During a stop on his tour in New Orleans, we got the opportunity to hang out with New Zealand trap heavyweight QUIX, catch the Mayweather/McGregor boxing match alongside him, and pick his brain about what's currently unfolding in his world. Check out the full conversation below and give one of Run The Trap's standout artists some appreciation.
Q&A: QUIX Opens Up About Trap, Life on the Road, and His Gucci Mane Link-Up
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Run the Trap: You're currently on a worldwide QUIX tour. How's the experience been treating you?
QUIX: It's been fantastic, dude! The energy on this run has been incredible. Honestly, the past fortnight has felt like two straight months of grind. Not complaining though—it's the most rewarding kind of work out there.
You've been making serious waves globally, with recent stints in China and Australia. Walk us through how those legs went down—the atmosphere, the crowds, the cuisine, all of it.
Earlier this year, I kicked off my debut US tour. That was pretty wild, though it pales in comparison to what's happening now. The scale is enormous at this point. I'm headlining larger venues, playing extended sets, and covering insane distances on the road. China and Australia mark the only two other nations I've performed in so far. China is a completely different universe. The scene out there is still so young and emerging—you really get immersed in the local way of life. It's a total 180 from what I'm used to. Suddenly you're munching on fried noodles first thing in the morning, every single day. Strange yet fascinating. I've been hitting Australia for years now, and while New Zealand is where I grew up, Australia feels equally like home. I'd call myself basically a regular there at this point.
I've heard the Australian audiences are among the most electric.
Sydney and Brisbane specifically, no question. Those crowds lose their minds. Melbourne is still developing—I've had some solid gigs there, but those two are definitely the flagship spots. There's one venue that consistently goes ballistic though: Proud Mary's, located on the central coast roughly an hour north of Sydney. I've got tight crew up there, and every single time it's pure chaos. The turnout rivals what you'd get in a major city honestly.
What's the secret sauce with Australia? Is it just that fans bring maximum energy?
The community genuinely backs the movement. They pour themselves into nurturing and championing it. I believe backing your homegrown scene is crucial for delivering memorable performances across the board. Back home in New Zealand, we've got a killer bass music ecosystem. When everyone's contributing to the culture, showing up to gigs, supporting fellow artists, and vibing to tunes collectively, magic happens.
As someone leading the charge in trap music, what's your take on where it's headed? Critics keep claiming trap is on its way out, but I want your perspective.
There's a fresh wave of producers emerging and showcasing their individual styles and quirks. It's a tricky thing to predict—nobody truly knows. Personally, I'm just focused on crafting the most leftfield material I can. Hopefully everyone's pushing each other forward. Regarding trap's trajectory, I'm convinced it will keep transforming. It'll never truly vanish. Run The Trap has given me tremendous support, which has been phenomenal. For me personally, that represented a pivotal moment—having those kinds of collectives rally behind my output. These days, my approach is more measured: I'm holding back, curating top-tier content, and dropping material tactically. I've got a hefty catalog waiting in the wings—it's just a matter of timing the releases right. It's basically a monthly rhythm where I'm circulating tracks and courting interest from other producers. The industry is competitive. You're up against countless producers, imprints, and management teams.
What was the initial track that sparked your passion for trap and electronic production? For me, Flosstradamus's rework of "Original Don" did it. What was yours?
RL Grime's "The Flood" flipped the switch for me. He just toured through New Zealand and I had the privilege of opening for him. We managed to chat before his set, and I basically told him, "Yo, you're one of my idols—'The Flood' is precisely why I produce trap." Trap will perpetually remain this quirky genre that'll splinter into countless offshoots. That initial spark you have with the music—that connection never fades.
In your Reddit AMA, you mentioned aspiring to top your previous output with every drop. Do you ever wrestle with the pressure of producing something fresh that stands apart from the crowd?
There's definitely a luck element involved, and probably 90% of the time when I'm working on something, I wind up scrapping it because it feels generic. When I'm producing, I need to be able to loop a section—a 32-bar chunk, specifically the drop—on repeat for five solid minutes without my attention drifting. I have to be completely sold on it after that span. When I crafted the third drop on "Pokies," which is pretty celebrated for its wonky character, I must have replayed it for nearly ten minutes straight. I couldn't wipe the grin off my face the entire time. It demands serious patience. But occasionally, the magic happens instantly. Sometimes I'll get a drum pattern rolling and I've already got a clear blueprint in my mind for the finished product. Often, I'm literally pacing around my place, beatboxing, mimicking sounds vocally. If something clicks, I'll capture it on my phone's voice memo and hustle to my workstation to translate it. Probably 85% of the time, that concept fizzles out.
I hear you. Translating that lightning-bolt idea into a polished track while preserving its initial spark is genuinely tough.
