1.Growing Up

Mum was a bit of a local singer back in her day, need I say more? Growing up there was plenty of dancing and singing along with her to Elvis Presley, ABBA’s golden hits, Disney Sing-Alongs, and pretty much anything ’90s. I didn’t quiet inherit the same vocal finesse as Mum, but I did grow a very keen eye on musical instruments. My favourite toy electric guitar eventually led to real-life electric guitar, then drums, piano, flute and dabbling with ACID Music Pro (thanks school excursion) – playing with that was really was a turning point for me, eventually leading to my love of DJing!

2.Inspirations

You’d hate to see my Spotify playlist – it’s everywhere from The Beatles to Grandtheft and TLC [laughs]. But the true standouts for me are local artists, and one (not so local anymore) talent would have to be Anna Lunoe. She’s been real from day one and has kept that integrity with her in all her successes. That’s inspiration and always will be.

3.Your Crew

I’ve recently moved to Melbourne, so been hanging with a bunch of cool people there! But in Sydney I can’t go without mentioning my solid gal pals Beth Yen, KLP and Helena Ellis. And of course, my ever-supportive clique of childhood mates. Moreover, my day job is heavily related to the entertainment scene, which is deeply motivating on an everyday basis, maybe because I work with absolute legends.

4.The Music You Make And Play

My main residency is at The Argyle and so when I’m on main room duties I like to keep it real eclectic, from classic house anthems to bassy/future house, and of course bits of deep and electro EDM. Think Jauz, Riton’s ‘Rinse & Repeat’ and then you’re singing your lungs out to CeCe Peniston’s ‘Finally’. When in the back room, you can expect rap, trap, hip hop and R&B.

5.Music, Right Here, Right Now

If we’re talking locally, Sydney is definitely fighting a tough but worthy battle. Putting the political judgements aside, I fear that these lockout obstacles will restrict talented up-and-comers, possibly demotivate them, but if we stick together, help each other out, real talent will and can continue to surface, thus helping keep our creative nightlife and passions alive! It’s ‘fair go’, no? Recently moving to Melbourne, I’ve truly been spoilt with a wrath of amazing Aussie talent there. Seeing acts like Client Liaison at The Forum and Anna Lunoe at Prince, then dancing till late to the talented local DJs that help drive that late-night economy with style and culture – that in itself is inspiring and makes me want to fight for my hometown Sydney even more.

Lavida appears atThe Argyle Friday July 8 and Saturday July 9.

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