AR/CO’s music has been hiding in plain sight for years.
The British-Australian duo of Mali-Koa and Leo Stannard have written and performed on tracks with Fisher, Rudimental, Kx5, Tiesto, and Marshmello that have racked up 280+ million streams. Their vocals are woven through songs sitting in playlists worldwide. When “Fire Fire” hit number 1 on Instagram‘s trending audio earlier this year, it marked a turning point where the duo’s name started appearing alongside the music.
Mali-Koa and Leo spent years mastering their craft in sessions with dance music‘s biggest names. Now they’re taking everything they learned and building their own world. They’re DJing clubs, releasing their own productions, and proving they’re not just talented collaborators but a fully formed electronic act ready to headline.
We talked to AR/CO about watching their breakthrough moment unfold with “Fire Fire,” the best advice they got from Marshmello and Fisher, and why being polar opposites actually makes the whole thing work.
1. “Fire Fire” hit number 1 on Instagram’s trending audio and charted in 35+ countries. What does it feel like watching a song blow up on social media when most people still don’t know AR/CO is behind it?
Watching “Fire Fire” take off on social media has been surreal. Every day our goal is just to make and play the freshest dance records we can, so seeing this one connect so strongly has been incredible. What made it even more special was watching people react to it in real time while we were out DJing on the road. That’s the ultimate feeling for us.
AR/CO may not be a household name yet, but we’re still early in our journey and we’ve been really grateful for the support from DJs and producers who’ve championed our taste. It feels like people are slowly connecting the dots, but the reality is you have to work. So we lock in every day, and as long as we continue to make great music and continue to evolve, people will eventually know AR/CO is behind all these records.
2. You’ve racked up millions of streams via your collaborations with some top names. When did you decide it was time to make people know your names instead of just your voices?
Not many people realize how involved we are in the whole process, being in the studio, shaping ideas early on, or helping guide a record before it reaches anyone else. We noticed that a lot of the songs we worked on had a feeling that connected back to us, even if no one knew it was us.
We’ve always had our name on the things we made, but now people are starting to talk about us. Not in a loud way, just in an honest way. We’re proud of what we’ve been building, and it’s taken on its own life. So we’re evolving with that too.
3. Your bio says if MGMT met Daft Punk at a desert rave, that’s AR/CO. That’s very specific. Where does that visual and sonic world actually come from?
More than anything, those references are about the feeling we’re trying to create with our music. You could swap MGMT for Empire of the Sun and it would still capture that dreamy, psychedelic infused emotion we love. Daft Punk, for us, represents those instant classic records that feel both nostalgic and futuristic at the same time. The production across our songs brings these references into the modern world.
4. You bring together British, Australian, Maori, and Trinidadian heritage. How do those different cultural backgrounds show up in your music? Can you hear them in specific tracks?
Our backgrounds show up in more subtle ways, not always in a direct musical reference, but in the way we think about rhythm, melody, and storytelling. There’s a lot of natural world imagery in our writing, which comes from how we were raised and the landscapes and cultures we grew up around. People say we have a unique sound, and we believe that the merging of these cultures and worlds probably has something subconsciously to do with it.
5. You joined Sub Focus at BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend and supported Kygo at Gunnersbury Park. What’s different about performing as AR/CO versus being the featured vocalist on someone else’s stage?
Performing as AR/CO feels completely different because it’s our world from start to finish. When we’re guests on someone else’s stage, we’re stepping into their vision, their show, their universe, which is always exciting, but it’s a small part of a much bigger picture they’ve created.
6. Looking at your collaboration list (Fisher, Rudimental, Kx5, Tiesto, Marshmello), you’ve basically worked with everyone. What’s the biggest lesson you learned from those sessions that you’re applying to your own career now?
Working with so many different artists has been so eye opening, but the biggest lessons are actually really simple. We spent a few days with Marshmello, and there were moments where we’d second guess our ideas, and he kept saying, “What would AR/CO do?” It was a reminder to trust our instincts and lean into our own identity instead of trying to fit into someone else’s sound.
From Fisher, the takeaway was just as important: “Have fun with it.” He brings such an effortless energy into the room, and it showed us how much better the music turns out when you don’t overthink it.
7. Mali-Koa and Leo, you describe yourselves as “polar opposite people.” What’s one thing about each other that drives you crazy and one thing you couldn’t make AR/CO work without?
To be honest we’re very much yin and yang, which means we don’t beef that much, but:
Leo: Mali always thinks it takes 10 minutes to get anywhere, when in reality it always takes an hour.
Mali: Leo always brings stage clothes crumpled to within an inch of their life, so then wears the same shirt every show (the one that doesn’t crumple).
Both: We couldn’t make AR/CO work without being able to have a laugh and not take anything too seriously. We spend a lot of our lives together so being able to enjoy the everyday stuff is super important. We love a day off and a beach.
