Womanrock.com
SISTER SF: DJ Collective Making a Difference
by Jay House and Aliza Sherman

When female DJs XJS, Siren and Polywog met, they realized they shared a vision: they wanted to be able to "get gigs without bias, to provide a supportive, friendly platform for any female DJ, MC or live performer to enjoy their music where gender is not an issue, and to create a place where women are neither fighting to be heard nor imported merely to fulfill a gimmick quotient.

With this in mind, SISTER SF was Formed in October of 1997, built on the spirit of Your SISTER SF's House (YSH), an earlier women's DJ collective (1993-1995), while creating a new platform for female DJs around the globe. The SISTER SF resident DJs organize and play events which are both commercial ventures and fund-raisers. SISTER SF parties also feature guest DJs who play on a rotating basis.

Says XJS, "SISTER SF avoids cliquey aspects [common to the music scene] studiously, and SISTER SF events are less competitive than others, and tend to attract a more mature crowd of people who identify with the mission of SISTER SF and appreciate the increased camaraderie and the good food they find there."

All of the SISTER SF DJs point to a unique sense of satisfaction from participating in an organization dedicated to helping others. According to MC Linzee, "a typical night at our events consists of uniting together the women DJs and artists of San Francisco and making something positive and creative happen."

SISTER SF provides necessary inspiration and support for new and up and coming DJs, because as Linzee points out, "women in this society were brought up to be passive technically especially with electronic equipment. Women are just as capable developing the technical skills involved to DJ or get involved in music.

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Sistas Gonna Work It Out
By Ms. E!

Lady mixmasters across the world are making their mark. We can now declare that the story of the DJ will not go down as strictly a boys’ game! The first round of ladies who took on the challenge of leading the rhythm on the growing circuit of underground music events broke the boundary and paved the way for others to follow. At the end of the day, no pretty face can replace talent when it’s time to check the skills!

Here are a few ladies takin’ hold of the technical controls...for real!

DRC
Twin Soul Productions, San Francisco

In late 1992, DRC met DJ Downtown Donna in San Francisco, who hooked her up playing at her club Faster Pussycat. With a job at BPM Records and the mission of the “Tribal Acid Dominatrix Queen” running through her, it’s been non-stop ever since. Today, the demand for her unmatched skill and inspiration on the decks shows no sign of slowing. DRC has performed in every corner of the States as well as all around the world in Canada, Germany and Eastern Europe.

Whirling from the intense task of releasing The Reflection EP– her own material on her own imprint Twin Soul Productions, DRC grabs only a s econd to take a deep breath and then she’s off again! This spring she’ll be around North America on the “Progression Tour” with fellow San Franciscan Jason Blakemore and LA Moontribe DJs Brian and Thomas Michael. With pipeline collaborations on a new track with DJ Demetras and albums worth of music from years of production with various people from the US and Germany...DRC exclaims, “Just wait!!”

“Since I very first put my hands on the decks seven-and-a-half years ago, I have played a bit of everything. YES, even vocal house, hip hop, industrial, then on to techno, breakbeat, progressive, acid, trance and drum & bass,” DRC says. Keeping her style diverse proves to be a unique asset and an ongoing challenge: “You will rarely hear me play a full record all the way through. I edit live, basically. It requires a lot of homework, getting the right key and rhythmic patterns flowing together.”

Independent by nature and driven to discover the endless magic that lies within, DRC feels her true potential as a music producer will be achieved when she learns to engineer her own work. “Experimenting in the studio is a childhood dream become reality for me! Being completely sufficient in my own studio is my true goal.” Experience the captivating energy DRC harnesses as a DJ just once, and you will have no doubt her intention will be manifest.

Cosmic Cat
Groovelounge, Philly

Today’s DJ is more than just the party’s music selector. Cosmic Cat is an example of the many possibilities that can take shape from taking on a life of music. Cat is club and radio DJ, programmer for an online webcasting network, music producer, plus she is also starting her own record promotion company called Groovelounge.

Surrounding herself in an environment that has no boundaries, she is aware and on top of her game at this early stage. “I started off spinning downtempo abstract grooves and acid jazz at home because I loved it, then got gigs that demanded house and more uptempo music. At this time, variety allows me to stay competitive in the club scene. Also, the expanding DJ scene and subculture surrounding it allows for DJs to express themselves with multiple formats in different venues than before,” she says.

