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Backline Launches Free EDM Mental Health Toolkit
Backline launches free EDM Mental Health Toolkit covering touring, harm reduction, and self-care for artists, crews, and ravers during Mental Health Awareness Month.
Mental health in the electronic music scene has become a more visible industry conversation as touring, nightlife, and festival culture continue to place real pressure on artists, teams, and fans. Festival weekends, late-night club sets, back-to-back shows, long travel days, afterparties, and the pressure to stay present through it all can affect artists, managers, crew members, producers, and festivalgoers in different ways. For artists and touring teams, the challenge can come from unstable sleep, constant movement, and the emotional comedown after shows. For ravers and attendees, the same cycle can mean physical exhaustion, post-event lows, substance-related risks, or the pressure to keep up socially across multiple events. As Mental Health Awareness Month brings more attention to support systems across music, Backline has launched its Free EDM Mental Health Toolkit, a practical resource created specifically for the electronic music community with guidance on touring, re-entry after tour, substance use and harm reduction, sobriety support, self-care, nutrition, and mental health check-ins.
Why Mental Health Support Matters In The EDM Scene
The conversation around mental health in the electronic dance music scene became impossible to ignore after the loss of Avicii, whose career had already raised wider questions about touring pressure, fame, physical health, and the pace expected from artists at the top of electronic music. Avicii, born Tim Bergling, retired from live performances in 2016 after years of health struggles while continuing to make music in the studio, and his death in 2018 pushed the dance music industry to look more seriously at the pressure surrounding constant touring, public expectation, and the lack of proper support around artists. His story remains one of the clearest examples of why success in dance music cannot be separated from the systems protecting the people behind it.
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Years later, those pressures are still part of the same industry cycle, even if they look different depending on where someone stands in the scene. DJs can move through flights, hotels, late-night sets, early call times, interviews, afterparties, and another city the next day, while managers and crew often carry the same schedule behind the scenes. For fans, the issue can show up through back-to-back club nights, festival weekends, travel, limited sleep, dehydration, substance-related risks, and post-event lows that affect how people recover after shows. None of this takes away from why people love the scene, but it does show why Backline’s Free EDM Mental Health Toolkit feels relevant during Mental Health Awareness Month, especially because the guide focuses on practical areas such as tour preparation, re-entry after touring, substance use and harm reduction, sobriety support, self-care, nutrition, and mental health check-ins.
What Backline’s Free EDM Mental Health Toolkit Includes
Backline’s Free EDM Mental Health Toolkit is a free resource guide created for the specific pressures of life in the electronic music scene, giving artists, producers, managers, crew members, industry professionals, and ravers one place to find practical support. The toolkit covers tour preparation, re-entry after touring, substance use and harm reduction, sobriety support, self-care, nutrition, and mental health check-ins, making it more specific than a general wellness page. For artists and touring teams, that means guidance that can be used before a run of shows, during demanding travel periods, and after returning home when normal routines can be difficult to regain. For ravers and festivalgoers, the same resource can help make recovery more intentional after late nights, multi-day events, or weekends where sleep, hydration, food, and emotional balance are easy to overlook.
The launch also connects to Backline’s wider support system, including B-LINE, its 24/7 mental health and crisis support line, one-on-one case management with vetted providers, and wellness resources such as mindfulness and yoga. B-LINE was created exclusively for the music industry and gives music professionals and their families access to trained counselors who understand the pressures of working in and around music, with support available by phone or text. Backline previewed the EDM Mental Health Toolkit during Miami Music Week, which ran from March 24 to 29, 2026, at the 2026 Femmy Awards, placing the resource in front of the global electronic music community during one of the industry’s busiest annual weeks. For the official launch, Backline has also partnered with electronic musician and experimental vocalist Kaleena Zanders on an artist-led testimonial initiative, beginning with a video centered on preparing for tour. That detail matters because it keeps the campaign tied to real artist routines and industry pressure points, instead of treating mental health as a detached awareness message during Mental Health Awareness Month.
