A partnership between Skrillex and Justin Bieber perhaps seemed unlikely when it began in 2015. But in the six years since their debut collab “Where Are Ü Now” — the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 single from the Skrillex and Diplo collab Jack Ü, which featured Bieber on vocals — the duo’s string of projects have made them one of pop music’s favorite odd couples.
That partnership between the electronic icon and the pop superstar continues Friday (Aug. 20) with “Don’t Go,” featuring Skrillex, Bieber and rapper Don Toliver.
The song is a dreamy R&B number, with Skrillex’s production sitting well back to enable Bieber and Toliver’s vocals to dominate.
“Don’t Go” is the most recent Skrillex/Bieber collab since Skrillex co-wrote “2 Much” on Bieber’s March LP, Justice. That song followed “Sorry,” which Skrillex produced for Bieber’s 2015 album, Purpose.
“To be honest,” Skrillex told Zane Lowe of first linking with Bieber, “before I even worked with Justin Bieber, in that era, I didn’t really pay attention to pop music that much and I wasn’t really paying attention to what was current and relevant, and I knew his music and I knew who he was…So for me, it’s similar to when Korn called me up earlier in my career and I was just honored to work with people who were great.
“The thing about Justin,” Skrillex continued, “is if you’ve ever been in the studio with him or seen videos, he’s one of the most talented people on the whole planet so, for me, getting to work with people of that talent always pushes me to do new things.”
In the interview, the producer born Sonny Moore also disclosed that he’s been”‘trying to keep my head down in the studio” while putting finishing touches on some forthcoming projects, telling Lowe that, “it’s obviously been a challenging couple of years for all of us, and I think there’s been a blessing in disguise, because I was going to put out maybe some music before COVID, or right around when COVID was going to hit, and then that hit and I decided just to go back in and explore more and more, which I’m glad I did.”
Listen to the track below.
