Q&A: Airrica Talks Explorative Debut EP, Advice for New Female Artists, and More
☆ BY Faith Luevanos ☆
IN AN INDUSTRY RAN BY MEN there are plenty of women who are overlooked that hold remarkable talent. Techno/house DJ Airrica is not letting this slide. She’s made a name for herself over the past couple of years, starting her career in Los Angeles which has now led her to travel all over the world to perform for hundreds of people.
Airrica has been gaining an incredible amount of attention overseas, and currently resides in Ibiza where she will be performing over the summer. From releases on Diplo’s Higher Ground, captivating B2B sets, and performances at major festivals all over the world, she’s sure to become an artist on your radar. Her debut EP, Hi Speed Lover perfectly captures her essence and incredible talents. Released under highly respected DJ Damian Lazarus’ label, Airrica is surrounded by talent and she showcases her own in her new tracks. She describes them as sassy and bouncy, music anyone can dance to.
We received the opportunity to chat with Airrica about her origin story as a DJ, her experience as a woman in the music industry, and much more. Read the full interview below!
LUNA: You’re currently doing this interview from Dubai, which is so exciting on its own. Where are some of the other places that you call home?
AIRRICA: Right now I get to call Cairo and Ibiza my home base, which is exciting but also very different.
LUNA: Do you have a favorite spot out of the three?
AIRRICA: I normally am in Ibiza for the summer season and I always love going back there so much. LA will always have a spot in my heart though. During Covid I actually left LA and moved to Tulum for a year - that was definitely the place I called home. I always come back to LA. (laughs)
LUNA: Can you share a little bit about how you became a DJ? Especially now as you grow bigger and bigger, I’m sure a lot of people are so curious to know the timeline.
AIRRICA: I started in 2018. To be honest, I was going through a really rough patch in my life and was looking for some sort of therapeutic outlet. At the time, I was living with an ex in LA, and we had DJ decks at the house, so I decided that I wanted to teach myself how to do it too. I needed to channel all my focus into something creative to distract myself. I started reaching out to different promoters in LA that I thought I would maybe have a shot at since they were smaller parties, so my first one was at this party called Incognito. Super underground in a warehouse. I remember them telling me they were nervous because they didn’t know who I was or what to expect and I told them not to worry because I knew what I was doing - I had no idea what I was doing. (laughs)
LUNA: Sometimes fake it till you make it really pays off! So after your first gig, where did you go from there?
AIRRICA: After that, I started to play a lot around LA. It’s gone now, but this place called Kassi Club gave me a small residency. It had a very groovy disco vibe to it - a lot of westside energy. I made my way around playing the fun LA lounge spots before I moved to Tulum. During my time there, there were also a lot of people in the music industry staying there, so it almost felt like a little bubble. There was a new venue opening called IT, they contacted me to say that a few people had recommended me to be their resident which was SO nice of them. Framework and Sound Nightclub helped me out a lot once I got back to LA and helped me launch to the next step after that.
LUNA: Would you say networking was a huge help to your career since you got to meet so many new people all over the world?
AIRRICA: Now, I would say so. Anything you do, networking will help give you the boost needed. It’s beneficial in every way to be able to meet other creatives and be able to bounce ideas off of other people and be in the same world. Being able to be motivated and inspired by the people that you’re connecting with is the best.
LUNA: Do you have any tips for anyone who’s trying to break into the electronic scene?
AIRRICA: My advice is to always put yourself out there and try to meet people. Go places that you’re afraid to go to. I have a friend who was living in LA and she’s an amazing producer/DJ, and she asked me what she should do this summer so my immediate answer was to get out of LA. I told her to go to Ibiza or London and become immersed in the scenes there because it’s so important to be able to break out of the bubble that you’re comfortable in.
LUNA: Your debut EP, Hi Speed Lover, is now out.. How did the release come about?
AIRRICA: I wanted to create some music that I haven’t been able to find. I love playing around with female vocals because it makes the song sassy in a way. Being able to twist it into something that will make people groove on the dancefloor and bounce along was definitely the inspiration. The feedback I’ve gotten from peers and friends has been exactly that luckily before I’ve even said it. I really just wanted to create the music that myself and others have been wanting to hear that they can’t find.
LUNA: Besides the EP being fun and bouncy, how else would you describe your music?
AIRRICA: I try not to put myself in a box when it comes to music because I’m making so many different types of it, and exploring genres helps you grow as an artist a lot. I think to describe my style I would say energetic and explorative. I just played Cercle Festival in Paris and I received a lot of compliments because I was really just all over the place. You’re not going to be able to please everybody of course, but I want people to come hear me and at least be able to hear one thing that they liked.
LUNA: From your perspective, how do you feel that your art has contributed to the electronic genre?
AIRRICA: I get a lot of messages from other women who tell me that I inspired them to pursue music or to become a DJ and that’s a really cool contribution to me. It may not be something massive to others, but I like knowing that I can give somebody else that confidence to do it. I have imposter syndrome but they don’t see it so it makes my day to get those messages. (laughs) More and more women are starting to push through but I still feel like we have to work harder than the men do, like we have something to prove. I still hear comments from guys sometimes saying, “She’s really good for a girl DJ.” or “She’s a really good female DJ.” What are we classifying for? One day I want to just put a bunch of women together on a lineup because I know it would blow people’s minds.
LUNA: What advice do you have specifically for women in the genre who are just starting out?
AIRRICA: Whatever goals you have, just go do it. Try not to feel afraid or listen to the noise around you that may prevent you from chasing it. Even if people don’t really see it, female DJ’s feel the need to prove themselves harder, so being your most authentic, confident self as an artist and making whatever kind of music you want is so important. People will always have advice on what they think is best for you, but only you know what that is at the end of the day. Find other girls to share with and lean on - having a circle of supportive girls around you helps so much.
