In this year of turmoil trying to save our underground scene, there has still been amazing music witnessed and with that, there have been many great breakthrough producers in 2023. None more so than the brightest of rising stars this year Alex Goodger-Marsh, better known to everyone as Badger. His eccentric UK garage, 140, and jungle style edits have gone on to take the scene by storm. The versatile abundance of production in his armoury has undoubtedly created this euphoria around him that shows no signs of dying down.

From his arrival to Bristol roughly 8 years ago, he’s knuckled down, perfected his craft in music production and has now become Badger – the garage DJ we all know and love. Having experimented with different sounds, styles, and genres, throughout his formative musical years, it’s apparent to see that there are many influences in a Badger production. From indie music to drum and bass, there is no part of the musical spectrum that seems out of bounds for this one-of-a-kind music maker. 

It was in fact his now remix of Vengaboys’ ‘Like to Party’ that really saw Badger surge in popularity. With some of the most prominent selectors worldwide featuring the track in their sets. Merging with this is his intuitive knack on social media. His meteoric rise this year is evident through the reach his online presence attracts. Whether it be via TikTok or Instagram, the meticulous detail put into this new wave of advertising has really pushed this maverick producer to excel as an artist. As a result, his bookings have skyrocketed exponentially, making him one of the hardest-working DJs on the circuit. Not only has he built his own career up hugely in the last 12 months, but he is also a big advocate when it comes to saving our scene and preserving the dance culture that is being taken away from us as we speak – supporting brands like Save Our Scene.  

With iconic moments coming throughout the festival season, as well as milestones reached on certain releases, we, at UKF, were eager to sit down with him – to find out more about this producer from Brighton.    

You’ve had quite the 12 months! After such a whirlwind year, tell me a bit about how you got to this point…

Thanks! Around this time a year ago I was posting on TikTok about 8 times a week, every single one was flopping but I just kept going. A lot of things ended up falling into place at the right time – coinciding with the Vengaboys edit. A lot of DJs were picking this track up as they went on world tours. There’s been a lot of sacrifice too. There are plenty of activities with family and friends I just completely missed out on in the process of getting to where I am right now. I’ve been doing music full-time for a couple of months now, before that I was working two-day jobs and I would graft on my music after until I was too tired to look at the screen. Having two-day jobs and a tight structure to my weeks made the free time I did have to make music so valuable. During the break times at one of my day jobs in a college, I’d plug into my laptop and headphones to finish off a tune, or take myself to the park and make a silly video. I think using every bit of free time I had was the key to my success over the last year. 

What was life before Badger like?

I moved to Bristol around 8 years ago to start a music production degree. Over this time I’ve tried a lot of different genres, styles and areas of the music industry. The move to Bristol was definitely made to chase music as a career, but it wasn’t to become Badger the Garage DJ. 

From having different influences when I was younger, to my time exploring a variety of sounds in Bristol, it’s all shaped what I’m making today. You can hear this in my current releases. I was into my drum and bass production when I first moved to Bristol, playing the odd set at undesirable times – still making my 9 am lecture! I made the move away from drum and bass as I didn’t think I could be completely authentic to myself. Moving to Garage production felt like I could get a lot out of it in terms of the scope and different genres it can feed into. I’ve been producing for around 8 years now, so the hard work and graft I’ve put in is definitely starting to show.  

What sounds influenced you growing up and have helped form the artist we see today?

Early influences for house and garage tempos would be artists like Shadow Child. When I moved to uni it was definitely artists like Sammy Virji, who was just coming up in the underground scene. Flava D was another one, who had this jump-up house sound that I really loved. I heard more of these sounds when I started going to festivals such as Nass and Boomtown. This bassline sound was a really big deal during this period. Going to these types of festivals in my late teens really did influence the type of production I make today. While I’ve listened to a lot of drum and bass, I definitely use a lot of that songwriting influence when making my tracks currently. There’s also an indie influence in some of the music I make today as well – especially with some of my edits. 

Talk to me about a collaboration you’ve enjoyed. There must be some dream ones you’re aiming for too!

My favourite to date is probably collaborating with Drinks On Me. We’ve got a tune coming out soon which we are working on releasing. He’s done so much for me in terms of helping my breakthrough. He heard some of my early tunes and was really on board with what I was trying to do. He actually sent off some of my unreleased bits to Night Bass, run by AC Slater, who shared the same opinion. As a result, I was able to release a string of tunes on Night Bass, one of my favourite labels. This was a big deal for me as these were my first significant releases. In terms of dream collaborations, Sammy Virji and MPH are two artists who I’ve admired and, for sure, are big producers I’d love to work with.

Your Vengaboys remix has hit a global reach. What type of impact has this had on your career?

It’s been completely life-changing. The progression of it was so surreal. I made it in early 2022, so it’s managed to grow over time. I remember scrolling through socials one hungover day seeing a clip of the original Vengaboys track and the idea came to me in my hazy state. I sat on it for ages because everyone I knew, at the time, was playing either bassline or drum and bass. After a while I started sending it out to a few local DJs and it got a good reception. 10 months after that, I started sending it out to bigger artists. I started digging for their emails and sending it to the UKG heads like Interplanetary Criminal, Main Phase, Dr. Dubplate and other similar artists. Interplanetary Criminal was one of the first to get back to me and told me how much he loved it. Once he started playing it during his performances he told me it was consistently becoming one of the high points of his sets. I’ve seen mad videos of artists like Jyoty, VTSS and Miley Serious playing it in their sets around the world. It was so well-timed and I’m very grateful that it got the attention it did. Especially combined with how well it was doing on Tiktok and Instagram. Because of all of this, I was put in contact with Universal Records and I was allowed to turn it into an official collaboration with the Vengaboys. This track has definitely given me the opportunities I’ve got now. 

