TERRITORIES: North and South America

Canada may not be first country that comes to mind with the word tropical, but that’ll change once you hear Toronto dance music duo WAVES’ colorful, upbeat sound.

Best friends since high school, Spencer Bridle and Frankie Grant share a love of tropical house, dance-pop and summers by the lake.

“We’re Toronto boys who’ve always loved cottage country. When we started touring we went to Miami and were, like, what if we combine the two—swagger from Miami with having a good time by the lake,” says Bridle. “It's almost like tailgating but not—it’s a red cup party vibe. We really want to reflect that in our music and style.”

Bridle leads on songwriting and production while Grant helms performance, each adding to the other’s vision. WAVES’ first singles dropped in 2018, with “Blinded,” “Take it Over” and their Dzeko remix “Heart Speak” clocking four million streams on Spotify alone without label or management backing.

After the world closed down, their career revved up, signing with Ultra Music as well as Northside Management, the team behind Loud Luxury. Escaping their small condo, they lugged their gear to the lake and laid down tracks.

The first result is “Mr. Wilson,” an energetic floor-filler with New Jersey “beach pop” vocalist Benton and a sampled “wow” from the song’s beloved namesake, actor Owen Wilson. Then keep an ear out for “Hot Mess,” featuring New York singer Lena Leon (Tiesto, Vicetone) and “Younger,” featuring Wrabel (Kygo, Kesha).

And now that lockdowns are in the rear-view, WAVES are ready to drop these purpose-built party tracks in person. “We think the roaring 20s are about to happen again,” says Bridle. “People are going to party their face off after this!”