"Having lived most of my life under military occupation – and therefore lockdown – music has always given me a place to escape from reality, as well as a safe space to express myself. Whether I’m creating, listening or dancing to it, music has the power to take me somewhere else mentally and I’m forever grateful for that" - Palestinian DJ/producer Sama’ Abdulhadi told The Face about what music means to her. She had also trouble because of it - she was arrested by Palestinian authorities on Dec. 27 and held in a Jericho jail for eight days after coordinating and playing a livestream event for Beatport at a site called Maqam Nabi Musa, the tomb of the prophet Moses.

Amapiano is an offshoot of South African house, often featuring bright and airy chords and flourishes of jazz, Afrobeats and lounge music. Two authorities on the movement are DJ Maphorisa and Kabza de Small, who form the Scorpion Kings duo. They made a mix for The Face presenting the amapiano ("the pianos" in Zulu) sound, featuring, Kelvin Momo, DJ Stokie, Felo Le Tee, Lady Du and others.

The New Cue very highly recommends a mix by Heavenly Records supremo Jeff Barrett on his Mixcloud. The one you can listen to here "is an absolute cracker, filled with gems from around the globe, particularly Africa".

Berlin-based music producer Lyra Pramuk, who uses only her voice to produce "futurist folk music", made a mix for Fact magazine where she "explores the idea of ‘folk song’ as interpreted by women singers and storytellers from the past century to today". There's Joan Baez and Dolly Parton, as well as Lauryn Hill and Lingua Ignota, among others.

"If you want to know why everyone’s talking about New York right now, this should explain everything" - Fact magazine says representing a mix by New York DJ and producer MoMa Ready. His "FACT mix 744" is "a journey through New York City’s vibrant scene", with tracks by MoMa Ready, Gallery S., Kush Jones, P. Leone, AceMo, among others.

Guardian combs through an ocean of mixes to find these: Dazed Mix: Anthony Naples - flits between ravey stutters and soulful crunch An AFROPUNK Mix: UNIIQU3 - blood-pumping sprints FADER Mix: SHYBOI - dishing out east coast club, breaks, techno and gqom for a slammer of a summer romp M2 Performance Enhancer: MssingNo - some […]

From club session, through ambient soothers to vinyl-only obscurities, Fact Magazine made a list of "must-hear mixes of the last 30 days". There's Jubilee’s Miami take on Pride, DJ Marcelle’s three-turntable magic, an old-fashioned mixtape from Boards of Canada, Brian Eno in political storytelling mode, a fast and flamboyant Essential Mix by the seminal French […]