It seems sending producers your work has created some viral moments. It must feel amazing to have such big artists play your tunes.

It does. It’s really mad! It gives me such a cool sense of achievement and it’s very surreal. I do hit up artists I love with tunes I think they’ll like. But also, when big DJs have shown love to my TikToks of unreleased tracks I take that as a cue to ask them if they want a copy. The TikTok algorithm really helps get my songs out there and to the reach of big artists. I remember an example, VTSS saw my Vengaboys edit and commented below. I saw this as an opportunity to reach out and send her a copy. She’s gone on to play it at several places worldwide – which is crazy. 

It’s fair to say your Vengaboys release has had a big impact on your career. Is it also valid to say your social media presence has had an equally positive effect on you?

Yeah for sure! I do all the socials myself. I do bounce a lot of ideas off my manager but on the whole, it’s me who makes the decisions. I draft a few ideas on the day of posting and work that way, rather than planning too far ahead. There’s been lots of trial and error with it. You can never certainly predict what’s going to happen. You’re usually your own worst critic so deciding what to put out can be stressful at times. I think my socials have had a big hand in creating a lot of the bookings I’ve received, as well as just getting myself out there as an artist. For me, it’s been the most valuable tool in my growth. It really does make things much more of a level playing field in a way it never has been before. If you have a phone and some ideas, anyone can put themselves out there. As long as you’re willing to put in the work, anyone can get an opportunity. I know there are people out there who get upset about the current climate, with a lot more focus being put on social media. But it’s a tool out there for everyone to use. I think it’s good on the people who are taking their opportunity and we should celebrate individuals who have that initiative.   

Absolutely! Speaking about taking opportunities, it was quite an eventful summer for you. What were some highlights? 

It definitely was. The key moments were, without doubt, Boomtown and Glastonbury. Both were bucket list moments. Glasto is so iconic, getting to play 5 sets there over the course of the week was amazing. The sets varied in size and it was really cool to experience the whole festival as an artist. Then having a half-hour guest slot on the Origin stage, at Boomtown, courtesy of the 24 Hour Garage Girls, was insane. These festivals have played a huge part in getting my bookings up as of late. People come up to me now and mention how much they loved the Origin stage appearance. I was so excited and nervous at the same time – jumping on at prime time on a Saturday. That half an hour was definitely one of the high points of my life. The other sets I had at Boomtown were also real highlights of my summer. Especially on the Wrong Side of the Tracks stage. I do feel really blessed with all these opportunities. I’ve also got to include the cameo I made at the end of the Vengaboys set, at El Dorado Festival, which was amazing to be a part of. All of this has just made me really hungry to have this happen every year. Rounding off in Australia, literally as far as I could get from where I live, was amazing. I loved every minute. I can’t wait to go back. 

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I know you’ve done some work with Save Our Scene. Where do you think our underground scene is at the moment in terms of its well-being moving forward?

It’s definitely apparent that live music spaces and venues are shutting down at an alarming rate. The UK dance scene and culture are suffering as a result. Our government is neglecting funding for these spaces. For sure, brands like Save Our Scene are doing loads of work behind the scenes to fight for the cause and ultimately highlight this growing issue. It certainly is a worry, as energy prices rise the margin for error becomes lower for nightclubs. Looking ahead, will these more iconic venues still be around? Ultimately the changes need to come from the top. We just need to carry on being vocal about it. Keep up the pop-ups and the marches. Basically telling the government that whether you get rid of the dance in a legal sense, it will still carry on – so they might as well help us and make it safe because we aren’t going anywhere.

Exactly! It’s safe to say that our underground dance culture has a big impact on not only yourself but fellow ravers you know all around the UK?

It really does. The way we are going now it won’t be looking good, at all, in a few years. It’s been hugely important and one of the main parts of my life – even before chasing it as a career. Our scene is a really inclusive space. It’s an amazing place for people to be unapologetically themselves. Even at times when I was a bit more insecure, it would be a spot where I could have a great time. For everyone I know who loves this scene it’s really important that we save it because we’d all be lost without it. People really rely on these spaces in both a professional capacity and as a social release. The escapism of British nightlife and being able to leave the day-to-day struggles is essential for a lot of people’s mental health. I believe having these safe spaces is a crucial part to this. It’s the pinnacle of a lot of the general public’s week and taking that away will only cause more problems in the long run.

You’ve gained some loyal fans over the last year. That must feel very satisfying after all your hard work…

It’s amazing. For me to make music that I grow on my socials, whilst also being more emotional than most online, and see the reward and benefit of that when I meet people at shows makes everything worth it. I speak about mental health on my socials. So when ravers come up to me and say how much I’ve helped them through something it really does mean the world. I get loads of nice messages from fans too which always makes my day. When a fan brings something funny to a rave for me to look at, it really puts a smile on my face. It’s nice to know that how I’m carrying myself resonates with people and connects me with complete strangers because of my music. I’m just super lucky to be in this position.  

You really have had such an amazing year! I know everyone dying to know what’s next for Badger.

I think the next step for me, production-wise, is to start pushing my own music more – rather than just bootlegs and edits. I think that’s what needs to be focused on to elevate my brand as a whole. I want to work on having a solid release plan for next year, with hopefully more original Spotify releases. I’m sitting on so many original tracks. It’s just about picking the right time to put them out there. I think this will really level me up as an artist. Of course, I’ll still be carrying on with the edits, keeping up my social media, shelling out shows and just generally connecting with people. Obviously, I’m also planning for the next festival season too, as well as shows in Australia and New Zealand. And just smashing these club bookings that are coming thick and fast. 

Follow Badger: Soundcloud/Instagram/Linktree