Who is Imanbek? Imanbek Songs, Music, Discography & Artists Like Imanbek
The story of how a self-taught producer from a small Kazakhstani town built a Grammy-winning career on the back of a single remix is one of the most compelling in modern dance music. Adam keeps tabs on producers who turn heads through unconventional paths, and Imanbek is exactly that kind of artist. Working in rail transport by day and crafting beats at night, he took a song that had stalled on the charts and gave it an entirely new life.
4D4M covers a wide range of electronic acts across house, deep house, and beyond. Few have an origin story as unfiltered as Imanbek’s. The Roses remix hit number one on Shazam World, charted across Europe, and eventually pulled the original song into the American Billboard charts years after it was first recorded.
Who Is Imanbek
Imanbek is a Kazakh DJ and record producer from Aksu, Kazakhstan. He started playing guitar as a child and began producing music seriously in 2017, all while holding a job in rail transport at the local railway station. That self-taught grind is baked into everything about how his career developed.
In 2019, a remix he built of SAINt JHN’s Roses went viral worldwide. He created it independently after his Instagram messages to SAINt JHN went unanswered. The track climbed charts across Europe and Asia, reached the top of Shazam World, and dragged the original 2016 song onto the American Billboard chart and the UK Singles Chart.
In March 2021, Imanbek won the Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording for that remix, becoming the first Grammy winner from Kazakhstan and the first non-classical Grammy winner from within the CIS. He also took the Billboard Music Award for Top Dance/Electronic Song that year. Labels include Effective Records, Virgin Records, and Dharma Worldwide. Key collaborators include SAINt JHN, Alan Walker, Rita Ora, David Guetta, Dua Lipa, Sean Paul, and Afrojack.
Imanbek’s Sound Explained
Imanbek works in the space where deep house, slap house, and EDM subgenres overlap. He has a consistent instinct for what makes a track stick: bass-forward rhythms, melodic hooks that can hold at radio level, and enough energy to fill a room without going overproduced.
The Roses remix is the best case study. He stripped back SAINt JHN’s hip-hop original and rebuilt it over a swinging, bass-heavy house groove. The vocal stays front and center but the entire emotional texture shifts. That ability to completely reframe a song while keeping its identity intact is rare, and it shows up across his remix catalog.
His originals follow the same instinct. Belly Dancer with BYOR is percussion-led slap house with serious rhythmic momentum. Dancing On Dangerous with Sean Paul and Sofia Reyes brings reggaeton and dancehall influences that show genuine range. He absorbs these inputs and builds them into something with a clear identity.
What sets Imanbek apart in the current house space is his feel for how electronic dance music connects with mainstream pop audiences. He operates in the productive tension between club and radio without losing credibility on either side.
Imanbek Top Tracks
- Roses (Imanbek Remix) with SAINt JHN: The Grammy-winning remix that launched everything. Number one on Shazam World and charted in over a dozen countries.
- Belly Dancer with BYOR: Percussion-driven slap house with serious rhythmic energy. One of his strongest original productions.
- Sweet Dreams with Alan Walker: A melodic collaboration that holds its own from both sides. Alan Walker’s signature sound meets Imanbek’s bass instincts.
- Love Again (Imanbek Remix) with Dua Lipa: He filters Dua Lipa’s pop record through a deep house sensibility. The results feel distinctly different from the original.
- Goodbye with Goodboys: A polished track with a hook that does not quit.
- Belly Dancer (LUM!X Remix) with BYOR and LUM!X: The LUM!X rework pushes the energy up and gives the original track a faster, harder edge.
- The Best Part of Life (Imanbek Remix) with SAINt JHN: Another SAINt JHN collaboration confirming their creative chemistry is not a one-off.
- Summertime (Imanbek Remix) with Lana Del Rey: Lana Del Rey’s hazy atmosphere over a house-influenced rhythm. An unexpected pairing that actually works.
- SOB with CLOSE YOUR EYES: A darker, more introspective cut that shows a different side of his production range.
- Dancing On Dangerous with Sean Paul and Sofia Reyes: Reggaeton and dancehall rhythms meeting his house instincts. Sean Paul and Sofia Reyes bring genuine energy.
- Valentino with 24kGoldn: A cross-genre collaboration with pop-trap artist 24kGoldn that performed well across streaming platforms.
- Big from the Bang EP with Rita Ora, David Guetta, and Gunna: Lead single from the Bang EP with a lineup that delivers exactly the energy you would expect.
- Mood from the Bang EP with Rita Ora and Khea: Khea’s Latin-influenced trap energy fits the production well.
- Hey Baby with Afrojack and Gia Koka: Plays to both producers’ strengths.
- Clandestina with Filv and Edmofo featuring Emma Peters: Deep house with tropical French influences that became a streaming fixture.
