#IWD women girls djs ireland music thisgreedypig nialler9 anniemac radioclubs brandnewretro feminism corkcity

[sofreshsosoulful]

Irish women at the controls-a short of list of some of the DJ’s

Following on from the excellent This Greedy Pig article by Emily Carson on Irish women in electronic music, it struck me from the discussion that followed that there seemed to be a sense here that women have only recently made inroads here in this regard. The reality couldn’t be further from the truth and in Ireland women have played an important part behind the decks over the years. The history may not have always been documented but it runs deep. Down here in Cork there was one stage where I can vividly remember around the turn of the millennium a few male hip-hop dj’s lamenting that they were not getting a chance, as there were so many women getting gigs! How times have changed! Overall I’m going to provide a brief list of women who I know personally who’ve made an impact here, mainly from the djing point of view though there are many more who produce music too and are involved in other realms. (Edit: i’m adding producers now too). It’s not a comprehensive list and it will be mainly focused on my field (soulful music with a few exceptions) and confined to those mainly who I know or have worked with. (Edit; the list is expanding now more additions coming). This means it’s pretty cork centric too, where there’s always been loads of female djs active. Anyway the list is just a tip of the iceberg, and if other women are looking for inspiration, there are some great examples here.

There’s a lot of debate surrounding lack of women on festival line-ups and house and techno are particularly male dominated, though again, two of the biggest Irish festival slots last year were held by women. Annie Mac is probably the best known DJ in the whole country and she’s arguably the biggest name in the UK too. She played a saturday night main stage set at Longitude last July and was the only DJ to do so. Meanwhile Jenny Greene proved to be a huge highlight at the Electric Picnic, where her 90s dance orchestral show first showed that it could be an arena filler. She’s sold out her forthcoming Live at the Marquee show in no time. But a recent twitter conversation started by Nialler9 highlighted that some festivals have only a few women, and that Annie and Jenny are more often than not the exception rather than the rule.

DJing is a male dominated activity, but look a bit deeper and there are examples aplenty of women making an impact here. Please add to this list and pardon me for forgetting so many more. I’ve left out many who are known primary in other fields (e.g. radio DJs such as  Nicki Hayes, Lilian Smith and Louise Mac Sharry, artists such as Maeve Murphy, Elaine Mai, Laoise etc)  I kept it to mainly DJ’s too rather than producers, of whom there are many many more. (Edit: i’ll be adding more producers but i’ll keep radio off it for now). It’s a male dominated activity but it’s good to shine a light on many of those who some of you might not know, aswell as the big names too. I’ll be adding to the list too when i get a chance. This list aims to highlight those making an impact and i’m not for one minute saying that women don’t face big obstacles breaking into a male dominated industry. But those who do are many and here’s a few who deserve your attention 

EDIT Loads more additions made and more to come!

Annie Mac

The Dubliner is Irelands (and arguably the UKs) best known DJ, and her radio show is massively popular and influential.

Jenny Greene   Hugely popular 2FM DJ who’s RTE Concert orchestra gigs are selling out time after time these days, Jenny is a big draw throughout Ireland in clubs and now arenas.

ELLLL Brilliant Cork producer and DJ who’s Romance EP drew lots of favour last year, ELLLL has already appeared on Boiler Room and she spearheads the Gash Collective of female artists. Also one half of WRYMYRRH with Irene Buckley.

Irene Buckley  Composer who is very busy writing for theatre , dance and film, providing improvised electronics in WRYMYRRH with ELLLL, and playing with the sublime Crevice too

Mona-Lxsa

   If it’s hard for women to breakthrough it’s fair to say it’s harder for black women to breakthrough in an industry dominated by white males. Dublin based Souletiquette co-founder has no such problems though just look at the numbers her soundcloud mixes are hitting.

Susie K  Little is known about Susie outside Cork, but she was my DJ partner at the influential Jam Junior in the savoy for many years, playing to over 800 or 900 every time. She started doing these teenage gigs in Sir Henrys at only about 12 or 13 years of age and remains highly respected here.

