hours, with such differing complexities in sound, just stresses his talent. Quest For Fire is definitely more geared to Bass House and Bass. Skrillex is an octuple Grammy winner who, surprise surprise, has been nominated for yet another Grammy this year for Quest For Fire and ‘Rumble’. This has been a remarkable year for Sonny. Receive a well-deserved congratulations from us for both his albums!

1. Anyma – Genesys

Do I need to say anymore?! Anyma, one half of Tale Of Us with his debut album takes the top spot on our playlists and poll. Genesys explores Anyma’s best work yet, encapsulating ‘Eternity’, ‘Consciousness’, ‘The Sign’ and ‘Angel 1’. These are probably some of the most-played tracks of 2023 across the globe. Anyma has become a force of nature and the Afterlife brand has solidified its name at the top of the Electronic music industry these past few years. If you haven’t heard this album yet, drop everything, stop whatever you’re doing that is less important, and listen to this right away. Congratulations Anyma, we loved every bit of this album!

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