Ibiza has its classics, and then there’s Pacha, the island’s most emblematic electronic temple. Going there feels like stepping into a playground for adults: you can spend hours inside, eating, drinking, dancing… and somehow still want more. What’s unexpected, almost heresy for any other nightclub, is that you can actually eat really well at its in-club restaurant. And when the night calls for a proper drink, Paradiso’s cocktails are a league of their own — spectacular drinks mixed by bartenders as warm as the Balearic air. Within this hedonistic ecosystem, Mau P found his rhythm and redefined what Ibiza meant to him.
His Baddest Behaviour residency wasn’t just a series of DJ sets; it became a living experiment. Week after week, he treated the booth like a laboratory: testing unreleased tracks, adapting to crowds that changed constantly, and learning how to build three-hour music journeys without giving in to the easy anthems. “I wanted people to stay until six,” he says. And they did. From smooth transitions after Kölsch to a B2B set with Jimi Jules that sauced up the night, Mau P was speaking with his crowd. What started as a name pulled from a lyric turned into a full-blown identity: a safe space for everyone who just wants to let go, dance, and behave a little badly.
As he wraps up his first summer at Pacha, Mau P isn’t thinking about slowing down, just expanding his creative world. Fashion, collaborations, new music… all in time. Because as he says, “Good things take time. Great things take even longer.”
You have the closing tonight. How do you feel?
Sad. I was just getting used to it. It’s a dream come true. I started thinking about a residency two years ago, and to have done it with such an amazing lineup and at Pacha Cub is a big accomplishment. I’m super happy with how everything went. But it was like a challenge too. So that’s why it feels nice to have it done.
Beyond the clubs, did you get to discover the island?
Totally. This was the first time I sort of lived here. Those secret spots and beaches that you have to hike to in order to really see are definitely the best.
How do you think Ibiza influenced electronic music globally?
It’s one of the pillars. So many people put so much work into building their residency, their brand, or their own night here. For me, the whole summer revolved around what was happening in Ibiza: who was playing, what kind of music was coming out, etc. I discovered a lot of new music, and I also got to test out my own stuff. It’s sort of like a testing ground for the rest of the world. Every week I’d play for a completely different crowd, which changed the way I approached my sets. Each night felt new: new songs, new reactions. And then when I’d go play somewhere else, I’d think, okay, this worked in Ibiza, so it’ll probably work here too.
How do you build a set for your audience? I imagine it changes every week, but does the crowd influence how you play each night?
Definitely. It also depends a lot on who’s playing before me, the lineup that night. For example, last week I played after Blomqvist, Karreto, and WhoMadeWho, so I wanted the transition to feel smooth. I’m not gonna come in and drop all the big tracks everyone knows me for. I prefer to build it up over three hours, make sure it makes sense for everyone who’s already in the club. And I try to read the crowd too.
What makes a good crowd to you?
It depends, every place has its own sound and vibe. I wouldn’t say there’s one ‘best’ crowd. It’s not just about where people are from, it’s more about the event itself. I’ve noticed that when there’s an older crowd, I have more freedom to do whatever I want. They let you mix longer, take your time, and really focus on the art of DJing. With younger crowds, it’s different, they might know one of my songs from TikTok or Spotify and just wait for that moment. It becomes less about the journey and more about the instant gratification of hearing that track. I’ll give it to them, but I’ll make them wait five tracks. Then it’s a bit of a battle between doing what I want or giving them what they expect.
So, has social media changed how you DJ? TikTok has deeply changed how we consume music.
I try to make what I like, but I’m also realistic — that’s how the world works now. If I want my music to reach more people, sometimes I have to adapt a bit and think, okay, this might work on TikTok, why not try it? But I still want it to feel authentic. I don’t want to make a track where only fifteen seconds go viral and the rest no one cares about. The most important thing as an artist is to express what you need to express, not to obsess over likes, views, or virality.
How about social media exposure. Do comments get to you?
Yeah, I definitely look at it. And sometimes it gets to you. You start overthinking before posting: Is this gonna do well? Will enough people see it? Is it gonna flop? But at the end of the day, nobody actually cares that much. Like, I never look at someone else’s post and think, wow, that did really bad for them. You just scroll on. But when it’s your own stuff, you obsess over it. It can make you insecure, the whole social media thing. There’s also this pressure, like, oh, I have to post again. It’s a love-hate relationship, but still, it’s a great invention.