Capturing what's happening in your brain and translating it to a DAW is one of the most underrated skills out there. It's brutal. Like I said, maybe 85% of the time the original vision doesn't translate. But here's the thing—90% of the time, it morphs into something entirely different that ends up being even better. While I'm hunting for the right sound, scrolling through Serum presets or whatever, I'll stumble across something and go "hold up, this could actually slot in here," and suddenly it's a completely different drop built around that discovery.
Let's pivot to the Gucci Mane collaboration for a moment.
[Laughs] The backstory on this is gold.
Go ahead, give us the rundown?
Young Sidechain is an Atlanta-based beatmaker who operates in the same circle as producers like Lex Luger. He was crafting beats for Gucci Mane and the broader BrickSquad crew back in the day. Here's some context for everyone—I'm completely detached from the rap world, if that makes sense. My familiarity with hip-hop is minimal. Probably stems from being a New Zealander where rap artists are scarce, whereas in the States, everyone's spitting bars. So my managers received a message from this Young Sidechain character, and they hit me up like, "Dude, we've got incredible news. You might want to sit down—Gucci Mane wants to collaborate." And I straight-up responded, "Who's Gucci Mane?" I was completely clueless. I was thinking, "Cool, we've got a rapper involved." My team kept insisting I should recognize the name, but I genuinely didn't. We were aiming to drop the track during South By Southwest, and I got looped in about a week before the festival. They basically said, "If we can fast-track this release, it'll absolutely dominate."
So I spent that week grinding on the track and it just wasn't clicking. I put together one demo that I thought had potential. Obviously I was collaborating with Young Sidechain, the other producer, and he needed to sign off on the final product. He responded with a "yeah, this isn't really doing it for me," and then literally wrote in the email: "Can you make it sound like 'Purple Lamborghini' by Rick Ross and Skrillex?" So I figured, "Alright, I'll give it a shot," and somehow pulled it off. SXSW came and went and we still didn't have a finished demo. I went back to refine it, and after another week, I had something pretty close to the final version. I thought it sounded solid, so I bounced it back to him. He tweaked a few elements and we had the completed track. As I was sitting on it waiting to release, it gradually dawned on me just how massive Gucci Mane actually is. He's probably triple the stature of someone like Diplo, easily.
That's honestly one of those "had to be there" stories. After that whole ordeal, are you interested in collaborating with more rappers down the line?
Being from New Zealand where rap isn't deeply embedded in our culture, my gut reaction would be no, I'm not really interested. Plus, when I find out how expensive it is to secure a verse, I'm even less inclined to shell out that kind of cash for someone to shout over one of my productions. That said, being plugged into the American scene, particularly in LA, I've gotten a firsthand look at how things operate, and it would definitely be a smart move to eventually land a high-profile feature. Quick side note—the Gucci collaboration had to be released gratis on Soundcloud at Gucci's insistence. That stung a bit since we couldn't monetize it.
You've dropped a fire EP recently, you're jet-setting across the globe performing—what's on your radar? What's the endgame?
Music is permanently encoded in my DNA—I'll never stop creating. I'll always gravitate toward performing live too. I genuinely adore exploring the planet alongside Mrs. Quix.
Mrs. Quix?
Ha, yeah! My wife! She's active on Instagram and Twitter too. She's amazing.
That's awesome. Does she hit the road with you?
We typically do, though the routing on these last few dates has been pretty unusual, so I've had to handle some solo. But yeah, I'm maximizing every opportunity right now. Eventually I want to settle down and start a family—I can't wait to have a mini Quix running around someday. But for the immediate future, we're squeezing in everything we can. The crucial thing about being hitched in this industry, which isn't super common, is that while music is central to our dynamic, the relationship always takes precedence. If it ever came down to choosing between touring and prioritizing my marriage, the marriage wins every time.
Keeping your priorities in check is everything.
Absolutely. I'll never stop producing, but touring is what really drains you physically and mentally. I'll be making beats until I'm 50. Even if that means I'm just releasing music and not performing live… this is starting to sound like I'm announcing my retirement, which I'm not, I promise. I'll be grinding relentlessly at least through my thirties. Maybe I'll ease up after that.
Any parting message for your Quix supporters or the Run The Trap audience?
Don't sleep on Run the Trap! [Laughs] But in all seriousness, they're dropping premium content. They're genuine tastemakers—they have their finger on the pulse and they're shaping what's next.
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'Q&A: QUIX Opens Up About Trap, Life on the Road, and His Gucci Mane Link-Up
The post Q&A: QUIX Opens Up About Trap, Life on the Road, and His Gucci Mane Link-Up appeared first on Run The Trap: The Best EDM, Hip Hop & Trap Music.
