The most surprising name on Shimza, Ayra Starr and Alok’s new single isn’t any of the three artists on the cover.
It’s Stargate, the Norwegian production duo behind Rihanna’s ‘Diamonds’, Beyonce’s ‘Irreplaceable’ and Katy Perry’s ‘Firework’, who are now steering an Afro House record built for festival stages.
‘All The People’ is out now via Helix Records, with Alok appearing under his experimental alias SOMETHING ELSE.
It’s a vocal-led crossover that pulls together three corners of the dance world: South African Afro House, Nigerian Afrobeats and Brazilian club culture.
Stargate aren’t working alone. Shift K3Y co-produced the track, and he’s no stranger to Shimza’s catalogue, having helped shape ‘Fire Fire’, the 2024 collaboration with AR/CO and Kasango.
That one racked up 200 million global streams, more than 430 million social video views and over a million Shazams, while topping Instagram’s Trending Chart.
There’s a real tension in how this record came together, and it’s the most interesting thing about it.
Alok built SOMETHING ELSE as a way to dig into the psytrance culture he grew up around in Brazil, including the scene surrounding the Universo Paralello festival.
Pairing that project with the hitmakers behind ‘So Sick’ for Ne-Yo is a pretty sharp turn toward the mainstream.
Alok seems fine with that shift. ‘All The People’ follows earlier SOMETHING ELSE singles including ‘I Wonder If You Know’, and it pushes the alias in a more collaborative, genre-blending direction.
He’s currently ranked number four in DJ Mag’s 2026 Top 100 DJs list, with over 5 billion streams and past work alongside John Legend, Ellie Goulding and Bebe Rexha.
For Shimza, the timing makes sense. The Tembisa-born DJ sold out a 5,500-capacity Shimza & Co takeover during Amsterdam Dance Event, headlined a sold-out Roundhouse show in London that DJ Mag livestreamed, and launched a residency at Pacha Ibiza.
He also went back to back with Afrojack at Coachella and played Tomorrowland, Awakenings and Ultra South Africa.
Back home, his KUNYE platform and event series draws roughly 25,000 people a year, which helps explain why he’s become such a go-to ambassador for Afro House and Afro Tech abroad.
Ayra Starr brings the pop pull. Since breaking through with ‘Rush’ in 2022, she’s passed 7 billion global streams, earned two GRAMMY nominations and become the first African woman in 16 years to win Best International Act at the MOBO Awards. Her collaborators already include Wizkid, Rema, Stormzy, Coldplay and Kelly Rowland.
Her latest album, Starrgirl, landed earlier this summer and debuted at number two on Spotify’s Top Albums Global chart.
It pulled 3.9 million Spotify streams in its first full day and hit number one on Apple Music’s album chart in 15 countries.
So for her, a club-focused feature is a detour from album mode rather than a pivot. The bigger question is how ‘All The People’ travels once she’s on the road, with her 20-city headlining world tour set to kick off in January.