Why Backline’s Support Goes Beyond A Toolkit
The reason Backline’s Free EDM Mental Health Toolkit carries weight is that it comes from an organization already working directly with mental health needs across the music industry. Since 2019, Backline says it has invested $3.5 million into mental health and wellness in music and served 84,000 people, showing that the toolkit is part of a wider support structure, not a standalone awareness post. The organization also notes that its team has handled urgent calls and cases where immediate support was needed, which makes the EDM resource feel more connected to real industry conditions. That context matters because touring, nightlife, and festival culture often place people in situations where normal routines are disrupted, but support still needs to be reachable, practical, and specific to how the music world actually works.
Backline Co-founder and Executive Director Hilary Gleason frames the need clearly, pointing to the reality of live electronic music as a space of late nights, early mornings, sunrise sets, and flights to the next city. That detail gives the toolkit a sharper purpose because it speaks directly to the pace of the EDM scene, where artists and teams may be working through exhaustion while fans are also moving through multi-day events, afterparties, and recovery periods. B-LINE, which Backline launched in January, expands that support further as a 24/7 mental health and crisis support line created exclusively for the music industry, with music professionals and their families able to reach trained counselors by phone or text. The larger message behind the toolkit is also important: it is not designed to tell people how to live inside the scene, but to give them options, information, and support so they can take care of themselves and the people around them. That makes the launch more useful than a general reminder to “prioritize mental health,” because it connects awareness to actual access, especially during Mental Health Awareness Month.
What This Means For The EDM Scene During Mental Health Awareness Month
The launch of Backline’s Free EDM Mental Health Toolkit points to a wider shift in how the EDM scene can approach wellbeing beyond awareness posts, tribute messages, or conversations that only happen after someone is already struggling. During Mental Health Awareness Month, the resource gives the electronic music community something more practical to work with: a free guide that can sit alongside tour planning, festival preparation, artist care, crew support, and post-event recovery. For artists and teams, that could mean treating mental health check-ins, sleep planning, re-entry after tour, and substance-related risk as part of the same preparation process as flights, production schedules, and show logistics.
For ravers and festivalgoers, the implication is just as important because mental health in the EDM scene is not only about the people on stage. A healthier culture also depends on attendees being able to recognize when a weekend has taken a toll, when a friend needs support, or when recovery requires more than waiting for the next event. Backline’s toolkit does not position itself as a final answer to every pressure in dance music, but it gives the community a clearer place to start. If Mental Health Awareness Month is meant to push the conversation forward, this launch shows what that can look like when awareness is paired with practical access, music-specific resources, and support designed around the way the scene actually operates.
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New EDM Friday Aug 7 brings new music from Hardwell & W&W, MEDUZA, Kevin de Vries, Max Styler and more.
New EDM Friday August 7 brings together new singles, EPs, and album previews covering big room, techno, bass house, melodic house, and electronic pop. From Hardwell and W&W with Turn Up The Bass to MEDUZA and Kevin de Vries with 7 Days, Eli Brown with It’s Like That, Max Styler with I Don’t Think I Can Stop, Skilah with Dance MF, and Jazzy with My People, these are the tracks you should not miss on this week’s New EDM Friday.
Hardwell & W&W – Turn Up The Bass
Hardwell and W&W reunite for Turn Up The Bass, bringing together two of the most recognisable names in big room and electro house. The collaboration lands as both acts continue strong runs of live appearances across the summer festival circuit, and the track does exactly what the title suggests, delivering the high-energy floor-focused sound that defined the peak era both artists helped build. Turn Up The Bass opens New EDM Friday August 7 with one of the week’s most direct dancefloor statements.
MEDUZA & Kevin de Vries – 7 Days
MEDUZA and Kevin de Vries join forces for 7 Days, pairing one of melodic house’s most consistent production outfits with one of the genre’s most in-demand selectors and artists. Kevin de Vries has spent the past few years building a reputation across the bigger stages of the melodic and progressive world, while MEDUZA continue to operate across club and festival settings with equal footing. 7 Days brings both together for one of this week’s most polished house releases on New EDM Friday August 7.
