10 Best Modern Day Budots According to DJ Love

Filipino ‘Budots’ pioneer DJ and producer, Sherwin Tuna, AKA DJ Love, has just dropped a fire new Budots tune, 'Sabak Sa DJ Basuri,' a cut from his upcoming debut album, 'Budots World (Reloaded),’ released 7th August through Eastern Margins.

Love explains that his new single was inspired by the commonplace sound of the 'Basuri Horn' of the buses in Davao. "This horn is very entertaining, so I created a Budots style version of it, then paired it with vocals inspired by 'Sabak sa DJ' and 'Paro Paro G' (fellow Budots producers) as a tribute."

For those not yet familiar with Budots, the dance music style originated in the southern part of the Philippines in the 2010s. The name ‘Budots’ is derived from a Bisaya slang word meaning “slacker”. Originally loaded with derogatory connotations around juvenile delinquency, it was in fact DJ Love who helped to turn the word into an art form of expression.

Love is heading to London in September for a set at Margins United Festival on 28 September, taking place at EartH in Hackney.

Ahead of his debut record, DJ Love selects 10 of his favourite Budots tracks to introduce you to the genre.

“These are some tracks that inspired my recent Boiler Room set and some of my staples, a lot of it represents the core sound and spirit of Budots as well as the trajectory its headed with its evolutions and its mutations. This charts an exciting time for Budots in general and I’m happy to share these favourites with you," Love shares.

"DJ Ericnem always deliver quality works he’s one of the key figures and pioneers to join me and is one of the best producers of the Budots genre, half of my crates are populated by his tracks."

"DJ Danz is another one the Budots Pioneers, I’m forever astonished and in awe of his rendition/remake of 'Bonjour'; its super potent, wild and high energy it really gets you moving on the dance floor, its one of the tracks I dropped in my recent boiler room set, he’s definitely one of the best to carry the Budots genre."

"DJ Sandy is more known for his hit song 'Paro Paro G'. Because of him, I was inspired to to make my track 'Sabak Sa DJ' that utilizes the basuri horn, which was heavily influenced by DJ sandy. This is a track of his that I dropped in my Boiler Room set."

"DJ KRZ is a really amazing Budots producer. I love his 'Angel Baby and Darna' remix, it's one of my secret weapons during my Boiler Room set. He has a great knack for balance in his mixes and the style of his lead synths."

"DJ Jhustine is a fairly new producer but his style is unique and distinct mostly evident in his song 'Hataw.' He’s quickly becoming one among the best and I always use his tracks in my DJ sets."

"One of my favourite songs during the pandemic. I used to drop it a lot in my pandemic streams. He has a unique style and quality to his Budots."

"DJ Sniper is good at remixing trending songs and is a very skilled Budots producer who has an ear for what's good and what's up to date. I love playing this track in my sets!"

"DJ Jorge aka obese.dogma777 took me by surprise. I was quite astonished and amazed, it literally put me in shock when I caught him doing his live set rehearsal in Boiler Room. I've never heard anything like his Budots-infused tracks and the way he manipulates them live as a performance, he’s really something else. I think he is really one of a kind."

"Pikunin was the back to back partner of obese.dogma777 during Boiler Room. He has a very hyper energy, him and Jorge really made me think of Budots in a different way with the way they speed it up to 160 BPM, and call it Hyper Budots. Sir Luis really helps push the sound further with his unique takes on the genre and his high intensity live performances."

"Teya Logos is a unique DJ producer who fuses Budots with Gabber, Hardstyle, Techno in a way that I’ve never encountered before, she brings a very abrasive style by infusing industrial and noise elements to the genre but also brings a very Gen Z sound and attitude to the genre. I appreciate her contributions and the way she champions the sound in her live performances."

Watch the video for new single ’Sabak Sa DJ Basuri’ below.

DJ Love plays Margins United Festival by Eastern Margins on 28th Sep in London. Buy tickets here.

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