Rap will forever be preoccupied with regionality. With his trap-influenced single "Ich bin ein Berliner" (“I’m a Berliner”), Berlin rapper Ufo361 created an anthem for his hometown while spotlighting some of the city’s more sordid circles. On this episode of Berlin Zwanzig, Vivian Host sits down with Marcus Staiger, the journalist and founder of trailblazing German rap label Royal Bunker, to discuss the impact of the track and the social implications of its lyrics.

Indie rock band Isolation Berlin offset their melancholic lyrics with jangling, often upbeat melodies. This juxtaposition has resonated with German music fans since the group’s critically-acclaimed debut Und aus den Wolken tropft die Zeit (And Time Drips from the Clouds). On this episode, music journalist and radio presenter Martin Böttcher joins Vivian Host to discuss Isolation Berlin’s "Alles Grau" (“Everything’s Gray”) and the band’s place in Berlin’s contemporary music scene.

When Lotic moved to Berlin from Texas in 2012, they found a scene that wasn’t quite fitting their needs. Since then, Lotic and other expats – such as Janus co-founders Michael Ladner and Dan DeNorch – have been instrumental in carving out a radical and experimental space in the city’s nightlife. Lotic’s 2015 EP, "Heterocetera," left an indelible mark on Berlin clubs. On this episode, Lotic joins Vivian Host to discuss how this powerful record came to be, and navigating Berlin as a queer...

Berlin-bred duo Modeselektor came of age in the post-Wall era. As such, their unique blend of electronic music ignores all divisions, pulling from a variety of seemingly incongruous genres. Though they were always hometown heroes, Modeselektor’s joint project with Apparat, Moderat, earned them fans around the world. On this episode, Vivian Host sits down with Sick Girls affiliate Alexandra Dröner, who has worked in the Berlin club scene since the ’90s, to discuss Moderat’s breakthrough hit...

Under his Head High and Shed aliases (to name but two), Berlin producer René Pawlowitz has established himself as one of the city's most essential techno artists – and his chiming, hard-as-nails "Rave (Dirt Mix)," released on Modeselektor's Monkeytown label, is one of many gems in his incredible discography. On this episode, Vivian Host sits down with Pawlowitz to discuss the genesis of "Rave," his intro to dance music and his time working behind the counter at the celebrated Berlin record...

Berlin label BPitch Control has a reputation for releasing techno and electronic music, but the imprint has also trafficked in non-techno sounds – including music by the Brazilian singer-songwriter Dillon, who has released two albums through BPitch over the last decade. On this episode, Vivian Host sits down with former BPitch Control manager Daniel Rérat to discuss bringing Dillon onto the label, her unexpectedly big single "Thirteen Thirtyfive," and BPitch's history of releasing eclectic...

Brotherly techno duo Paul & Fritz Kalkbrenner are perhaps best known for "Sky and Sand," which featured in the smash 2008 film _Berlin Calling_ (which Paul also starred in). The track became an anthem when BPitch Control released it as a single a year later. On this episode, Vivian Host sits down with Dirty Doering – a mainstay of shuttered Berlin club Bar 25, which featured in Berlin Calling – to discuss the explosion of rave tourism in the late 2000s and the film's legacy.

Over the past 20 years, Berlin-based singer, songwriter and producer Barbara Morgenstern has fused the steely techno commonly attributed to her home city with the bright sounds of synth pop, resulting in a unique take on melodic, danceable music that is unmistakably hers. On this episode, Vivian Host sits down with Morgenstern to discuss her 2008 single "Come to Berlin," urban gentrification, the changes Berlin's undergone over time and the city's history of female electronic producers.

In the wake of major releases from the label Aggro Berlin, the city saw an excess of hard-nosed gangster rap. K.I.Z. counteracted that self-seriousness with humor and irony, filling their loquacious verses with hilarious punchlines and violence so grotesque it descended into black comedy. On this episode, Vivian Host sits down with Marcus Staiger, the journalist and founder of influential German rap label Royal Bunker, to discuss K.I.Z.’s hit “Walpurgisnacht" and the era of Deutschrap it...