Laura Lolz  Galway Bap to the future resident and another DJ and taste-maker highlighted in the article by This Greedy Pig. Laura has since been dead helpful in adding a few more to this list!

Claire Maloney    Very well known DJ and personality who used play a wide selection of funky grooves in the highly regarded Ju-Ju club and elsewhere and do some radio presenting on TodayFM.

Ms Ken D   Wexford native who set up Radio Friendly in Cork city and also ran club nights such as Soulsides here. Andrea was also a resident at Mor Disco in Cork.

DJ Dandelion  Dandelion has been DJing for well over 20 years now, spinning the soul & mod wax, running multiple nights, and remaining one of the coolest and most distinctive figures in the Capital.

Hilary Rose (DJ Her)   Dj and actor who is now achieving great success with “The Young Offenders”

Aisling o’Riordain  DJ and promoter who spearheads the southern hospitality board and Quarter block party. I would have worked closely with Aisling in the Pav and subsequently elsewhere too.

Aoife Ni Canna Limerick native who has DJ’d all over the country over the years, a veteran who plays soulful r&b and house and who was responsible for the seminal “Folklore from the dancefloor” radio documentary on Irish club culture.

Kelly Anne Byrne  TodayFM radio presenter and club DJ who presents one of the best shows on irish radio, and who is a regular on big festival bills such as the Electric Picnic

Mo Kelly  Former model but also a well known DJ and an artist who has hosted many solo exhibitions.

Tara Stewart  Dublin based Radio DJ on RTE and an eager breaker of new music, Tara is also heavily involved in the excellent District Magazine

Vicky Langan  Cork based artist who is highly respected in various fields including performance, sound and film, Vicky is woking on an audio visual project at the Irish Cultural Centre in Paris.

Miss Motif  This Mitchelstown Dj singer songwriter and producer has been a regular on the irish dance scene for many years now.

Eleni Ellen is a cork born dj, singer and producer who has been making electronic music in New York for a good few years. Her younger sister Liz is a brilliant music talent too

Claire Beck  Another DJ who is also a well known radio presenter, Claire regularly spins at the likes of Lumo in Dublin.

Kate o’Shea DJ and booker for the always busy Crane Lane in cork city.

Jenny Glitt, Shirley Sparkle, Velma Velour, Jade Some of the DJ’s who helped Corks indie night Freakscene become one of the longest running club-nights in the country, this clubnight had a strong female presence in various venues.

Mandy Reid   Lisburn DJ who has played huge gigs here, a veteran of the Irish music scene.

Ciara Brady  Young Irish DJ who spins disco and house and has recently formed Citrus DJ’s with Colum o’Connell.

Gina Johnson   Cork soul and hip-hop DJ who was a resident alongside myself in Sir Henrys in the 1990s. Gina was one of the biggest influences on moi and her taste in music was superb.

Kim Keating   Workshop cork resident who has recently appeared at the Lumo 1st birthday party, Kim has been spinning electronic grooves at various parties for many years now.  

Joni Singer/writer/musician and DJ, she has just released her new track today too! Joni is a member of Gash Collective and is about to start a fortnightly show on Dublin Digital Radio too!

Ruth Kavanagh   Ruth is a resident at Mother in Dublin, who run weekly club nights plus appearances on the festival circuit.

Sweet Oblivion Better known as a a journalist and all round arts contributor these days, Aoife Barry is a really good DJ too.

Shiv Siobhan ni Bhrosnachain has been very active with the skirmish blog here, and she’s plays electro vibes on radio and in clubs.

Elaine Howley Altered Hours, Crevice, Morning Veils and Cosmosis on UCC radio. Amazing taste in tunes!

Eve Dublin female collective of DJ’s that include Lauren, Jessica and Micu

Senita Appiakorang  Shookrah front-woman who also sings with Lakerama, Senita has been known to drop some soulful gems on the turntables too

Rosalyn Steer  Cork musician who is in the excellent Morning Veils with Aisling o’Riordan and Elaine Howley (Altered Hours), Rosalyn won’t consider herself a DJ but she often steels the show at my vinyl love gigs.