Eli Brown – It’s Like That
Eli Brown returns with It’s Like That, the second single from his debut album Panic Attack, due August 7 via Insomniac Records. Built around a defiant vocal refrain, rumbling basslines, acid-fuelled synths, and rave sirens, the track captures the escapism and collective energy of rave culture with a gritty edge rooted in his Bristol upbringing. It follows Electrify and pushes further into the raw, uncompromising sound that runs through Panic Attack. Brown has performed at EDC Las Vegas, Tomorrowland, Ultra, Coachella, Awakenings, and Creamfields, and heads into the rest of 2026 with his largest headline show to date in Los Angeles on November 14. It’s Like That is one of this week’s strongest techno entries on New EDM Friday August 7.
Max Styler – I Don’t Think I Can Stop (EP)
Max Styler releases his six-track EP I Don’t Think I Can Stop through his own imprint Nu Moda, arriving on the heels of his Lollapalooza performance. Built to replicate the arc of his open-to-close live sets, the project moves between blaring sub-bass, handcrafted beats, and hooky guest vocals across tracks including the bass-heavy Uh-Oh!, the crowd-facing Body Shake, and the kaleidoscopic Templo Disko. Styler describes the EP as reflecting the pacing and sonic identity of his live sets, a departure from the more immediate impact of his singles. The release also comes alongside the official video for disco-tinged track Love Forever featuring Kuuda, and coincides with his BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix hosted by Pete Tong. I Don’t Think I Can Stop adds one of this week’s most complete EP releases to New EDM Friday August 7.#
Skilah – Dance MF
Skilah releases Dance MF via Breakaway, continuing a breakthrough year for the 23-year-old DJ and producer. Known for her dark, bass-heavy sound and use of her own vocals, she has built a distinct identity in the electronic space alongside a rapidly growing audience of over 3 million followers across TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat. Her live footprint has expanded steadily through appearances at Coachella, Breakaway Music Festival, Foam Wonderland, Ubbi Dubbi, and additional dates across the US and Canada. Dance MF pushes her sound further forward as one of the more exciting emerging voices in New EDM Friday August 7.
Jazzy – My People
Jazzy follows her bass house collaboration Invisible with Chris Lorenzo with My People, released via Chaos Records. Written alongside Mark Ralph, Theo Hutchcraft, and Guillaume Alric of The Blaze, the track is a personal tribute to her hometown of Dublin, weaving euphoric house energy with late-night pop and direct storytelling. It arrives ahead of her debut album Peace and Patience, due October 23, and a headline tour that culminates at Dublin’s 3Arena with a capacity of 13,000. This summer she also joins Calvin Harris as main support across a run of stadium shows in Glasgow, Dublin, Belfast, and Ibiza. My People closes New EDM Friday August 7 with one of the week’s most personal and well-positioned releases.
Honorable mentions:
A Little Sound & Kelvin 373 – Same Thing
Adriatique, Genesi, Emmit Fenn – Closer
ALPHA 9 – Ascend
Amelie Lens & Angèle – Run
AN21, Fiction, O1, Fouren – Stay With Me
Aspyer – Alive
bradeazy, Öwnboss – Louboutin
Chuckie, MC Ambush, Mosimann – Move It 2 The Drum
Crankdat, Wooli, TiaCorine – Fux with Us
Da Tweekaz – Step Into The Madness (Into The Madness 2026 Anthem)
Darren Porter – Taurus
D-Sturb – Good Old Days
Ellie Goulding – Ravers
Flux Pavilion & The Freestylers – Cracks (2026 version)
Giuseppe Ottaviani, Diana Goldberg – Hold On
Koven – wHERE the rhythm goes
Krewella – the blueprint
Lee Foss, GS5 – Separation
Liquid Soul, Captain Hook – Liquid Hook (Victor Ruiz Remix)
Marlon Hoffstadt – Das ist Daddy (Album)
Marshmello, Viperactive – How I Feel
Nifra, KEVU – Hardwired
Noizu, Amira Eldine – Feeling
NOME. & Merow – Alive
Phuture Noize x Deezl – My Misery
R3SPAWN – Adagio For Strings
Rank 1, Notelle – Serotonin
Ray Volpe – THROW IT UP
Route 94, Mellizos – 4Get The Girl (Mellizos Remix)
Said The Sky, ILLENIUM & Heather Sommer – When The Light Breaks
Sara Landry, Alex Farell – Angel Dust
Shermanology – Let’s Go
Solomun, Inéz – Raider on the Storm
Spencer Brown – Storm Chasing
Thomas Newson, Siege, I Jah – Pitcha
Timmy Trumpet ft. Moa Lisa – Wanna Be Loved
Toneshifterz & Dimatik & Weaver – Rise Of The Phoenix
UMEK – Vibrancy (Kos:mo Remix)
Vivid – The After Party
Watermat, James Mac – Daydream (EP)
Stream all the new music on Spotify and Audiomack to hear the full New EDM Friday playlist.
