Barnet-born, Manchester-based FLETCH is being hailed as an invigorating force in underground house, breathing fresh life into the scene. And, in a sense, that’s true, but to fold everything he’s released into the “underground” category doesn’t quite do justice to how varied or unique his output is. FLETCH’s music takes in disco, Latin house, tech-house, funk, even French touch and fidget, and packages it all in a way that feels fresh, while remaining keenly aware of the foundations of proper warehouse, hands-in-the-air classic rave.
Take his recent single, “People 2 Dance”, with its siren-like melodies and spacious arrangement. Travel back to the glory days when acid-house, hip-house and New York house music brushed up against one another, and it would blow the roof off. No surprise, then, that his name rings out across global rave scenes. Skream is a big fan—they collaborated last year on the tech-house cracker “Lost Without You”—as are Manchester rave outfit Mason Collective, with whom he’s collaborated plenty of times. Bookings at DC10, Circoloco, Warehouse Project, Hï and clubs across South America, Europe, the States and beyond are coming through thick and fast, and it’s easy to see why. His keen ear for a hit has helped him craft big dancefloor records and some of the scene’s most beloved edits.
With his new single, “People 2 Dance”, out now on No Art, Complex UK sat down with FLETCH to find out what separates a good edit from a great one, how a USB trading scheme opened doors for him, and his inroads into the fashion world.
COMPLEX: How’s it going, Fletch? So, you’re originally from Barnet, but you’re now based up in Manchester. How did you end up making the move up there, and what was it about Manchester that first pulled you in?
FLETCH: I moved here about five years ago, and it really started when I was around 18. My music was beginning to get heard and played by a few DJs who were all Manchester-based, like the Mason Collective crew. I was sending a lot of music to them because they were enjoying what I was doing, so it felt like a natural progression from there. I got involved with Kaluki and all those events, and in 2018, I went up to the Kaluki Warehouse Project they did and met all the guys there. That was actually the first time I’d ever been to Manchester. Then, about five years ago, give or take, I finally made the move up here.
Who are some the first DJs and producers that really inspired you to start making music, and what were you listening to when you first got into DJing?
I started DJing when I was 12 or 13 years old, and at that time, I was into a lot of drum & bass, like Netsky, Dimension, even Lenzman and the more liquid guys. I was also listening to Skrillex and all those people who were pushing that heavier sound at the time. That was what really inspired me to start DJing. I don’t know if you can see behind me, but I’ve got a million records, and one of the shelves is all ‘80s music—it’s all disco. So, originally, I started mixing a lot of disco as well on top of that. I started with that disco side and then the electronic side, and from there, I got into house music.
The “People 2 Dance” two-tracker that just came out, how did you first connect with the No Art team, and how did that collaboration come together?
So that started quite a while back on Instagram. We’d been talking for a while, and they wanted me to send some music over. I didn’t really think anything of it at first because No Art are huge, and I was thinking, “They’re not just going to sign me.” It never really seemed like a possibility. Then they played at the Warehouse Project in Manchester, which I went to. It just so happened that I’d sent them a couple of tunes, and they ended up playing one of them on the night. That ended up being the lead track on the first EP I did with No Art [Play House]. So this is the second EP I’m doing with them. After that first EP, the relationship was really strong, and they brought me on tour for 10 shows all around the world. I think, after that, they saw me DJ, spent some time with me, realised I wasn’t a complete idiot [laughs], and it all developed really naturally from there.
That really reminded me of big warehouse raves, old acid-house, and even certain scenes in 24 Hour Party People. When you’re producing or writing, do you have specific spaces or environments in mind that you’re trying to capture that feeling of?
That’s a great question. Sometimes, yeah: if I’m making an edit or I have a vocal in mind, I’m not necessarily going to have a crazy build-up because I know it’s going to be for a certain space, or if I’ve got an eight-minute track, that’s for the sweatboxes—everyone’s there, no one’s leaving, so you don’t necessarily need those crazy builds. But “People 2 Dance” and “I Need You”, both of those tunes have huge build-ups. They’re almost tailored to what those bigger shows are asking for. When you play somewhere like Alexandra Palace, for example, records with big build-ups are exactly what you want for those rooms. You need to have those moments where everyone’s getting excited, and the bigger the build-up, the more energy it puts out into the room. There’s definitely music I’ve made specifically for smaller clubs, and there’s music I’ve made for both, but sometimes I’ll just sit down and see what comes out rather than think about it too much.
You’ve been very busy this year. Is there anything that really sticks out as a key highlight from 2026 so far?
Music-wise, I’d say the anticipation for this EP has been crazy. This has been, by far, the track I’ve been asked for the most. I first teased it last year, so I’ve been carrying it with me for ages, waiting to finally drop it. I’d also say the record I did with the Mason Collective boys, “Sun Goes Down”, was a standout. We’ve done a bunch of edit tapes and different tracks together—we probably have about 50 unreleased tunes together, but we’d never actually officially released a track together on Spotify as a Fletcher/Mason pairing. So for me, that was a really full-circle moment. There’s been a lot of great stuff happening this year, but that was a big one for sure. In terms of live shows, there’ve been some amazing gigs this year. If I had to pick two, I’d say returning to DC10 for Circoloco, because that’s a brand I love and I’ve been a fan of for God knows how long, and then playing Space Terrace in Miami for the first time. That was very special. For me, Space and DC10 are the two best clubs in the world.
