Recognise 115: Akua

Inspired by formative mid-‘90s mixtapes, Berlin-based Akua records a double-sided vinyl-only mix for DJ Mag’s Recognise series, encompassing funk-fuelled jacking house on the A-side, and tough, roiling techno on the B-side.

The Ghanaian-American DJ also speaks to Claire Francis about her multi-directional journey through techno scenes on both sides of the Atlantic, and her reverence for the genre as means of self-expression and exploration.

Akua has had a gloriously techno-filled summer. On a video call from her home in Berlin, the Ghanaian-American DJ is reflecting on her supercharged run of recent sets at landmark festivals, from The Great Beyond and Wire in the US, to Awakenings, Veta, Lighthouse, Stone Techno, and Sónar in Europe.

I love when I get to have micro-interactions and sweet moments with my audience. These past months have renewed that love, and also showed me that it’s an absolute need in my life.”.

Known for her lightning-bolt selections of old-school cuts from the late ‘90s and early 2000s, seamlessly mixed with freshly-minted modern day productions, Akua channels the foundational sounds of Detroit and Chicago into her own mind-melting techno masterclasses.

Energetic and deeply engaged both behind the decks and in conversation, her love for seeking connection through acid sounds and rave music is nothing short of infectious.

That joie de vivre has also resulted in some big collaborative moments for Akua in recent months, with notable names in techno queuing up to play b2b with her at clubs and festivals across the globe.

During an early-morning set at Spain’s Veta festival, she and Swedish DJ Philippa Pacho closed things out with a suite of relentlessly barrelling energy, all locked in place with a vibrant sense of dynamic funk.

Akua’s ability to flit between techno’s different forms is central to her magnetic DJing style, from hypnotic rollers and hardgroove through to classic Detroit tracks and intense contemporary slammers.

That restless energy also comes through in her recorded mixes. One of the first sets that helped her break through internationally was a 2018 set for Discwoman.

Over the past 18 months, she’s put down killer sets for Rinse FM with DJ Stingray, a BBC Radio 1 Guest Mix, and a slamming all-vinyl odyssey for Illian Tape, bringing the fast, banging sensibility of her gigs to her recorded output.

The constant movement in her selections is irresistible; records are pitched up and pushed hard, with red-hot rarities sourced via passionate crate-digging.

Her contribution to DJ Mag’s Recognise is no exception to this. It’s her first official mix release of 2026, and leans into her preference for all-vinyl sets. “The concept is to do two halves, like an actual old-school style mixtape,” she tells us ahead of recording, citing the inspiration of Chicago's DJ Hyperactive and his self-released, mid-’90s 'Relevance' mixtape, which was split into A- and B-sides of jacking house and journeying techno respectively.

The mix is also, in part, a departure from a summer spent playing at full throttle. “It’s been nice to do so many shows, but I’ve been playing a lot of banging techno.

I love the bangers, I live for the bangers!” she laughs. “But I think I need to do something that feels like a palate cleanser for myself.”.

Now residing in Europe’s techno capital, it seems fitting to ask a simple question: what is it about this music that’s led her on this path? What is it about techno that lights that fire in her.

It’s meant to be exploratory – it’s not meant to be one-dimensional or static.”.

As Akua has grown into the expansive DJ she is today, her sound palette has grown too, though her digging habits remain anchored to her particular fondness for records made during techno’s mid-’90s gold rush.

In an interview with Resident Advisor in 2023, she described filtering her Discogs searches for records released between 1994 and 1999, and that base strategy still largely holds.

Illuminating the connections between techno’s past and present is part of what Akua sees as a wider moment currently taking place in North America, where she’s noticed something of a renaissance in the genre, with a new wave of artists studying the foundational works and modes of pioneering artists.

Moving to Berlin has opened her eyes to a marked difference between the techno scenes in North America and Europe, where more established infrastructure and commercial influence has inevitably created a somewhat more rigid and trend-defined sonic landscape, where certain dancefloors seek familiarity in line with their preferences over more challenging sets.

Adapting to these differences, and the level of uninvited feedback that comes with them, all while remaining true to her thrillingly wide-angle approach, has been a muscle-strengthening process that Akua has ultimately come out more assured off that back of.

There is also, of course, the issue of contemporary techno’s problem with diversity. Look at some of the most prominent techno line-ups at clubs and festivals across Europe, and you’ll inevitably notice a glaring absence of Black techno artists on the bill, and even fewer Black women.

Embora ela veja sinais de mudança, especialmente por meio de coletivos que impulsionam a conversa, o tema da raça na cena techno europeia ainda tem um longo caminho a percorrer.

For Akua, all of this makes honouring the lineage of women who came before her all the more significant. “One of my main influences – bless her, bless her spirit – is K-Hand”, she says, referring to the late Kelli Hand, the trailblazing First Lady of Detroit Techno who was a key force in the male-dominated early techno scene.

For all the different directions Akua’s thundering sets might take, that same sense of individuality is the constant running through them all. As summer winds down and she looks toward the remainder of the year, which will take her to Refuge in New York, Tresor.

West in Dortmund, multiple parties during this year’s Amsterdam Dance Event, and beyond, it’s an energy she’ll be carrying with her.

Beyond that, she’s also set to expand her work beyond the parameters of DJing, diving headfirst into production and getting back into writing, a practice she hit pause on some years ago while starting her pursuits in music, but which she now feels ready to explore once again, no doubt fuelled by the assured sense of self expression that techno has granted her.

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