Few artists have experienced as many chapters of electronic music as Paul Oakenfold. From the underground club culture of 1980s London to helping define the global sound of trance and progressive house, his career has consistently existed at the intersection of innovation and instinct. Long before electronic music became a worldwide phenomenon, Oakenfold was already pushing boundaries — bringing Balearic sounds to the UK, shaping iconic remixes, discovering groundbreaking talent, and proving that dance music could exist everywhere from intimate clubs to the biggest stages on the planet.
Throughout his career, Oakenfold has never been confined to one lane. His work has crossed into hip-hop, rock, film scoring, and pop while maintaining the unmistakable energy that made him a highly influential figure in dance music. As the founder of Perfecto Records and a pioneer who helped shape generations of DJs and producers, he continues to evolve alongside the culture he helped build.
With the impending release of his album Mission Underground via Perfecto Records during a renewed global appreciation for trance and melodic electronic music, Oakenfold finds himself once again connected to a new wave of listeners while drawing from the sounds and experiences that defined his own journey. Between a relentless international touring schedule and a career still driven by curiosity, he remains focused on what has always mattered most: the music, the connection, and the moments created on the dancefloor.
We caught up with Paul Oakenfold to discuss Mission Underground, the resurgence of classic trance sounds, his approach to collaboration, the evolution of DJ culture, and what continues to inspire one of electronic music’s most enduring innovators.
You’ve always had an instinct for records that feel cinematic and club-focused at the same time. When you’re working on a single, what tells you that the emotion and energy are landing correctly?
I always tend to road test records before releasing them, and as you can see from my tour diary, I’m constantly gigging at clubs and festivals and exotic locations around the world, including some really unexpected venues like Mount Everest Base Camp, atop The Great Wall of China, Stonehenge and even the Galapagos islands! With all those shows playing to so many different types of people and cultures, I think I have a unique understanding of what works and what doesn’t.
Mission Underground follows the larger Mission concept while pulling together new productions, collaborations, remixes and reinterpretations. What connects this particular body of work for you?
I chose some of the records I was playing back in the day, some people’s favorites, and I have redone them in a techno trance style. I think it’s something special and I hope listeners connect with it also.
The album includes names connected to different eras and corners of electronic music, from trance and progressive to techno and psychedelic influences. How did you approach curating that range without losing the identity of the project?
I reached out to some of my favorites, asking if they’d be up for a collab. This is how it all came together. It felt effortless and like we were all in the creative flow.
Electronic music is in an interesting place right now, with younger audiences rediscovering trance, progressive and more melodic sounds. What do you think is driving that return?
For sure it’s 90’s trance! A lot of people are sampling from that era and doing new interpretations of those great, classic records. There’s just really a sound from that era that you don’t hear anymore. It’s not just a stylistic era, like something that’s fashionable; but you actually don’t get records being produced from a technical and technological standpoint like that, anymore. I think there’s a real hunger for that tactile authenticity in the current age. I’ve seen the reaction on the dancefloor when I drop some of the ‘90’s classics, and people go mental! Literally, they lose their minds.
You were part of shaping the first global wave of DJ culture. When you hear younger producers referencing that era now, does it feel nostalgic, or does it feel like the music is entering a new cycle?
It definitely feels like music is entering a new cycle. They are reworking these old tunes but with fresh ideas and some new perspectives on the music based on their own life experiences. It’s great to see it and it breathes new longevity into the music.
The United Champions Tour draws to a close and we’re wondering how the tour went and if you have any plans to extend the tour for a third leg after this summer?
The tour has gone incredibly well, and we’ve already been asked to do leg three of the tour in October and November! I could not be more pleased with the turnout and the reaction from clubbers during the summer leg of this tour. It’s been such a blast, and I got to join the UK team at several World Cup games, which is why I named the tour ‘The United Champions Tour.’ It was a play on words between the World Cup and the DJ tour being myself with The Crystal Method.
You’ve worked across film, pop, underground club culture and global festival stages. Do you see those worlds as separate lanes, or are they all part of the same creative language for you?
They all live under the banner of dance music. That is what’s great about our culture. You can work in different lanes and enjoy it.
There is a constant tension now between legacy, relevance and reinvention. How do you keep moving forward without overthinking your own history?
I wasn’t aware of any tension! I think, as an artist, you focus on yourself and do the very best you can do.
Looking ahead, you've already accomplished more than most artists could ever hope to achieve. What continues to inspire you creatively, and what do you want the next chapter of your career and legacy to look like?
I enjoy what I do and look forward to new challenges that come around the corner, and I deal with them head on. There will definitely be more great music, and playing some amazing shows!
Listen to Paul Oakenfold's discography here:
