DJ SHE ~ JANE BLAZE PRODUCTIONS, WESTENDER COVER STORY: Hey, Ms. DJ!

Notes: 6 / 1 year ago

WESTENDER COVER STORY: Hey, Ms. DJ!

The Utopia Festival: Women in Digital Culture will “stage an intervention” for the male-dominated DJ and electronic music scene this Saturday, March 5 with performances by the likes of DJ She (pictured).

In the darkness, quick bursts of coloured light flash over a writhing crowd. It’s more disorienting than laser tag, but the motlIn the darkness, quick bursts of coloured light flash over a writhing crowd. It’s more disorienting than laser tag, but the motley assortment of strangers-no-more keep bumping bits with a practiced chaos, paying little attention to what’s going on as long as the music moves them. It might be silly, but rhythm really is a dancer, and lo and behold, it’s a woman behind the turntables, pulling the puppet strings, spinning these club kids into a melting-hot frenzy.

When DJ Betti Forde (aka Maren Hancock) started spinning in Vancouver in 1998, women in the DJ and electronic music scene were an anomaly in a testosterone sea. Thirteen years later, precious little has changed, hence the need for Utopia Festival: Women in Digital Culture. It’s a unique day-long conference that promises to unfold like a stylized mullet — business up front, party in the back, with an assortment of practical discussions, skill-building workshops (DJ 101), a keynote address from Canada’s electronic music icon, Peaches, followed by a wild late-night party showcasing some of the best women music makers in the business.

Peaches, Betti Forde, and Vancouver’s own DJ She (aka Tara Reeves) spoke with WE about making it as DIY artists, breaking down barriers, and why a festival like Utopia is more relevant than ever.

Published

See the rest of the article here.
Notes
1. deejayshe posted this

WESTENDER COVER STORY: Hey, Ms. DJ!

Notes

Following

Tumblr