Cosmic Cat’s radio show “Alpha Room” airs live on Thursdays on Media Bureau.com, where she also helps to program original content. If her four-night-a-week rotation in various Philly clubs and jaunts to the Big Apple to play at one-offs and the Diesel store were not enough, she has also managed to find the time to try her hand at production. “I took a Midi course which gave me my first look at the world of music software and digital music. I feel that this is the future of my music career. I work very closely with the DJs and live musicians at Media Bureau, and I recently bought an interface for my computer which will allow me to chop up different sounds and make tracks. I listen to tracks and try to figure out how they are put together. I hope to put out a track one day that DJs will keep in their crates!”

The networking and interaction the Cosmic Cat conducts through all of her projects makes the seemingly endless work rewarding for her and all that she touches.

DJ Heather
Superjane, Chicago

The mastery of two turntables, two records and a mixer is–hands down–the foundation of any DJ set to represent any style of music. The control of the technology leads to the power to take control of the vibe...the access to transforming any dancefloor to a jumpin’, bumpin’, stompin’ ground! This is what’s so when DJ Heather steps up and locks on.

With a strong foundation of support from Superjane, Heather stands side by side with Dayhota and Colette as Chicago’s first and only all-women DJ collective. Heather is spending less time in her native Chicago, however, as the demand for her steady flow of underground house grows around the world. She’s tearin’ it up from Vancouver to Toronto, to Berlin, France and Ibiza.

A seasoned performer who has shared the stage with Jamiroquai and Black Grape, Heather has also shed some light with her vocal contribution to the Earthtones Recordings release Need Some More. Her mix CD release Revolving House is out on Cyclo Recordings, UK. Check out DJ Heather in action on the Set It Off! tour with leading ladies Heather Heart from New York and Genesis from DC, rolling through numerous cities in North America.

Empress
New York City

“The bass hit me and the music clicked,” says Empress of finding the dark, techy style of music that is now her extreme passion. Drum & Bass is taking her across the world now, headlining alongside the scene’s top talents in different cities Stateside as well as the North American D & B capital Toronto, Germany and...MOVEMENT in London? “That was wicked. Their sound systems are ridiculous!” she says, “Every scene is different. I love travelling, going to play in new places and having to figure out what it is that gets the crowd moving.”

As a young enthusiast growing up in the New York City scene, Empress worked in a DJ record shop educating herself on a range of techno, trance and acid house. A DJ now for five years, she’s taken the logical step towards producing her own material. During an extended stay in San Francsico following her West Coast tour in 1999, she collaborated on a track at the home studio of UFO! and Sage of the Phunckateck crew. As for their band name, so to speak, “Laura [Sage] thought of our alias, Triadd, which means 3 notes that form a chord. I also like the other definition of Triadd, a Chinese Mafia of 3 people.” Their song Hydroxy was signed to Skunkrock Productions and will be release in the Spring on 2000 with a remix from Digital & Spirit on the flip.

Empress is also working on licensing music for an online project for Sputnik7 and is working closely with an engineer in New York to make more music and learn about the techniques of music production in all styles.

DJ Dazy
SisterDJs, Los Angeles

Courtney, Miss Modular, XJS, Amtrak, Honey B, HiFi Princess, Double D, DJ Anna and Flutterby are only a few names that pop up when you take a look at the arsenal of talent behind DJ Dazy’s creation SISTERDJS, a website and email newsgroup dedicated to new and burgeoning women DJs representing every style of electronic and hip hop music imaginable! The intention of the list is to create a support structure for women to exchange ideas and information about the art of DJing, music, gigs, events and gear.

After hearing Mark E. Quark spin house music in San Diego in the early Nineties, Dazy was hooked. Early innovators Jeno and Thomas also deepened her love for the vibe. Back at her base in Salt Lake City, Utah, she had turntables delivered on mail order and was one of the only people (definitely the only woman) in town with the essential gear. With a move to Portland, Oregon to seek out a more positive environment for her craft, things began to take shape. More gigs, more traveling and more music! With another move to the Bay Area and now in Los Angeles, Dazy continues to promote herself and expose the deep and soulful sounds of house music.

The business of being a DJ is a full time job...if you want it to be! Dazy has showed up as a featured guest reviewer in URB, while XLR8R has also given consistent coverage of her contributions to the house music scene. Her mixtape series includes Flower Power, Dazy Chain, Full Bloom, Ladybug Beats and Little Miss Naughty. Spreading the love, spreading the knowledge, leading not following! Props to the DJ Dazy!



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