By Eric Budianto Thornton
The first time a Born Dirty edit caught me, it was buried in a back-to-back somewhere in the LA warehouse circuit, a track that swung from breaks to garage to off-kilter house and back, like the DJ was trolling the crowd. Then the room locked in. Then it broke open. Ten years and four passports deep, he’s still pulling it off.
His name is Mika Abadie. Born in Israel, raised in France, sharpened in London, currently running his weirder ideas out of East Los Angeles. The geography is the whole sound. “I grew up in a melting pot — Portuguese, Middle Eastern, African, and Eastern European families all sharing their culture in France,” he tells me. “Then I moved to the UK and a whole other wave of inspiration poured into my cup. In London, everything was up for grabs. ‘Hybridness’ was the unspoken word.”
That hybridness is the thread running through his March 6 return to Dirtybird, “Trippy Boys Trippy Girls”, a left-of-center club cut co-written with longtime collaborator Linden Jay. Arpeggiated synths spiral over jangling percussion. Basslines zipper in and out. The track sat in the drive for over a decade waiting for the right home.
“Made this 10 years ago and I remember thinking it was such a vibe and so different — we just needed the right label. Dirtybird was on my list. Funny how life works. It’s finally landed exactly where it was meant to.”
— Born Dirty
“It didn’t hit at shows in the US at first, especially with kids coming off the EDM sound,” he says. “But with time, it became one of my weapons.”
Born Dirty has been an underground staple for fifteen years. He first hit Dirtybird in 2016 with “Check Your Bell”, and has since released on Mad Decent, OWSLA, Fool’s Gold, and Armada. His collaborators — Diplo, LP Giobbi, Anna Lunoe — share no zip code sonically. The only through-line is restless curiosity.
He runs his own imprint, Way Way Records, which functions less like a label and more like a license. “Way Way was always a safe place. Anything goes. If it feels good then it’s locked.” On collabs, he doesn’t pretend to have a system. “I only work on vibes. Jam, see what sticks. Once you collectively find what those sonics are, the rest unfolds and ‘ting’ — a song is born.”
“Musically and as a human being, I’ve always been a nomad and always will. It’s literally in my DNA. I will never sell that for anything. And trust me — the price has been costly.”
— Born Dirty
Laurent Garnier’s mythic eight-to-ten-hour, all-tempos-welcome sets rewired what he thought a DJ could be. “Sometimes I’m in a mood for Breaks, sometimes Techno, sometimes Garage, sometimes House,” he says, “and most of the time, all of it at once — they melt into each other.”
“Trippy Boys Trippy Girls” is exactly that melt. On Dirtybird — a label two decades into building off-kilter beats on the same restless DNA — the track and the artist finally feel home. Catch him at Dirtybird Campout × Northern Nights July 17–19 in Piercy, California. The journey, after all, is the point.
The Full Interview: Born Dirty x FRANK151
If you could curate a three-day music festival — headliners only, dead or alive — who are your top three and why?
That’s a really tough and almost impossible to answer but let’s try.
Nina Simone for her genius, raw emotions and fierce outspokenness. Legendary songs.
Portishead, again for their genius, uniqueness, rawness, melodies and lyrics that would cut deep and one of the soundtracks of my childhood. Legendary.
Beastie Boys, absolute geniuses, constantly re-inventing themselves but still being themselves. The first time I saw them play live when I was a kid my life entirely changed. I walked in a kid and walked out a Beastie Boy.
You were raised in France, built your career in London, and now you’re out here in East LA. That’s a lot of passport stamps and a lot of scenes absorbed before anyone even heard a Born Dirty record. How much of that geography shaped your sound?
Geography had a huge impact on both my music and who I am. I grew up in a melting pot — Portuguese, Middle Eastern, African, and Eastern European families all sharing their traditions and culture, creating this beautiful mix in France. I was also lucky to start going to parties really young, where the DJs were bringing back music from the UK and the US.