Quite simply, “Rej” is one of the most iconic house records of the past 20 years. Produced by Frank Wiedemann and Kristian Beyer, AKA Âme, it was also one of the biggest tracks to appear on the hugely influential Innervisions label, an imprint headed up the duo and Berlin house icon Dixon. On this episode, the music journalist Martin Böttcher talks with Vivian Host about the tune that helped take Innervisions, Dixon and Âme from cult concern to the main stage.

Berghain is Berlin’s most infamous club, and Ben Klock and Marcel Dettmann are perhaps the most famous DJs to emerge from its environs. The pair’s taut techno tracks were built expressly with Berghain’s dancefloor in mind, where they played lengthy DJ sets that hypnotized techno fans the world over. On this episode, music journalist Sven von Thülen talks with Vivian Host about the incredible nights (and days and nights) that Klock and Dettmann have helmed, along with the evolution of their...

For a few years, Ricardo Villalobos was the face of minimal techno and house in Germany. While he’s perhaps best known for his lengthy, freewheeling DJ sets – which were just as likely to include free jazz as they were pumping techno – Villalobos’ high water mark in terms of production came with “Dexter.” On this episode of Berlin Zwanzig, music journalist Sven von Thülen joins Vivian Host to discuss the cult of Villalobos and this celebrated track, which appeared on his Playhouse-released albu

In the ‘90s, Berlin rappers borrowed heavily from the music and style of rappers in the U.S. The arrival of record label Aggro Berlin in 2001 signaled the beginning of a transition, a move toward a more authentic Berlin sound. On this episode of Berlin Zwanzig, Vivian Host meets with Marcus Staiger, the founder of influential German rap label Royal Bunker, to discuss Aggro Berlin’s place in Berlin rap history and the label’s defining single, Sido and B-Tight’s “Aggro Teil 2.”

Though techno and rap has often taken center stage, Berlin’s reggae and dancehall scene is not to be overlooked. In 2001, the 11-piece band Seeed scored a major hit with their reggae ode to the city “Dickes B,” an anthemic tune that intertwined verses in German, English and Patois. On this episode of Berlin Zwanzig, Vivian Host sits down with Spider of the influential crew Supersonic Sound to find out more about the development of the reggae and dancehall scene in the city and the importance...

Ellen Allien has made monumental strides in a male-dominated Berlin scene as a DJ, musician and label head. In 1999, she founded the label Bpitch Control, through which she released her 2001 debut Stadtkind. A love letter to the city that made her, the project further cemented Allien’s critical role in the fabric of Berlin nightlife. On this episode of Berlin Zwanzig, Vivian Host catches up with long time BPitch Control affiliate Kiki to discuss the far-reaching impact of Stadtkind’s...

Berlin has a history of attracting eccentric artists. In this regard, Canadian-born Peaches is no different than any other expat. In every other respect, she is extraordinary. Her avant-garde electronica oozes sexuality and blurs the lines of traditional gender roles. On this episode, Vivian Host sits down with DJ Alexandra Dröner, who worked at clubs such as Tresor and witnessed some of Peaches’ early performances, to discuss the impact of Peaches’ signature hit, “F**k the Pain Away,” in the...

Jazzanova is the renowned Berlin-based DJ/producer collective who founded influential German label Sonar Kollektiv and pioneered nu-jazz, the innovative hybrid of jazz and electronic music that has since inspired countless artists in both genres. On this episode of Berlin Zwanzig, Vivian Host sits down with Jazzanova member Claas Brieler to discuss “Caravelle,” the seminal track from the group’s second eponymous EP, and its impact in Berlin and abroad.

Atari Teenage Riot was one of Berlin’s most incendiary groups during its late ’90s / early ’00s heyday. They took electronic music’s building blocks and gleefully deconstructed them, turning jungle into what frontman Alec Empire called “digital hardcore.” On this episode of Berlin Zwanzig – the first in the series – Vivian Host sits down with Empire to discuss how ATR’s “Revolution Action” came to be and why Berlin in the '90s felt a little bit like the end of the world.

Introducing Berlin Zwanzig, a new podcast from Red Bull Music Academy. Vivian Host and a crew of Berlin scene stalwarts chart the evolution of the city from 1998 to 2018 through 20 key tracks.