Music
Behind the B2B Phenomenon: Back-to-Back Sets Explained
Unpacking the B2B: behind the cultural phenomenon, its history, standout performances + tips and tricks.
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Ready for Red Bull Back2Beyond? Never before B2B sets from CC:Disco, Moktar, RONA. and Ayebatonye November 15th.
The B2B has become a household name, a buzzword echoed through stadiums and speakers. More recently, by Charli XCX in her title track, ‘B2B’ and locally, in the mainstream success of powerhouse duo’s: X Club and IN2STELLAR.
But what actually is a B2B? Ahead of Australia’s Red Bull Back2Beyond, we took a moment to deep dive into the B2B, its humble beginnings and rise to the international performance phenomenon that it is today.
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What is a B2B?
The B2B is short for back-to-back. It’s a ‘tag team’ approach to mixing, with each DJ taking a turn to mix a song, sometimes two in at a time. When thinking about this literally, the B2B might be better understood as a ‘side to side.’ As the name suggests, the B2B usually functions with two artists, although there are no hard rules, often performed in groups of three and above.
At its core the B2B is a collaborative undertaking between two artists, creating opportunities for unexpected blends and fresh energies, while presenting the DJ with new challenges: working with music, sounds or styles that aren’t their own.
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The B2B: A Brief History
The B2B’s history extends as far as the origins of DJing itself, revolutionsied in the 70’s by the Father of Hip-Hop DJ Kool Herc, in the Bronx, New York. In the early days of turntablism, long before the arrival of CDJ’s B2B’s were an unofficial performance style, born out of necessity and community spirit. They were also a way of sharing expensive gear, music and time - allowing DJ’s to sub in and out and for breaks during extended sets. At this time, DJ’s didn’t hold the level of celebrity we see today, often working in supporting roles, spinning beats for Hip-Hop artists or mixing vinyl at disco’s, while their audience faced the other way.
In the 80’s to early 90’s DJ’s duos like Frankie Knuckles and Ron Hardy were beginning to take shape across Chicago and Detroit, although these performances were yet to be promoted as acts in and of themselves. It wasn’t until the mid 90’s that B2B’s became popularised, cemented during the rise of global superclubs like the Ministry of Sound and exciting developments in technology, MP3 files and CDJ’s which made electronic music more accessible.
Breaking into the 2000’s saw DJing reframed as a craft worthy of its own celebrity, marked by big moments like the 2004 Olympic games, opened by Tiësto. The new millennium also saw the rise in popularity of group acts: Underworld, The Chemical Brothers, Daft Punk and B2B duos: Carl Cox and Adam Beyer.
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Standout Performances:
Jamie xx, Caribou + Four Tet, The Grand Palais (2012)
Long-time collaborators Jamie xx and Four Tet came together with Caribou for a b3b, performed at The Grand Palais, an art museum in Paris’ city centre.
The mix symbolises a coming together of the most exciting UK indie-pop and electronic artists at the time, performing in a place previously reserved for more ‘formal’ classical music - not dance.
Nina Kravitz B2B Helana Hauff, Time Warp (2019)
Nina Kravitz and Helena Hauff are undoubtedly some of the biggest names in techno and hard dance. Hauff in particular is no stranger to the B2B, collaborating with Ben UFO and local favourite Moopie.
Together they deliver a masterclass in hypnotic dance and femme production, a combination, which still feels generally scarce in electronic music, even today.
3 Chairs (Moodymann, Theo Parrish, Rick Wilhite, Marcellus Pittman), Newlab Detroit (2025)
Widely known as the pioneers of Detroit House: Moodymann, Theo Parrish, Rick Wilhite and Marcellus Pittman performed as 3 Chairs, each with over 25 years - 40 of experience mixing and making music.
As a group they performed up until May of this year: traversing deep house, soul, jazz and funk, spinning records and digital tracks with flow and ease. Moodyman and Theo Parish have also been key figureheads at Red Bull’s music academy hosting many lectures and live sessions over the years.
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Your Own B2B: Tips & Tricks
Getting Familiar with Your Music
Becoming a confident B2B partner comes down to your selections and whole lot of practice, which for the most part means really knowing your music.
To mix records, you need to be able to recall a track simply by looking at it’s skin. While MP3 files have made it easier to collect lots of music, this can sometimes come at the cost of getting to know our tracks well enough.
As a rule of thumb, It’s a good idea to listen to new music at least three times before you play the song out. Mixing into music you don’t know is challenging enough, so make sure you’ve got your own tracks covered by really getting to know their flow and phrasing.
Prepare for Everything
While, in an ideal world, you might have the opportunity to practice with your B2B partner in advance, it’s likely, on occasion, that you’re paired up with someone that you don’t know.
In either case, DJing is a skill that relies on your ability to adapt. It’s all well and good to pre-prepare a set, but chances are you may need to make some adjustments based on what your audience responds to, or what feels best in the moment.
You might also find yourself mixing a bit faster than you would on your own. In which case it’s a good idea to prepare at least 30 tracks per hour, setting aside music for in case you get stuck: tracks you find easy to mix, and chuggy crowd-pleasers to keep the energy going.
Don’t Overthink It
DJing is supposed to be fun, and with the unpredictability of B2B’s, it’s likely you might run into a couple of ‘bad’ mixes. While painful in the moment, these only last a few seconds. Your audience will always remember a great track and rarely an off mix.
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Where to Catch a B2B
On Saturday 15th November, Red Bull Back2Beyond is coming to Sydney/Eora’s Roundhouse for a night of B2B’s across three stages.
Curated by CC:Disco: experience music from Moktar, RONA. and Ayebatonye in a revolutionary 360 performance experience. Read more and secure your tickets here.
You can also tune into b2b’s digitally via online radio platforms: including Rinse FM.
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