That’s what shaped my eclectic taste. Shortly after, I moved to the UK and a whole other wave of inspiration and cultures poured into my cup. Saw the birth of many genres and witnessed the rise of it all. In London at that time, everything was up for grabs. “Hybridness” was the unspoken word. We were fusing all our influences together. Absolute blast of creativity. What a time to be alive!
“Trippy Boys Trippy Girls” is described as a track ten years in the making. Walk us through that — what did it sound like in year one versus what it became? What was the moment you knew it was finally finished?
It’s actually a track I made with my brother Linden Jay more than 10 years ago. We knew we’d made something unique, but we didn’t really know what to do with it, and a few labels passed on it. It didn’t hit at shows in the US at first, especially with the kids coming off the EDM sound, but with time, it became one of my weapons. Those two distinct drops have that double impact. We always felt Dirtybird would be the perfect home for it, so I’m really happy it finally found its way there.
Dirtybird has always had this very specific personality, playful, irreverent, a little weird in the best possible way. Your first appearance on the label was back in 2016 on the BBQ compilation. What made now the right time to come back, and did the label feel different to you creatively than it did a decade ago?
Ah! Well that’s a question for the label I would say. Ultimately, it’s all a timing thing and who connects with your energy and creativity.
You’ve been pretty vocal about the music industry’s habit of telling producers to “stay in their lane.” You’ve dropped on Mad Decent, OWSLA, Fool’s Gold, Night Bass , labels that don’t exactly share a zip code sonically. Does running Way Way Records give you the freedom to just ignore that conversation entirely, or does it still find you?
Way Way was always a safe place, and still is. Anything goes. If it feels good then it’s locked. I haven’t released much on my label recently but I’m def planning to. Musically and as a human being, I’ve always been a nomad and always will. It’s literally in my DNA. The beauty of exploring and openness. I will never sell that for anything. And trust me: the price has been costly.
You’ve collaborated with Diplo, LP Giobbi, Anna Lunoe — artists who all have very defined sonic identities. What’s your entry point in a collaboration — do you come in with a concept, or do you let the chemistry in the room dictate where it goes?
I only work on vibes. Jam, see what sticks. Nothing forced creatively. All collabs always come from a particular love of sonics. Once you collectively find, if you’re lucky, what those are, then the rest unfolds and “ting”! A song is born.
You mentioned in a past interview that seeing Laurent Garnier play eight-to-ten-hour sets, moving through every genre imaginable, basically rewired how you thought about DJing. Who’s doing that kind of genre-agnostic, trust-the-dancefloor-to-follow set for you right now in 2026? Anyone currently making you think that’s the standard?
Mate, I have bad news… I don’t go out clubbing anymore, haha. I really wish I had a good answer for you, but sadly I don’t. I know for certain the Laurent Garniers of today are out there and killing it. What I would say is that before I ever saw him play, I was already wired for the multitude of genres out there. Rules didn’t apply when it came to being creative. But seeing Laurent solidified the trajectory I was going to take. Then you get booked for a single hour set and sadly can’t take people on a full journey… but I certainly tried.
“Kaleidoscopic,” “off-kilter,” “woozy” — these are the words floating around the press notes for this record, and honestly they track. But what’s the actual feeling you’re chasing when you’re in the studio? Is there a specific moment on a dancefloor, a specific memory, that you’re always trying to recreate?
My mates and collaborators know… when I’m in the studio I never think of a track specifically to match an energy with. I just love jamming and see what sticks. I think my tunes are pretty hybrid in general and that’s because of all the influences I’m charged with. As Born Dirty (I have a bunch of aliases) I obviously try to keep the bumpers within reason. Something playable in clubs. I won’t make a Trip Hop EP if that makes sense. Sometimes I’m in a mood for Breaks, sometimes Techno, sometimes Garage and sometimes House and most of the time, all of it at once and so they melt into each other.
Stream it now.
Stream “Trippy Boys Trippy Girls” via Dirtybird | Follow on Instagram | Spotify | SoundCloud | Way Way Records