Arlene Murray Mitchelstown promoter with Alliance Promotions, Arlene is an amazing DJ who will play anything from northern soul and garage rock to 60s pop and new wave!

Spinderellas An all female DJ ensemble who play Bow Lane last Sunday of every month, Sarah-Jane Goff, Mimi Rogue, and often Christine Kelly. Sarah and Christine Kelly play Whitefriar Grill too and Sarah has played Womyn for 2 months, an event in the Soundhouse Wiley Fox which usually includes a female line up!

Aoife o’Neill

Kerry woman who is very busy behind the decks in cork, this month along she plays Cube, Cask, Pigalle and Sober Lane.

Aisling Murphy

Cork native now residing and djing in Edinburgh, and spinning house music all night long.

Fifi de Faoite Another Cork DJ who is spinning abroad, this Clonakilty born DJ spins at venues such as the Roadhouse in London.

Lisa Lemur The sacred harp singer and promoter of some excellent events is also a capable DJ who will drop anything from crazy animal instructional songs to Arthur Russell on the decks!

EimearJean McCormack, Sinead Murphy and Ciara McCormack  I’m gonna include these three, as they used play quite a bit in cork at the turn of the century, in various bars and clubs and on radio too! All are pursuing great careers in other artistic avenues now.

Sally Cinnamon Another very popular and influential dj who plays pretty much everything, and who has played everywhere from big festivals to clubs and bars

DJ Half Dutch Now in London but originally a Dub, and part of the influential Standard Crew spinning UK garage and grime, she had a show on Radio na Life too (via Colz)

Genie Bassbin resident alongside Ali, Genie then hooked up with Bodytonic and played some of their nights plus the Electric Picnic. She also hosted a radio na life show for 4/5 years (via Executive Steve and thanks to Jean for speaking to me too!)

Ali Drum n’bass partner at the legendary Bassbin with the aforementioned Genie, she also did that Radio na Life show before moving to London where she still played the odd gig in her pub, the Castle (via Steve, Ali and Jean!)

Kate brennan Harding  Now a producer at TodayFM, Kate is also a DJ who still spins at parties such as Mother Dublin

Laura Totten DJ Sage Music producer, singer,drummer, DJ and lover of everything, DJ Sage is hugely popular Stateside (via Genie)

Carla Brennan Soulful vibes were always the order of the day from Carla, who also had the misfortune of working with myself and Jim o’mahony in comet records Cork for awhile.

Jules Walsh DJ and booker at the Chambers in Cork.

Isabel Bartak Healy  Radio presenter at Redfm, Izzy now DJ’s at clubs too and played at last years Indiependence Festival

Natasha Scott

A regular at Reggae Fever, she has smashed it at Sim Simma a few times too (via Frankie Grimes)

Little Jay Toby Hatchett is a well known face at musical festivals, and his daughter was only 11 when she made her dj debut at Body and Soul festival (via Dr Dread)

Siobhan Kane Journalist and passionate music fan, Siobhan runs Young hearts run free and she DJ’s at some of their many unique events

Justyna aka Juko Polish born Dublin based DJ playing mainly house and tech-house in Opium Rooms, Pygmalion, South William and on radio with Phever.ie

Natalia Beylis aka Sunken Hum Organiser of the Hunters Moon festival in Leitrim, she’s got amazing mixes on Bandcamp (via dj mascis)

Niamh Hegarty Niamh New Noise is talented across many disciplines and a brilliant supporter of new music.

Saoirse London based DJ from Dublin who has gone from pirates here to Rinse FM. She has already had an RA mix of the day, and has enjoyed frequent appearances for promoters such as Art of Dark, Toi Toi, Make Me, Half Baked & fabric.

