Embedded Files
18th January 2026
Bristol producer and DJ, Borai reflects on what happens when a track built for the underground hits virality, the legal and creative realities of bootlegs and sampling, and what it means to stay underground even when the music breaks into the mainstream.
Some electronic tracks live quietly through clubs and rave culture, while others blow a scene wide open. For Borai, those two worlds collided when his collaboration with Denham Audio on ‘Make Me’ unexpectedly reached millions overnight.
Some electronic tracks live quietly through clubs and rave culture, while others blow a scene wide open. For Borai, those two worlds collided when his collaboration with Denham Audio on ‘Make Me’ unexpectedly reached millions overnight.
Going Viral, Signing Sony, Staying Underground
Borai has been part of Bristol nightlife for years, shaped by the city’s sound system history and record shops – spending much of his younger years working on dubplates. At the recent Nobody is Watching event at the Pickle Factory, crowds reacted immediately to his track ‘Anybody From London’, known to many from Hodge’s (Alfresco Disco) 2015 Boiler Room set.
Borai's most well-known track ‘Make Me’ arrived during a wave of UK breakbeat and rave revival energy in the late 2010s. Built from a Donna Allen sample (‘Serious’, 1986), the track spread fast.
It wasn’t planned to be a hit, and certainly not constructed for mainstream attention. But online sharing, club and radio plays, and word of mouth pushed it to a scale that took Borai by surprise. Plays from DJs like La La on her MixMag Lab London, and Annie Mac on Radio 1, pushed the track into an 'underground' hit.
The success brought complications though, as the sample was unlicensed, and the track was pulled from streaming platforms. After then reaching virality that major labels could not ignore, Sony approached to clear and officially release the song, turning an underground tune into a major-label ‘product’.
What followed was a choice. Either sign multiple releases with a corporate giant, or sign just this one. Borai chose to do the latter.
He speaks openly about the tension between underground culture and major label strictures, that have a habit of stifling creative freedoms. ‘Make Me’ went to Sony, but the direction of Borai’s career did not.
That unusual route to release also shaped how the track lives today. 'Make Me' still feels like a hidden gem, where people recognise it instantly but can’t quite place where it’s from. Its fragmented release means it isn’t tied to a single year or scene, allowing it to move through DJ sets like something half-remembered yet familiar, making it still feel special.
Club Glow
Today, Borai puts more energy into Club Glow, a collective and events project run with close friends comprised of Borai himself, Denham Audio, L Major, and Mani Festo. The group is split across cities, with many now based in London – making events sometimes challenging, but always feel special.
Their Club Glow nights are loose by design: no setlists, back-to-back energy, and each DJ picking up where the last left off. The recent Croft show continued that approach, keeping the focus on atmosphere.
He is also regularly playing with his partner, dontforgettogohome, describing their collaboration as both fun and motivating. Working closely has pushed him to stay sharp and rethink selections.
Alongside all this, Borai has leaned more into promoting his own events – something he mostly avoided earlier in his career. Running nights means more logistics, more pressure, risk, social media, but also freedom to create. A place like The Croft is great for this, and it was truly special to see Club Glow nights back in Bristol!
For a producer known for tracks that have burst into global consciousness, Borai remains grounded by Bristol’s culture: sampling, risk-taking, collaboration, and a genuine love for music. It’s a reminder that while sometimes underground tracks hit the mainstream, underground values don’t have to change with them.
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