French dance music artists

In the last few years a new crop of young French dance music producers has emerged with a tough, lean sound that has as much in common with Angolan kuduro or South African kwaito as the more familiar sounds of French house and techno.

If your idea of French dance music has been synonymous with the pomp and circumstance of Daft Punk and Justice, the stripped down drum machine beats and thin synths of French Fries "Laquisha Dub" or the spritely kalimba and children's sing-a-long of Myd's "Walk to Bamako" may come as a shock, or a breath of fresh air. French Fries and Myd, and artists like Bambounou, Joakim, Canblaster, Sam Tiba and Manaré have released dozens of records in the last few years on labels in France, Germany, and the US and UK. Sharing an approach with American artists like Kingdom, Dubbel Dutch and Nguzunguzu, these Parisian producers search out rhythms from around the world and weave together hybrid genres from whatever washes up on their hard drives. As a result their music has traveled well, popping up in DJ sets by everyone from Diplo to Oneman.

We've put together a Spotify playlist with a selection of some of the best tracks this new wave of Parisians has produced. You can stream the playlist below.

New Paris Sounds Playlist:

Joakim will be in New York next week, performing with Camille Henrot in their piece Psychopompe.