Musical State of Play: Nostalgia, Innovation, and the Dancefloor
The Other: You’ve been at the nexus of NYC’s dancefloor scenes for quite a while now, and more recently on the move between American and European dancefloor epicenters. What’s the musical state of play right now? What are the driving rhythms in these spaces from your perspective?
Everyone is craving something familiar. I’m hearing a lot of edits, remixes, or refixed versions of old pop hits, and references to online culture samples or songs that have come back to the top of the cultural zeitgeist because of a TikTok sound or video meme format. Rhythmically, the trends are all over the map, but I hear many DJs and producers trying to push into new genres & create new sonic mixtures of their influences. Innovation is how we got the music we love, so I’m all for it.
I’ve always been the kind of music collector and DJ that likes being on my own wave of nostalgia, which is hyper-specific and ever-roving. All that to say, I still love old music, but being too steeped in being or playing obscure is very head-scratchy and not vibey for the party. It’s about connecting those special interest niches.
The Social Side of the Dancefloor: Connection and Community
The Other: The social zeitgeist has evolved quite a bit since you first took over the decks; what’s your perspective on the social side of the dancefloor? Where are the people at?
I was telling my friend on the phone today that I like having a blend of gay parties, queer parties, and a broader mixed crowd. It’s important that queer cultural leaders cross boundaries and […] share the culture behind how and why we party like this, by gathering to dance together and sharing a legacy of sound.
New York has given me so many inspiring experiences that have shaped this perspective. I love the feeling of being on the dance floor in fluid motion with people of all ages, sizes, and sexualities, all coexisting and moving with each other like water droplets in the ocean.
What I do know is this: it is vital for us to connect to one another, especially during such a heavy time in the world. The dance floor is a place where this can happen. If it’s not just used as an escape route or for hedonism, it can be a powerful connector and can teach us so much.
Queer and BIPOC Influence: Industry Dynamics and Representation
The Other: Given the storied roots of Queer and BIPOC influence over electronic and dance-centric music, how do you view the current dynamics in the producer and DJ space?
I’m going to sound jaded in this one, but I still see a lot of fakers, phonies, and cronies riding the coattails of the real innovators in their sound, and yet, THEY have all the fans and the money and the sold-out gigs because they are younger, whiter, or somehow more marketable. It’s not working. We hear them repeat the same “House and Techno is Black and Queer music” quote in interviews, and then what comes after the lip service? NOTHING.
I try to focus on using what influence I have to give out flowers to those who have inspired me and those who have been overlooked. I try to mention names and show the connections that pushed my evolution as a creative.
Identity, Inspiration, and the Divine Feminine in Sound
The Other: Your style veers between high-energy, modern house motifs and the profile of disco-soul classics coupled with world dance rhythms. Where do you draw your inspiration from? What are you channeling your own music towards?
My signature blend has to do with the crossroads of the identities that I harbor. I’m a first-generation Liberian-American queer dark-skinned black androgynous-leaning cis-woman. I grew up singing in church and school choirs in South Carolina. I left there for college at Boston University, where I did college radio and traveled in Europe a bit. From there, I found myself still itching at my lifelong dream of living in New York City, so I did that too.
My inspiration comes from the reverence I have for the music, the human essence, and creative energy in these recorded sessions–which is the soul of the music. […] My process of making music also adheres to producing music that has a story and an intention.
In all things I do, I am channeling the divine feminine, connecting to the source energy that exists in all living things, the movement, the kinetic energy that keeps us alive, and by pure expression putting it into a sound, an audible experience.
After 10 years of DJing, I know that’s my purpose for doing this, that’s my magic touch, presenting music that touches your soul, that stirs it up, and soothes it down.