When did you first realise that things were changing for you? You started with Drugs from Amsterdam, right? That song really shifted your path. Was that the turning point?
It was, yeah. But at that point, it was just one song, so I still had to work hard to build a name for myself. I think around two years ago things started to feel different: people would come up to me and tell me how much they love my music. I really appreciate that, and I always try to take pictures with everyone. It’s not annoying at all; it doesn’t feel overwhelming or anything.
So you can still go grocery shopping without being mobbed?
Yeah, totally.
And when you look back at everything, how does it feel? I’m sure you’re proud, but it must also be hard — all the travel, being away from friends and family, etc.
It is, but it’s also what I chose. I always knew this job came with that lifestyle, so now that it’s happening, I’m not like, whoa, what’s going on? This is what I wanted: to travel, to play music for people all over the world. I’ve also gotten really good at travelling. Some people hate flights or get stressed about time zones, but I do like airports. I’m used to constant movement. If I stay home for two weeks straight, I start to feel weird, like I’ve been still for too long.
Why call the residency Baddest Behaviour?
The phrase comes from an edit I made of OutKast’s Hey Ya! The spoken line “Now, I want to see y’all on y’all baddest behaviour” stuck with me. I was careful with the name, checked registrations, and landed on it. I just like the name a lot, Baddest Behaviour. It rolls off the tongue. When I first came up with it and started talking to promoters and people in the industry, they loved it immediately before even knowing what it was. It just worked. The name alone gives you a vibe, a feeling.
Yeah, because deep down everyone wants to misbehave a little.
Exactly. I always thought of it like this: when you were in school and got detention for being ‘bad,’ you’d all end up in a classroom together. So I imagined, what if all those kids threw a party instead? That was the original concept: bringing together everyone with a bit of bad behavior into a safe space where you can let go, dance, and have fun. But yeah, we do good things too, of course.
What’s the baddest thing you’ve done this year?
Hmm… I did a lot of good things, actually. I started smoking more cigarettes and then I quit. So that’s progress.
That’s good! Maybe next year you’ll have to change the name to Best Behaviour! Anyway, you’ve built such a strong identity around your brand. Do you ever think about expanding beyond music, like into fashion or collaborations with artists?
Definitely. But I believe good things take time, and great things take even longer. I’ve been wanting to do something in fashion for a while now. People always ask me for Bad Behavior merch, but I don’t want to just slap a logo on a T-shirt and sell it for a lot of money, even though I could, because there’s demand. I’d rather create something timeless, something that actually adds to the fashion landscape. It’s a lot of work, though, and I’ve been touring non-stop. Next year I plan to slow down a bit so I can focus on other creative projects.
Do you feel like taking a break at some point?
Not really. I just wish I had more time to do other things I enjoy.
Have you always been like that? Even as a kid — super active, always doing something?
Yeah, but only when it came to things I cared about. If I was very interested in something, I’d teach myself everything about it. But at school, if the subject didn’t grab me — history, math, whatever — I’d just switch off completely. My parents were like, what’s wrong with this kid? (Laughs) It wasn’t that I couldn’t do it; I just didn’t see the point. Then I found music and I was like, wait, I can make songs on a computer? Amazing. From that moment on, I wanted to learn everything.
And now here you are, closing your own Residency at Pacha Ibiza. So, what can we expect from tonight’s set?
I think it’s going to be amazing. All the previous weeks have sort of built up to this night. Every set has been a learning experience — figuring out how to shape the residency, how to play in Ibiza, how to keep people in the club as long as possible. That’s always my goal. It gets very late, but I go to other parties like Circoloco and stay until six, so I want people to stay until six at night, or even later! (Laughs) It’s all about making the flow right, keeping the energy alive, and creating this sort of conversation with the crowd.
Like an exchange of energy.
Exactly. The last two weeks, I felt like I’d figured it out: how to control the flow, read the crowd, and make it work. And now it’s the last one and I’m like, come on, I just got it right! But tonight’s lineup is insane: Jimi Jules, Ben Sterling, K. It’s going to be wild.
I’m staying for sure. I’ve actually never seen you play live. I’m hyped.
Me too. I’m playing The Basement in Madrid soon.
The club?
Yeah, at the end of the year. You have to come. There’s this market near the cathedral with lots of little food stands in Madrid. You can get so much food and wine there, it’s amazing.
Mercado de San Miguel?
No idea. Can’t remember. But I love gildas. Let’s get some when I come!
