IF you lived anywhere in the UK, telling you who Annie Mac is would be as redundant as telling you who…well…I guess there is no one in America comparable, because we simply don’t have the same affinity for DJs and radio as they do in the land of trainers and crumpets. There, BBC Radio 1 is a cultural staple whose shows are listened to by millions. Here, all we got similar is Howard Stern and his Butt Bongo Bonanza. Hardly a bastion of progressive music.

So Annie Mac (aka Macmanus) has followed in the footsteps of the pioneering Mary Anne Hobbs in pushing forward all things bass — dubstep, D&B, UK Funki, grime, 2-step, breaks, etc. Although “fringe” genres, Annie’s mixes are hardly music nerd affairs — they’re fully sweaty, sloppy, hands-in-the-air sets that’ll leave your head ringing. Recently Annie Mac took over the much-coveted slot ‘officially starting the weekend’ every Friday night after Pete Tong stepped down. Now that’s props.

For a taste, we have two mixes to download for your upcoming weekend of booziness — her Essential Live at Privilege Ibiza mix which is a more on-point rep of her style, and a slightly off-genre Y.M.A.C. Disco Mix. What more could you ask for?

Check out her US TOUR DATES and Q&A after the Jump…

Your first on-air gig was as a stand-in for Mary Anne Hobbs — was that difficult?

She is very much an influence —her show was the one that made me realize my dream was feasible. Her show the Breezeblock helped shaped my music tastes.. I discovered a lot of stuff thru her show: Les Rythm Digitales, the Wiseguys, etc..

What is it you most love about radio? You’re inextricably tied to the format, yet many people in the US would consider it a dieing medium – especially here in America where intelligent, progressive, independent stations are falling and being converted into this generic horde of Top 40 schlock – Black Eyed Peas, Beyonce, Miley Cyrus, Drake, etc. What do you think makes it so powerful, and will it survive?

I love radio for its intimacy; it is brain-to-brain contact. The reason why I think (hope?) It will never die is that in the BBC, they value the presenters for their personalities and their on-air charisma as well as their ability to present shows. You grow to love them, flaws and all.

You’re known to really mix things up and play across genres – D&B, dubstep, B’more, etc, so musically what have you been really excited about this year? What has really jumped out at you?

I’ve been loving Skream’s work. His remixes of Bat for Lashes – “Pearl’s Dream”, and Chromeo (“Night By Night”) are incredible. Also a guy called Hot City who makes bouncey two steppy house music is smashing it at the moment. SBTRKT is the same vein. UK Funki has come thru quite strong this year —It’s exciting to me. Check out Lil Silva for a good example of that sound.

Well, we don’t have Lil Silva, but check out Geeneus w/ Katy B below for another example of the UK Funki sound…

What do you see as the future for dubstep and D&B? Is the latter making a noticeable return wherever you play?

D&b is a funny one — it’s not the ‘trendiest’ of styles, but it’s massive for me with younger crowds. It never gets too hyped but at the same time it never dies — it’s always there bubbling under.

Can you enlighten the US audience about the difference between your Friday night show (MASHUP) and Sunday night (Switch)?

Yep switch is the Sunday night radio show. I co-present with my friend Grimmy and it’s a show for teenagers — we play new bands and talk about all sorts of stuff…it’s crazy and chaotic and full of laughter…that’s why I do it. The Friday show is purely a club music show — the tunes are selected and programmed by me, and it also has a sense of fun about it. And a sense of anticipation for the weekend ahead!

Check out Annie’s Tour Schedule below if you wanna see her in the flesh this upcoming week…

Annie Mac North American Tour Dates

September 24 – Popscene w/ Dead Souls LIVE – San Francisco, CA
September 25 – Discotheque – Los Angeles, CA
September 26 – Barcelona Bar w/ Ian Orth & Thomas – Austin, TX
September 27 – Venue w/ Expendable Youth and MY!GAY!HUSBAND! – Vancouver, Canada
October 1 – The Social w/ Denise Benson & Violca – Toronto, Canada
October 2 – Tribeca Grand w/ Dada Life – New York, NY