G: Helluurrr and thanks for being the first GMIX ☺ can you introduce yourselves?
H: Thank you so much for thinking of us! I’m Hannah, from Belfast, Northern Ireland, but recently moved to London. We linked up in Belfast at the start of April and we recorded this mix and went b2b, 1 for 1.
S: Thanks for having us! I’m Sophie from Belfast - Ireland.
G: How did you get into DJ’ing and what’s your advice for people who want to start?
H: Passion for music and being inspired by DJs growing up is where the seed was planted really and appreciating it as an art form and way of expression. 10 years ago when I was 20, I bought a set of Technics and started collecting records, from being involved in the scene and having mates work/Dj and networking, word got about pretty much (Belfast is a small place) and got asked to play my first gig back in 2017 and it just grew organically from there. If I’m honest, I nearly said no to that gig due to severe stage fright (which I still have lol!) and being a woman, made things seem a little more of a pipe-dream, so I never set out to be a DJ I always had seen it as a stimulating hobby. Doing it even 5+ years ago as a woman is completely different to people’s outlook on it now, which is great to see and inspiring for other women and non-binary artists.
S: I only really started off a couple of months ago. I always wanted to get into it and have always been around people who DJ so I was lucky to always be around a set of decks. I picked a lot of what I know up by watching and practicing with my friends (s/o to Hannah). I got decks in January and have just been at it a lot since then. My advice would be to be persistent with it & don’t be afraid to start, it sounds cliche but everyone has to start somewhere! Stay true to what you enjoy listening to and it’ll go great.
G: I know you have started a night called Social Sounds, how are you finding being a promoter in such a male dominated space so far? When is your next event?
H: H: Grateful to be playing the first Social Sounds event in Belfast in May, but Sophie’s the face behind the brand I’m just here to help out!
S: I’m really enjoying it so far. I’m learning a lot as it’s quite new to me but I’ve had a lot of positive feedback about being pursuing it as a woman which has been great to hear, it’s good to know people are recognising that. I want to put my time into something I love (music and the underground nightlife culture) and hopefully showcase that as best I can with time. Primarily my aim is to create a safe & enjoyable environment for people to come have fun and listen to the music they’re into
without it costing them a fortune.
The next event is on Saturday May 11th with @rizlateef headlining, and it’s actually the first event so I’m really excited to see how it goes.
G: Is there any new bits of music you want to highlight from your mix?
H: I did a mixture of old 90’s tracks mainly vinyl rips and new released stuff. I like to play with newer and older stuff to add more depth and dynamic to mixes but here are some of the new releases:
Skee Mask - Dub Schneider (Released last month on Munich label ‘Ilian Tape’)
Xupid - Hexing Hour (Released last month on Berlin label ‘Falling Ethics’)
1oo1oo - NIGHT (1oo1oo speed dembow mix) aka thee best Benga & Coki - Night edit I’ve ever heard
S: A massive shout out to all the producers and labels I play/listen to but if I had to highlight a few new releases I played in this mix they would be -
@dyslecta - Lynchpinn
@laksa - Leo
@skeemask - Dachtekker
G: Thank you again for working on this with me, do you want to ask me a question now?
H&S: Do you have any plans to start your own events? And in an ideal world who would be top of your list to have on the series?
G: I'll answer the last one first lol - in an ideal world I would love to have Bae Bae talk about their work processes and I am especially curious about the warehouse party scene in LA, and how Hoodrave came about.
Regarding events, most probably would love for GMIX to become something IRL, keeping it open for now.