Get To Know: Josh Gregg

who are you?

josh gregg - dj/producer/general tunes enjoyer. i live in birmingham and grew up nearby in the black country. i've been djing since before i was old enough to go out and started making tunes to try and make that happen. since 2024 i've been running my own imprint 'poles apart' where i show off all the different kinds of music i love.

what started your journey in music?

i can trace it back to being on msn at like 12 years old and people would pass me onto their mates for new music recs. this developed into me deep diving into artists, genres, scenes whatever - didn't really know what digging was at the time but i guess that's what i was doing. this then lead to me learning about clubs and nightlife and i was hooked. started djing in clubs at 14/15 and starting putting out tunes at 16.

its been a constant in my life this whole time and i still spam my mates with about 25 links to new music a day...

5 tracks that never leave your usb?

chiapet - westworld (skylark edit)
djebali - original rude boy
liberty city - if you really love someone (murk strikes again mix)
dvs1 - black russian
tuccillo - city lights

whats your day to day grind outside of the studio?

i've worked full time as an a&r in music publishing since 2022. largely, my day-to-day is working to connect artists/writers with opportunities and helping to find and develop new talent.

creative publishing is fun, as it's focused on the creation of songs rather than getting bogged down in the business side of working a record. you have an opportunity to try out concepts and ideas. it's taught me a lot about areas of music i'd have no idea about otherwise!

main goal as a producer/dj right now?

a few years back, i started making music with an idea of moments in my head. when you're in a flow of making music to have an impact on the weekend it informs the stuff you write and can get quite formulaic.

my goal now when i'm in the studio is to make records that stand alone + when the time is right will hopefully soundtrack some special moments. with djing, the goal is always the same - just being able to continue sharing music i really love with dancefloors who have patience.

your favourite moment so far?

i always think back to when skream's remix of my track deadline got played on pete tong's radio 1 show. skream is one of my all time heroes so to have him release + remix a track of mine was mental enough. then to have pete choose the remix as one of his essential selections sent me over the edge.

name 5 up and coming artists everyone should check out?

ryan nicholls
liv ravden
lws
sam girling
lily c-d

advice you wish you had sooner?

trust yourself. i spent too long trying to find a middle point of acceptability that i started to lose what made me fun. embrace your unique traits.

your top 5 djs?

derrick carter
ryan elliott
sedef adasi
traumer
kamma & masalo

biggest challenge in your career so far?

i still think i'm struggling now with how online the scene became in 2020.

i'm chronically online but i've found it hard trying to get what i do across in an authentic way. shortform social media is partially why dancefloor attention spans are so low + it's becoming harder and harder for djs to experiment. part of the reason i started the label is it can act as almost a digital cv of the stuff i do in one place.

what’s coming up/next for you?

my new ep has just dropped on mnvr records. first 3 tracker since my war ep on of unsound mind in 2022. mnvr is a non-profit label and all proceeds on the ep will be going to youth music charities.

following this i'm switching back into poles apart. i released 10 tracks without releasing elsewhere for the first 10 drops, but i'm going to be mixing it up more in future. i've also been working on a few special collaborations which will hopefully be seeing the light of day.

last record you bought?

i've literally just pre-ordered pancratio's album on faith beat. very excited.

a track you wish you produced?

denis sulta - it's only real. perfection.

bucket list club / festival?

circoloco dc10. would be the retirement achievement.

most memorable show?

probably playing for 3 hours in fabric rm1 b2b with tommy vercetti. tom in my opinion is one of the greatest the uk has ever produced and fabric is the pinnacle of uk clubbing. all of our friends were there too, very special one.

who’s one producer you’d love to watch in the studio for a day?

eden burns. he's consistently churned out amazing music for years now and sounds so distinctive no matter what style he moves into.