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The Defining Voice of Electronic Music: John Martin and the songs that made him one of the genre’s most important vocalists
Tomorrowland has once again brought together some of the world’s biggest DJs, with iconic electronic music songs played across both weekends. While those tracks come from different artists and different eras, many are connected by the voice and songwriting of John Martin. From Don’t You Worry Child to Reload, John Martin has become one of electronic music’s most recognisable vocalists and a key figure behind some of the genre’s biggest songs.
The Voice Behind Electronic Music’s Biggest Songs
Tomorrowland saw Martin take to the stage several times to perform old, new, and upcoming projects. His performances were a reminder of how powerful of a voice he has and also of how important he has been to electronic music. His roots in the scene can be tracked 15 years back to 2011 where he showed both his skills with vocals and writing. Though he didn’t sing on the track Martin co-wrote Fade Into Darkness alongside Avicii and Michel Zitron. 2011 also saw him link up with Swedish House Mafia for the first time to provide vocals for their timeless track Save The World. However, it was the following year where he became an instant icon as he once again worked with SHM on the forever timeless Don’t You Worry Child.
The part he played in making this track one of the greatest pieces of music of all time cannot be understated. His voice is simply irreplaceable and has got crowds around the world to sing their hearts out every time they hear Don’t You Worry Child. He also wrote the song so not only would the song not be what it is without him, it wouldn’t have existed without him. But his work on iconic tracks didn’t end there with him soon after working with Sebastian Ingrosso and Tommy Trash for the legendary festival anthem Reload. Over the years the hits have kept on coming especially alongside Martin Garrix who has been a regular collaborator of his. John Martin provided vocals for tracks like Now That I’ve Found You, Higher Ground, and Won’t Let You Go as well as writing Carry You, Hold On, and Home. The list of artists he’s worked with is mind boggling with names like David Guetta, Steve Aoki, Gryffin, Afrojack, and Alesso to name just a few.
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From Rock Music to a 15-Year Electronic Music Career
Something that’s truly amazing about John Martin is how quickly he burst onto the electronic music scene and his longevity within it. Before getting into electronic music Martin took interest and inspiration from the worlds of grunge and British rock and was part of the band Steroids. It wasn’t till 2010 that he discovered electronic music and started writing it alongside his close friend Michel Zitron. Within a matter of months he was working with some of the biggest EDM artists in the world and performing on some of the biggest stages. Over the last 15 years his stature has persistently grown as he continues to work with more and more big names. Tomorrowland saw him perform some upcoming projects with ARTBAT and Timmy Trumpet who now join the illustrious list of his collaborators.
There are very few vocalists who have become so synonymous with electronic music as John Martin has. Once you see his name on any record you know you’re in for an astonishing performance, beautiful melodies, and a wave of emotions. He has been the defining voice of over a decade of the greatest pieces of electronic music. Legend is a word that can be thrown out lightly sometimes, but John Martin is someone who absolutely deserves that title.
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New EDM Friday July 31 brings new music from Swedish House Mafia, Armin van Buuren, Ninajirachi, Porter Robinson, and more.
New EDM Friday July 31 brings together new singles, collaborations, album releases, and crossover records covering progressive, techno, bass music, electronic pop, melodic house, and dance. From Swedish House Mafia and Lykke Li with Happiness Is So Sad to Armin van Buuren and SACHA with Everlasting, Ninajirachi and Porter Robinson with WannaCry, Tape B and Dani King with Underneath Your Skin, and R3HAB with Dream inside a dream…, these are the tracks you should not miss on this week’s New EDM Friday.