Why 4D4M Vibes With Imanbek
The connection is straightforward. 4D4M’s approach to electronic music has always been about finding producers with something genuine to say, not just artists filling a trending slot. Imanbek built his entire breakthrough out of conviction. He made a remix nobody asked for, on equipment he taught himself to use, from a country that had zero footprint in the global dance music conversation at the time.
That credibility counts. The Grammy was validation but the story was compelling before the awards arrived. The cross-genre reach across deep house, pop, reggaeton, and trap shows a producer who does not stay in one lane out of comfort. That range is exactly what streaming platforms reward, and Imanbek knows how to work it.
Imanbek Discography
| Year | Album / Release | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Roses (Imanbek Remix, single) | Effective Records |
| 2020 | SAD (single, with Rasster) | Effective Records |
| 2020 | Clandestina (single, with Filv and Edmofo) | Dharma Worldwide / Spinnin Records |
| 2020 | Goodbye (single, with Goodboys) | Virgin Records |
| 2020 | Dancing On Dangerous (single, with Sean Paul and Sofia Reyes) | Virgin Records |
| 2021 | Bang (EP, with Rita Ora) | Virgin Records |
| 2021 | Sweet Dreams (single, with Alan Walker) | MER Musikk / Parlophone |
| 2021 | Love Again (Imanbek Remix, single, with Dua Lipa) | Warner Records |
| 2022 | Belly Dancer (single, with BYOR) | Virgin Records |
| 2022 | SOB (single, with CLOSE YOUR EYES) | Virgin Records |
| 2023 | Hey Baby (single, with Afrojack feat. Gia Koka) | Virgin Records |
Imanbek Live and Touring
Imanbek has performed at clubs and festival events across Europe and Central Asia. His rise was fast and live bookings followed quickly once Roses took off internationally. His sets draw on his house and slap house catalog with a rhythm-forward energy that translates well to larger festival contexts. His live presence continues to grow alongside his release catalog.
Imanbek FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Imanbek from?
Imanbek is from Aksu, Kazakhstan. He is a self-taught DJ and producer who began making music in 2017 while working in rail transport. His Roses remix made him internationally known and turned him into one of the most recognizable names to emerge from Kazakhstan in dance music. He was the first person from Kazakhstan to win a Grammy.
What genre does Imanbek make?
Imanbek works primarily in deep house and slap house, with strong elements of EDM and occasional trap and reggaeton influences. His productions are built around bass-driven rhythms, melodic hooks, and a polished mix style that sits between club and mainstream radio territory. He is most consistently identified with the house and deep house space, though his collaborations push him into varied sonic territory.
What Grammy did Imanbek win?
Imanbek won the Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording at the 63rd Grammy Awards in 2021, for his remix of Roses by SAINt JHN. This made him the first person from Kazakhstan to win a Grammy and the first non-classical Grammy winner from within the CIS. He also won the Billboard Music Award for Top Dance/Electronic Song the same year.
How did Imanbek become famous?
Imanbek became known in 2019 through his remix of SAINt JHN’s Roses, built independently after his Instagram messages went unanswered. The remix hit number one on Shazam World and charted in more than a dozen countries. That success brought the original 2016 song onto the American Billboard chart and the UK Singles Chart years after it was first recorded.
Who has Imanbek collaborated with?
Imanbek has worked with SAINt JHN, Alan Walker, Rita Ora, David Guetta, Dua Lipa, Sean Paul, Sofia Reyes, Afrojack, 24kGoldn, Gunna, and BYOR, among others. His cross-genre collaborations reflect a real willingness to work outside the electronic music space. The Bang EP with Rita Ora in 2021 is among his most prominent projects.
What record label is Imanbek on?
Imanbek has released music on Effective Records (his early breakthrough home), Virgin Records (his main label for major releases), and Dharma Worldwide, KSHMR’s sublabel of Spinnin Records. Virgin Records has been his primary home since around 2020 and where most of his high-profile collaborations have been released.
What are the best Imanbek tracks to start with?
Start with Roses (Imanbek Remix) with SAINt JHN, the Grammy-winning track that defined his career. Belly Dancer with BYOR shows his original production style at its sharpest. Sweet Dreams with Alan Walker and Love Again (Imanbek Remix) with Dua Lipa demonstrate his range across collaborations. Dancing On Dangerous with Sean Paul and Sofia Reyes is a strong closer.
Listen to Imanbek on Spotify
Listen to Imanbek on SoundCloud
Imanbek Online
| Platform | Link |
|---|---|
| Spotify | Listen on Spotify |
| SoundCloud | soundcloud.com/imanbek |
| @imanbekmusic | |
| imanbekmusic | |
| Official Website | imanbekmusic.com |
| Beatport | Beatport Profile |
