“When I think about creating a recorded mix I always try to imagine an audience—naturally, certain crowds I played for around the world come to mind—and I try to channel the energy I felt in those moments,” DJ Lag tells Apple Music. The South African DJ and producer kicks off the new International Pantsula series with a deep, rhythmic mix, incorporating throbbing tracks from fellow South Africans, Dlala Thukzin and Assiye Bongzin, and Beyoncé’s “MY POWER”, which Lag co-produced. International Pantsula Vol. 1 serves as the perfect showcase for the gqom sound—the raw, bass-heavy style of house music of which Lag has been a key pioneer. Gqom’s mesmerising intensity is best experienced in the club, but Lag embraces the new avenues that capturing that electric feeling opens him up to, creatively. “It’s totally different than playing live, obviously, but it gives me the freedom to explore a bit further and give fans a true reflection of the mindset I have, and the type of music I am feeling, at that point in time,” he says. “The response is not immediate but it’s also cool to leave something I cooked sizzling in people’s minds.”