Tiny Choons KT and Zonja, two tiny, best pals playing house, disco, funk soul and hip hop for the last couple of years and producing podcasts on Radiomade and ClearHaze.ie. KT also runs dance music blog Swooner Rather Than Hater'

Maedbh O’Connor One of the main people behind DIE in Limerick and a killer techno DJ (Via Justin of Cutting Heads Collective cork)

Kate Butler Still active on Dublin Digital radio, Kate did a show on PowerFM back in the day, and is a well known journalist too (via Ali)

Kate Ahern Another Cork DJ very active at one stage, Kate used play hip-hop and soul in various bars and clubs such as Hi-Fi

Gadget and the Cloud Lo-fi experimental hip-hop vibes from Cork, Kelly Doherty is busy making music and writing about music for the Thin Air while studying at UCC.

Olivia Chau  Olivia has been very active in Limerick for over 10 years and is part of the D.I.E. crew, Djing and promoting and bringing her kitsch-y blend of music to the masses (Via mynameisjohn)

Ali Day Lee Ali started collecting records while studying in Cork and set up Flipittv with Olivia Chau, and they soon became part of D.I.E., where Ali started organising and DJing at the parties (via mynameisJohn)

Maebh Murphy Still flying the flag with You’re only massive, Maebh has been active for many years bringing her DIY aesthetic to a new life in Berlin. She is now helping spearhead the first Girls Rock Dublin music camp soon, “taking a stand against sexism”.

Ais Dot Cork born disco enthusiast who got sick of lighting up the party in front of the decks and decided to spin some behind , she is now living in Vancouver

Aoife Conway Former Glitter and Trauma resident in the Pav with Eoghan Walsh, Aoife now helps run things at the Rising Sons bar on the coal quay

Elaine Mai Irish singer, producer and musician who has also written music for a play by Vickey Curtis, Elaine is well respected electronic artist who has a number of good releases at this stage

Tamara Hall Limerick DJ/Producer signed to Plasmapool, Tamara has just released a new single called “Bassline62”

Sinead Meaney

An audio visual artist, DJ and creative producer from Dublin, Sinead has been very busy over a really wide range of disciplines (via Laura Lolz)

Rosie Barrett  Roise used to run Assquake, and is a highly respected DJ who can cut up anything from Hip-hop to kuduro (via Laura lolz and Executive steve)

Staxx Lyrical Dublin Digital radio DJ bringing the underground hip-hop to your eardrums (via Laura Lolz)

DreamCycles Jenn Moore, an Irish women who tells This Greedy Pig that her experience at the Red Bull Music academy in Montreal gave her the confidence to pursue music further, Jenn is also on DDR

Cáit Cait is involved with Dip and spins on Raidio na Life. She features in This Greedy Pig article and has an impressive visual portfolio on her site too. She helped organise “Room for Rebellion” in aid of the Repealing the 8th in Wigmam (further info via This Greedy Pig)

Cailín Waterford native Cailin Power spins techno for the likes of District 8 and Subject (via This Greedy Pig)

Sarah Mooney Resident at PLT (Peace Love Techno) and instigator of a new collective called Groundwerk. (via Ciara Brady)

Maggie -Rose Brennock Another great DJ, who is part of the Empty Space collective in Dublin, who who run late night events combining visual arts, music and attendees to create a unique atmosphere. (via Ciara Brady)

Alex Donald Acclaimed party DJ who has played numerous venues and festivals here and abroad. Alex comes from a breakbeat background which has given her a nice platform to mix up everything from house and electro to hip-hop and pop

Tiffany Depuis

Another DJ who spins in Cork, Tiffany pays Tip-top above the Bowery

Sinead ni Mhordha I don’t know much about Sinead but she is a DJ/radio presenter/TV presenter and more (via Tony Clayton Lea)

Americhord Maura O'boyle aka Americhord, released a number of stellar records on pioneering  D1 records label, her catalogue is outstanding. (info via Liz Rooney)

Jenn Gannon Lime and fancy DJ at a night which sounds amazing, “the most glorious of 80s pop perfection mixed with your faves from the early 90s & a slice of Italo Disco, all served beneath the palms with a cute cocktail umbrella” (thanks Aoife barry for the heads up)

Bitch Blackheart EimearAnn o’Sullivan is a really exciting young producer and musician from Cork, producing everything from hip-hop to electronica, watch this space!

