Papa Nugs: “A Bit of Silliness Will Never Hurt a Tune” [Q&A]

Before the Rinse FM residency and gigs at fabric and Phonox, Papa Nugs was Joe from Milton Keynes, constantly pestering his mates for track IDs at the bus station skatepark. Jungle, garage, bassline and hard trance rattled from a Bluetooth speaker; the town’s free-party crews filled in the gaps left by its nightlife. The digging started there.

He learned to mix at 17, built a garage party in Leeds around the Papa Nugs name and spent lockdown producing for ten hours. The records that followed pinballed between breakbeat and beefy, mischievous house, and found homes on Big Saldo’s Chunkers, R.A.N.D Muzik, Method 808 and his Suckerpunch imprint. His latest is PAPADHD Vol. II, another gleeful DJ ADHD collision: “The Voices” – a massively sought-after tune and a favorite of kingpin selector Ben UFO – turns a glitched melody into a peak-time hammer, while “OPA!” twists percussion into something stranger. Paired with a remix from the squelchy and kaleidoscopic Welshpool-based artist Jorg Kuning, this record is a standout of 2026. 

Here, Nugs talks skatepark schooling, stupid samples, the anatomy of a proper “Chunker,” and why club music works better when nobody keeps a straight face.

Hey Joe! Thanks for joining us. How has 2026 been treating you so far?

Hey team! Thanks so much for having me on. 2026 has deffo been the best one so far for a lot of reasons for me! It’s been easily my busiest yet and i’m so happy to be spinning at clubs/festivals that have been on the hit-list for quite some time. Have also been managing to get in a REAL healthy amount of studio time as well so all round has been great so far! Fingers crossed for the rest.

You spent your teenage years at the skatepark, surrounded by jungle, garage, and trance. Did that world shape the way you understand club music?

Yeah 100%! I spent my teenage years Skating (10% skating 90% smoking rollies and chatting shit) at the bus station in Milton Keynes, where there was no real club culture. I became super close with a great crew who were super into the free party/rave scene that naturally appears in a place devoid of any quality nightlife, and the main genres they were in to were jungle, garage, bassline and hard trance. I would always be listening to this stuff out of a bluetooth speaker at the skate park and I just remember being really captivated by it. It was never really background music for me. I'd always be so focused on it and would constantly be pissing off my mates by asking for ID’s. That was when I first started collecting/playlisting old music on youtube and where the obsession really started. It also shaped my taste being super eclectic/appreciative of many different sub genres in a way that I think a lot of people don’t have so much. I think if you grow up somewhere like London where there’s such a choice of music from such a young age you naturally pick a lane/community to be into music wise. A lot of my London friends say they were exclusively into D&B for example. But if you’re from somewhere with less choice you take what you can get! The first club nights I went to were legal nights ran by free party crews, and they were always super eclectic in the genres. It would change by the hour!

The Papa Nugs name started as a cheeky party brand involving your last name, Papa John’s, and a scrapped logo. When did it stop feeling like a joke and start feeling like an identity?

Haha great question! I’ll let you know when it does. I think it’s always worked/felt right because it fits me and the music I make super well. It’s all a wee bit tongue-in-cheek! It’s never really stopped feeling like a joke though because it still is! Also, whenever people who aren’t into music ask what my DJ name is, a good portion of the time when I answer they’ll laugh or think I’m taking the piss, which is always brilliant. The worst thing thought is when I’m checking into a hotel or something with a big queue behind me, and it's booked in under Papa Nugs. Having to say ‘it might be down under Papa Nugs’ with your chest in front of a bunch of strangers is always equal parts humbling and character building. But I think it goes to show you don’t have to be 100% serious all the time to make a decent crack at this music thang! 

You started producing during lockdown and were making music for 10 hours a day. What did that obsessive period unlock for you?

Ah man, it really changed everything for me! I’ve always had a hobby on the go that I’m absolutely obsessed with and literally can’t stop doing, but eventually the passion just fizzles out for one reason or another after a couple of years. When I was younger, it was playing guitar, then gaming, then skateboarding, and finally DJing/finding music. But even with DJing, I lost my passion over my time at university. I just wanted to party. But then when I started producing, the passion I felt was so much more intense than I had ever felt for any of those other hobbies - I knew straight away I had found my thing. In a way I almost see it as a combination of all of the other hobbies that I grew up being so into. It combined the musicality of playing Guitar, with the community/culture aspect of skating I loved so much, with the love/knowledge I had developed for all types of dance music through digging and DJing… plus producing really does itch your nerd brain in the same satisfying way that gaming does - and keeps you in front of a screen for hours at a time! It was like I had found my own personalised super-hobby. I still remember the first time I was making a tune and it was making me wiggle about grooving in my chair. It was the best feeling I’d ever experienced, and from that moment I was hooked. 

What makes a track a proper “Chunker,” and how did landing on Sally C’s Big Saldo’s Chunkers imprint push that side of your sound?

Big fat stomping drums and a growling bassline for me! It’s all about the perfect loop. It was such a buzz getting the record signed by Sally - I had all of the chunkers records at home and was obsessed by the sound. One day I saw Sally bought about £30 of tunes off of my bandcamp so I dropped her a message with some unreleased bits and it all kinda happened from there! It was actually my first time having a proper go at making house, and I enjoyed it so much that it’s now all that I make! I’ve jumped between genres like I did between hobbies growing up.

Suckerpunch feels fun, fast, and sweaty by design. What kind of records belong in that universe?

Love this description! Suckerpunch is an open book in my opinion – the tunes that usually catch mine and Oisin’s attention are usually something that’s a bit different. This usually involves being equal parts fun, wiggy and tasteful, but also just being reaaaaaal good at one of those things can cut the mustard for us! I see it as an extension of songs I'd play in a DJ set basically. Every record we’ve released i’ve given a proper hammering out and about, which is a great feeling.

Tell us a little bit about your EP with DJ ADHD. What inspired this sonic direction?

What I love about making tunes with Alex is there’s basically no inspiration going in – and we never know what the hell is going to come out of a session, but something always does. Our sounds are actually super different – but for some reason we always meet in the middle in such a fun way with something that surprises us both. “The Voices” was a great example of that – we wrote it in roughly three hours, and it was one of those magic sessions where we kept having ideas that really surprised the other person, but every time we tried something it seemed to work. Creatively, this record felt very pure, as I don’t think you can box either tune in any specific lane! 

Check out their first joint EP, 'PAPADHD Vol 1,' on Beatport here.

There’s a real “serious music head, unserious party starter” tension in what you do. How important is humor, looseness, and not taking yourself too seriously when making tracks that still need to absolutely boot the room open?

Haha, this is a cracking compliment. I think when humor and unseriousness have always been a big part of your life growing up with both friends and family, it naturally translates into your creativity, and letting some of your personality shine through is what makes a track special and personal to you! The tracks that I’ve made with a more playful vibe/stupid samples have always ended up being mine/others' favorites – so I’d say a bit of silliness will never hurt a tune.

What are you most looking forward to for the rest of summer 2026?

Can’t wait to play at Lost Village again this year! Last year in Jupiter Park was one of my favourites ever, and this time I’m spinning in the daytime. Going to be a great buzz – the crowds are always so good there. 

Thanks for having me on Beatport team!

Papa Nugs & DJ ADHD's PAPADHD Vol. II is out now via Suckerpunch.

Get it on Beatport.