Swedish House Mafia, Lykke Li – Happiness Is So Sad
Swedish House Mafia return with Happiness Is So Sad featuring Lykke Li, marking the first collaboration between two of Sweden’s most influential music names. Produced by Swedish House Mafia, PARISI, and Fred again.., the track was recorded in Stockholm and also includes Max Martin and Oscar Holter among its songwriters. The single explores how happiness and sorrow can exist in the same memory, pairing Lykke Li’s vocal with a more emotional side of Swedish House Mafia’s current sound. After its world premiere with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1, Happiness Is So Sad has already become part of the group’s Ushuaïa Ibiza residency and was also played by Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso at Tomorrowland 2026. With two homecoming shows at Ullevi Stadium coming in August, Happiness Is So Sad opens New EDM Friday July 31 with one of the week’s biggest Swedish collaborations.
Armin van Buuren & SACHA – Everlasting
Armin van Buuren and SACHA release Everlasting through Armada Music, continuing their vocal trance pairing after Set Me Free. The single comes with both the original mix and a Rising Star remix, giving the release a direct connection to Armin van Buuren’s long-running uplifting trance alias. Their previous collaboration had already been performed in its Rising Star form at Tomorrowland, Untold, Ushuaïa Ibiza, A State of Trance, and Ultra Music Festival, making this follow-up feel closely tied to the live trance world around Armin van Buuren. With SACHA returning after Set Me Free and the Rising Star remix included alongside the main version, Everlasting brings one of this week’s main vocal trance releases into New EDM Friday July 31.
Ninajirachi, Porter Robinson – WannaCry
Ninajirachi and Porter Robinson release WannaCry, a collaboration titled after the 2017 global cyberattack and years in the making for both artists. The connection goes back to Ninajirachi’s teenage years, as the first concert she attended was a Porter Robinson show at Sydney’s Enmore Theatre. The track later had its live debut at Coachella 2026, when Porter Robinson joined Ninajirachi on stage during her set to perform the song for the first time. Following Ninajirachi’s debut album I Love My Computer and Porter Robinson’s 2024 album SMILE! 😀, WannaCry brings two internet-rooted electronic artists together for one of the week’s most anticipated collaborations on New EDM Friday July 31.
Tape B ft. Dani King – Underneath Your Skin
R3HAB – Dream inside a dream…
Honorable Mentions
Alan Walker x Fatal Fury – Pain
Bob Sinclar, BESH – Tequila & Ibiza
BUNT., Lauren Spencer Smith – Stay
D.O.D, Izzy Bizu – Careful
Devin Wild x Chapter V – Troublemaker
Dual Damage – Built 2 Break (Album)
Dyro & Dannic – Unstoppable
Ferry Corsten, Paul Oakenfold – Metaverse
Fred again.. & Latin Mafia – Mixtape Album
Ilan Bluestone, Gid Sedgwick – Save A Prayer
Italobros – Excuse Me (EP)
James Hype – STEREOHYPE Clubworld (Vol. 1) (EP)
John Alto – Waiting For
Kaskade, Glockenbach, Kaitlin Aragon – Runaway
LNY TNZ x ALYSSA JOLEE – SWEATY
longstoryshort, Skybreak – Whiplash
Luca Testa, Nathan Conway – Unbreakable
Mariana BO – Ta Cabrón
Mike Williams – The System
Nadia Ali, Frankey & Sandrino – Night Sky
Nicky Romero & FORS – Follow You
Nova Blue & EV – Weekend Cinderella
PNAU – AHHCade (Album)
RetroVision – You Get Me All The Time
RIOT – The Machine (Remix LP)
Roland Clark, KE-YEN – HAVE A GOOD TIME
Sound Rush & Wildstylez – Love
Sultan + Shepard, Prinze George – Centuries
Sunday Scaries – Where They At
Tritonal pres. PRAANA – Insight Out (Album)
Vikkstar, Brooks & Jex – Call My Bluff
Vintage Culture – Think Too Much (EP)
Stream all the new music on Spotify and Audiomack to hear the full New EDM Friday playlist.
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