Apple Music Live: NYE 2024

Louis Kevin Celestin, the Haitian-born, Quebec-raised DJ and producer known as KAYTRANADA, describes his creative process in one word: “Mindful.” His DJ sets come together organically and spontaneously, without any ritual navel-gazing or over-analysis. “I just do it,” he says. “Everything happens right in the moment.” Most of the time, he tells Apple Music, he’s focused on reading the energy of the crowd. “I try to give them what they want to hear but also what I want to hear, and I go along with the ride.” Granted, certain evenings carry higher stakes. For this mix—which was recorded at Apple Music’s first-ever New Year’s Eve party—he veered his soulful selections toward joy and release, two sonic hallmarks of house music. “New Year’s mixes are a celebration, you know, for getting through the whole year,” he says. “Whether it was hard or not, you have to celebrate making it through.”