Sarah Beth Cork singer songwriter and occasional partner in crime with Bitch Blackheart, Sarah Beth is another of my favourite young artists here

Rebecca Meagher Cork DJ who span here regularly, Rebecca was also an accomplished singer and she appeared on Fish go Deeps “Let’s go Back” track on Chez Records

Sarah Lennox  Tech-house spinner who plays regularly in Dublin and who has spun in Ministry of Sound, Sankeys, Eden and EGG. Sarah also produces and has tracks signed to 69Street and a new EP on the Playground label

Ciara Known to many by her twitter moniker of @Ciara_BK, Ciara is a published writer from the midlands who spearheads the Unoriginal Podcast with two afro-irish friends, an important platform for emerging acts such as NC Grey and Rocstrong

Gretta Gunn Electro-pop singer and producer with releases on Alphabet Set and Norwegian skweee label Dodpop. (via Sixfoot Apprentice)

Niamh DeBarra Singer and producer with awesome cello / synth / loop pedal setup for live shows. (via Sixfoot Apprentice)

Bluebottle Farm producer who had a great EP of ambient / experimental / IDM stuff on Acroplane records. (via Sixfoot Apprentice)

Ilex Electronica producer formerly known as Fringe (and Minge for the more housey productions) (via Sixfoot Apprentice)

Laura Sheeran - How did I forget her first time out? Amazing CV of work some some total legends in various genres. Also one half of Nanu Nanu. (via Sixfoot Apprentice)

Kazabon DJ now based in London playing with the brilliant Hipsters Don't Dance night (via Sixfoot Apprentice)

Zoe Clubs, Festivals and radio, Zoe has done it all over a long career. Zoe is also a dancer who brings a serious performance element to her shows!

Ciara Harrington Currently down in Australia, Ciara used run nights in Dublin including We are Electronic playing wavey Italo Type stuff (via Laura Lolz)

Kerrie Anderson Manchester based Cork woman grew up on deep house in Sir henrys, and has played some high profile shows in the UK with Prosumer, DJ QU, Young Male, DJ Richard, Tama Sumo, Fish Go Deep and Marcellus Pittman among others

Elinor o’donovan Operating out of Edinburgh, Corks Elinor o’Donovan presents Lemonade on FreshAir.org.uk, provinding us with a mixture of new and old skool jams

DJ Beep Beep 

Beep Beep plays a mix of rock and rockabilly music held a residence of 11years on a Sunday night at Dublin's Dice Bar ... all round cool kitty . (via Dandelion Sergeant)

Aoife Bauer

A regular Dublin DJ playing Soul Fusion in April (via Niall Comiskey

Polly m Love 

Another DJ who has been around for a long time and Polly promotes shows too (via Niall Comiskey)

Geraldine Fahey 

Geraldine is a regular DJ in Dublin and Kilkenny were she runs her own nights. (via Niall Comiskey)

Angie Sheehan 

Angie has her own night and is a regular at the Saturday Socials in Dublin. (via Niall Comiskey)

NOTE:

Executive Stevie has been very helpful in highlighting many of those who may not be so well known. He tells me about some more women at the controls; "Studio B didn't DJ, but herself and another woman Beatnik ran a night called Studio B that was pretty highly regarded back in the day. Jenni Junglist has been plugging away doing Jungle gigs in Dublin for a few years now. Nicky Halliday and Rosie Loopz are both still playing out, and K.Ska is one of the better Jungle DJ's in the country but she has taken a bit of a break from playing out what with having a young child. Debbie Happe, who used to hammer out the techno at Joe McGrath's nights in about the 2000 era. Liz Meade was a Power FM stalwart back around then too"