With the release of Tok Tok on the UK imprint Butter & Wine, known for championing emotionally charged, genre-bending house and disco, COHN and Shay Shaz bring together a record that’s rooted in queer dancefloor history and deeply personal expression.
Against the backdrop of 90s house and with a shared commitment to the mantra “be yourself,” the EP unfolds across four tracks that feel loose, bold, and true to their distinct yet complementary textures.
COHN’s knack for finely tuned club tools aligns effortlessly with Shay’s flair for the dramatic and narrative-driven energy. Together, they weave nostalgia and raw emotion into something that doesn’t lean on throwback tropes — instead reaching for euphoria with a knowing wink. They created space for instinct and play in the studio, and the result is an EP that sounds like two people in sync rather than one echoing the other.
We sat down with them to explore how Tok Tok came together, how their creative chemistry started from day one, and what standing firm in queer individuality really means on the dancefloor today.
Tok Tok feels rooted in both personal expression and shared cultural history — what does “be yourself” mean to each of you in the context of club culture today, and how did that inform the way you approached this collaboration?
To be yourself in the club today means showing up without the need to filter or change who you are. I (Shay) wrote the original idea for “Tok Tok” during a time when I felt like queer spaces were trading individuality for uniformity — and this project was my way of pushing back against that. Working with COHN made it easy: we both walked into the studio with the same sense of freedom. No posturing, no pressure, just play. The music naturally carried that same energy.
There’s a strong 90s house thread running through the EP, but each track has its own identity. How did you balance nostalgia with the need to create something fresh and personal?
We both love the 90s — it’s in our history — but we didn’t want to make a throwback record. For us, it’s less about imitation and more about feeling. I wanted to take the spirit of that era — the openness, the euphoria, the sweat — and channel it into something that feels current, messy, emotional. But even with that, it wasn’t something we gave loads of thought to, it just was where we found our creative meeting point.
Shay, your track nods to the 80s fashion markets and the spirit of Patrick Cowley. Can you talk more about how those influences shaped the sonics of “92 Lorimer”? And COHN, how does “Tiger & Tuna” reflect your current production mindset?
“92 Lorimer” is actually named after the first apartment I (Shay) lived in when I moved to New York at age 20 — right in Williamsburg. Back then, I was obsessed with music and completely in love with the work of Patrick Cowley. I had all his vinyl records, and I’d play them constantly — especially on fashion sets where I worked as a hairstylist and makeup artist. There was even a record store near me that had a little Cowley section. Patrick’s story, his sound, and his courage really moved me. When I started producing a few years later, I knew I wanted to carry his legacy forward in my own way. “92 Lorimer” is a tribute — not just to him, but to that magical time when I was discovering who I was through music, fashion, and freedom.
As for “Tiger & Tuna,” that was me letting go of perfection — it’s twitchy and weird and full of little surprises. I (COHN) was never super sure about it, and then when we were talking about making the EP, I played it to Shay and he LOVED it. And honestly, he was right. This is such a good example of how we build each other up and inspire confidence in each other.
Shay Shaz
What did you each bring to the table that surprised the other during the making of the EP — sonically, creatively, or even personally?
I think we both surprised each other with how quickly things clicked. Shay is a ‘one or two takes max’ kind of vocalist — we need it to feel alive — and COHN was so fluid and supportive in building the tracks and the production around that. We each brought different instincts, but the trust was immediate. COHN is definitely more of the quiet technician and Shay is more chaotic and charismatic with seemingly infinite energy; somehow it just worked.
Butter & Wine has built a reputation for left-of-centre releases. What drew you to the label, and how did that relationship shape the final outcome of Tok Tok?
Butter & Wine is actually COHN’s label, so that gave us the freedom to do whatever we wanted, which was obviously essential to the spirit of the EP. From the start, they leaned into the queerness, the theatricality, the joy. We built a space where being a bit extra isn’t just allowed — it’s the point. This gave us a lot of freedom to be loud, weird, emotional, and proud.
The EP flows like a four-part statement — was there a shared narrative or emotional arc you were aiming for, or did the structure emerge more instinctively?
We didn’t sit down and say, “Let’s write a story.” But one definitely appeared. It moves like a night out — the excitement, the moment of vulnerability, the bounce back. It’s instinctive, but it makes sense. But really, it was just a reflection of our relationship and belief in each other.
COHN
You both come from distinct scenes — COHN with releases on Kitsuné and Nervous, Shay with Polari and his high-energy DJ sets. How did your different musical languages converge in the studio?
Honestly – we don’t really have different languages, but we do come from slightly different ends of the same spectrum. I think both of us could build a DJ set from the same 15 tracks, but we would explore them differently and express ourselves through the music in different ways. That’s what I love about this collaboration. It really shows how two people can experience a similar scene and come together with such a sense of love and respect.
Now that Tok Tok is out in the world, what conversations or feelings do you hope it sparks on dancefloors and beyond?
I think for both of us, we love that discussions about self-expression and identity don’t always have to be heavy and academic. We can have this artistic dialogue about all these topics through the lightness and love that comes through in the EP. People should be themselves and love themselves for it. But they don’t have to feel heavy in it, dance music is about expression through the body and through music and that’s what we want to come through in this EP.
Tok Tok is out now on Butter & Wine
The post Interview: COHN and Shay Shaz discuss their genre-bending collab Tok Tok appeared first on Magnetic Magazine.