Founded in South London by Errol and Alex Rita, Touching Bass moves between dancefloor, radio, live performance, and label work, anchored by a long-running residency on NTS Radio and a commitment to Black and diasporic sound. Over the years, it has evolved into a multidisciplinary platform, dedicated to experimentation, collaboration, and community-driven programming across different spaces and formats.
To mark ten years of the platform, Touching Bass brought its anniversary tour to Berlin for a collaborative weekender with SHUSH, combining live music, food, and dance across two days of programming.
TITLE spoke with Errol, Maxwell Owin, Naima Adams, and d’monk about community, creative independence, and sustaining cultural spaces through music.
Congrats on 10 years of Touching Bass. What was the original vision behind Touching Bass, and how has it evolved over the past decade?
Errol (Founder of Touching Bass): When I started Touching Bass, the core mission was really simple: create a space that reflected the music and community I felt connected to but wasn’t seeing fully represented in London at the time. It was about a reverence for the multifaceted nature of people’s music tastes, the soundsystem continuum and ultimately, friendship.
Over time, that’s expanded into something much broader—a platform that supports artists at different stages, across different cities, and across different formats. But the core hasn’t changed. It’s still about integrity in the music and care in how things are presented. I had a quiet confidence that things could reach where they are today. The power of manifestation is real. As is building things slowly, consistently and with solid foundations; especially at a time when haste and virality seems to be reigning supreme.
Q: What does Touching Bass mean to you?
Naima (Label and Community Manager at Touching Bass): Touching Bass resonates with me deeply, from the values we stand for to our commitment to platforming Black and brown artists, and the care we put into being artist-friendly. That approach is still rare in the music industry, and I’m proud of the work we do because we genuinely try to do right by the people we work with. It’s also how I try to move through my own career, whether in collaborations or within Touching Bass.
Maxwell (DJ and TB Family): Touching Bass has had a huge impact on me, both musically and personally. What Errol, Alex, and the team have built over the past decade is incredibly special, a space rooted in love, community, and real commitment to the music. I was supported very early on, and that encouragement has stayed with me throughout my journey. TB is one of those rare movements that stays deeply connected to people while remaining true to its vision.
Q: What’s surprised you most about building Touching Bass?
Errol: Probably the level of responsibility that comes with it. When you start something like this, you’re thinking about the immediate, putting on a good night, bringing people together. But over time, you realise it becomes a public service of sorts; something that people invest in emotionally and culturally. That comes with a different kind of weight.
Q: Your lineups often balance emerging artists with more established names. What guides your curation process?
Errol: It’s always been about dialogue, creating conversations between artists, across generations and scenes. For the anniversary tour, there’s definitely been a conscious effort to reflect the history of Touching Bass while still pushing things forward. That means bringing back artists who’ve been part of the journey, but also making space for people who represent where things are heading or who have paved the way.
Q: Looking back at the anniversary tour so far, what have been the standout moments?
Errol: That feeling of walking into rooms full of people in completely different parts of the world. Each one carrying that familiar and familial energy that we love about our London gatherings; like walking into your friend’s home. Some of the standout moments have actually been the quieter ones—seeing all the interweaving connections across locations and people intermingling.
Naima: I have to say, the Friday concert in Berlin felt absolutely magical. Dancing with everyone to Love & Death by Ebo Taylor is a memory that’ll stay with me for a very long time.
Q: You had Alex & Erroll play at one of your first nights back in 2022, and now you’ve just celebrated their 10th Anniversary with them. What drew SHUSH and Touching Bass together?
d’monk: (Co-founder of SHUSH): Touching Bass as a crew and community centre a more wholesome approach toward their events which is something we align with. Coupled with a strong focus on music of an eclectic nature and freedom of selection, I feel like we are coming from a similar place and there’s a mutual love and respect there.
Q: How did the Touching Bass ethos translate in Berlin?
Errol: Hearing gabber mixes at midday while you’re in a park will always take some time to get my head around haha. But there’s also so much to love about the soulful underbelly of Berlin music. Our friends from SHUSH were the perfect siblings in that sense. They’re at the heart of a tight-knit community who are on a similar journey to us. Amazing soundsystem, down-to-earth people and open ears.
Q: Describe the atmosphere of the TB10 x SHUSH event. What were your standout moments from the weekend?
Maxwell: Both nights felt electric, full of intention, warmth and genuine love for music from everyone involved, from crew to crowd. It was beautiful to see such a strong DIY community in Berlin. A real highlight was Afrobeat Academy’s Tribute to Ebo Taylor on the Friday, especially Ekow on drums, which completely blew me away. On Saturday, sharing music with Brother Portrait felt really special, he’s one of my favourite writers and collaborators, and the crowd gave us so much love. I also have to mention Ken Okuda’s closing set at sunrise; hearing “Where Will You Go When The Party’s Over” as the light came through the windows was one of those unforgettable dancefloor moments.
d’monk: Ooof good question — there were a few. For me, I think hearing Maxwell Owin rip Red by Artwork on the systems (we had two in tandem that night) and everyone in the crowd skankin’. It’s moving for me as Max, being a close friend but also a deep inspiration for me over the years, getting all those people moving felt like we were at the Fox & Firkin in South London. It was special.
Q: What role does SHUSH play in Berlin’s creative scene?
Naima: Before this trip, I hadn’t experienced many SHUSH events firsthand, I’d mostly come to know the community through D’Monk, who we’ve worked with at Touching Bass. Being able to travel to Berlin meant I could finally meet the wider team and properly experience what they’ve built, and honestly, it reminded me a lot of how Touching Bass feels in London. I think it’s really important that SHUSH provides a space for people who maybe don’t connect with the more mainstream Berlin music and creative scene, instead they offer something genuinely beautiful and alternative.
Maxwell: SHUSH introduced me to Berlin’s music scene back in 2024 when they first invited me out to DJ, and they’ve shown me so much kindness and support ever since. They’ve built a really beautiful community around music, connection, and openness, and I’ll always be grateful to them for that. I wouldn’t claim to know the Berlin scene deeply, but from what I’ve experienced, SHUSH feels genuinely respected and loved. The energy at their dances says everything; people are fully present, moving, connecting, and feeling the music deeply. That kind of space is really important.
Q: Cross-cultural collaboration is so important to the music community. Have you learned anything through working with each other?
d’monk: Most certainly — diversity behind the booth and on the dance floor is essential for us, but honestly, that should just be in the nature of the thing too. I feel like the beautiful thing about music is how it connects folks. It’s almost as if certain vibrations attract certain likeminded folk and for us, it just happened very organically. Regarding Errol, Alex and the TB crew, they pay a lot of attention to the details and the honing of their community through the diversity of events, which is inspiring.
Q: After celebrating 10 years, what feels important for the next phase of Touching Bass?
Errol: Consolidation, space, dancing (still!) and perhaps also self/communal preservation. We’re now at a stage where we can see how our ethos is influencing a newer generation, which feels like the biggest compliment. The mission is far from complete, but the ongoing question is how we can continue serving people in ways that remain honest, adaptive and useful. And to just keep dreaming…
Q: What’s next for SHUSH and Touching Bass?
d’monk: I definitely have a couple things growing in the garden with TB. Watch this space!