On the subject of Mason Collective and edits, are there any plans for a follow-up to Street Heat Volume 1? Is there going to be a Volume 2?
I’ve been asked that a lot. There are no plans at the moment, but the thing is, we didn’t even have a plan to put the first one out. We just had so many edits that people kept asking for, so we decided to put them all out as one package. The trouble is, those guys are even busier than I am now.
Yeah, I was recently looking at their tour schedule for this year [laughs]. You’ve all been super-busy, which is great to see.
Thanks, man. I’m barely ever home, trying to make those edits, and we barely even get time in the studio. But we’ll see. I think Blair and Nat are coming back to Manchester over the winter, so we’ll see what happens. I’ve just got a new studio, so maybe I’ll get them to come over and check it out.
And what about the 12 Days Of Christmas Edits. Will we get another round this year?
I don’t know. I try not to do the same thing too many times. I like to keep finding new things to do, but I really enjoyed doing that. It was very special, and it drummed up a lot of heat for me within the underground scene. They’re not your typical cheesy edits—that’s the whole point of them. I think I’ve got some ideas and tracks that I could do another one with, but I’d want to figure out another unique way of doing it. It might not be exactly the same format, but there are definitely plans for more edits for sure.
What do you think is the key to a good edit?
It’s funny you ask that because I’ve had this conversation with people before. Basically, there are two types of edits. There are edits that you make for a moment on the dancefloor—you make them for yourself and to share with a few DJ friends. They’re purely for the dancefloor and aren’t necessarily made to be released. You can include that big vocal moment where everyone sings along, or it might be a take on a big tune that everyone recognises. The other kind is my personal favourite. What I try to do is take tracks that people don’t really know—they’re almost like unofficial remixes—where you completely strip the track apart and use different parts of it. It doesn’t really matter if people know the original track. You can even use more than one track, bring in different vocals or whatever. I’ve even got edits where I’ve used three different a cappellas. With these ones, it’s less about doing numbers and more for the DJs and that kind of crowd. They’re actually the ones I prefer to release because they require more creativity, and I think that’s why I enjoy making them more.
Another thing I wanted to talk about is your track with Skream, “Lost With Out You”. How did you guys get to working together?
I’ve been a fan of Skream’s for the longest time. I remember I got “Burning Up” on an Addicted To Bass CD, and that’s how I first discovered him and then went down the rabbit hole. It was weird for me because, funnily enough, on the topic of edits, I did this USB of unreleased music. There’s this guy Billy, who calls himself XXXCulture, and he does these USBs full of unreleased music from different artists. He’ll give them different names on the USBs, and then he sells them online and gives you a fee. So he has all these folders on the USBs, and they all have different names for the artists. I remember one was “Romanian King”, but mine was just named “GOAT”, which is very flattering, obviously. Skream ended up buying one of these USBs with my music on it and called the guy up wanting to know who the GOAT was. Billy told him it was me, and Skream DMed me on Instagram straight away saying he was a big fan. We had a back-and-forth for a while, I sent him some more stuff, and then, out of the blue, he sent me four different stems and just said, “Work on these.” I was just like, “Wow! This is crazy!” So I got to work on all of them, but there were two that I really started riffing with and putting together. That ended up being the track we put out on Circoloco. And then, from there, we’ve probably made another 10 tunes, I would say. Those are hopefully going to come out next year. We’ll see.
So what else have you got coming up this year?
After this, we’re doing the vinyl for the Life You Up EP I released on Hard Times. Then in December, we’ve got something very exciting that we’re still working on. I wish I could tell you exactly what it was. We’re still figuring it out, but if it comes together, it’s going to be a huge one. We’re also working with another very big US-based label, and then looking at some follow-ups and stuff like that for next year. Eventually, I’m going to be starting my new label in 2027. That’s the next big thing. There’s a lot happening on that front, but I don’t want to say too much yet. I’ve also been working on some stuff in the fashion world. I’ve always been involved in that side of things. I like the blend of fashion, art and music. That’s one of the reasons why I like No Art so much, because they do their fashion stuff and work with designers and artists. It’s very art- and design-led. I’m actually about to start a merch/fashion line. We’re going to do something around the release for No Art, just a very limited series.
Would you be designing this stuff, or will it be a collaboration?
My girlfriend’s actually a fantastic artist. She does tattoos, graphic design, loads of stuff. She’s unbelievably talented and her eye is amazing. So she helps with a lot of stuff like that. I’ve always had a very good vision of what I want and what looks good, so I’ll be semi-designing it, but with a little bit of help. A lot of exciting things are in the pipeline, so stay tuned!
