Blisschix is a Blisspop series in the spirit of #womencrushwednesdays. Our goal with Blisschix is to highlight talented female artists who are having an impact in electronic music. This week, we feature Brazilian DJ, ANNA; label owner and disco DJ, Natasha Kitty Katt; and London-based footwork selector, Sherelle.
Natasha Kitty Katt
Contributor: Aeron Premo
With her high-energy, funk-laden DJ sets and original tracks, DJ, producer and label owner Natasha Kitty Katt is slowly but surely becoming one of the trailblazers in today’s disco scene. Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, she was exposed to soul, disco, boogie and funk from an early age. She has dedicated her musical pursuits to further exploring these genres. Like her contemporaries CC:Disco! and Jayda G., Natasha truly knows disco inside and out. With her father, Dennis Probert, she runs the boutique imprint Ghetto Disco Records. In addition, she co-hosts its sister podcast, The Ghetto Disco Show.
For her podcast, she promotes rare disco, boogie and soul tracks and conducted interviews with artists synonymous with these genres, such as Melba Moore and James Mason. As a DJ, she has spun alongside marquee names such as Joey Negro, Louie Vega and Danny Krivit and has been exploring production. In recent years, she released tracks on Midnight Riot, Masterworks Music and her own Ghetto Disco imprint.
It is incredibly clear from listening to Natasha’s mixes and productions that she is utterly enamored of the music she grew up with and is dedicated to preserving its legacy while championing and creating new productions that will stand the test of time just like the classics. Driven by the energy and positivity of disco and the raw passion of soul, Natasha fuses these emotions together to create truly magical sets and tracks.
Natasha Kitty Katt will be making her DC debut on Saturday, March 9th, playing alongside S. Travolta and Just Chad at Loves Me Not as part of a collaborative event between District Inferno and Deep Tech DC. Check out her latest EP, Metro City (produced alongside Danny Kane) via Bandcamp.
ANNA
Contributor: Marshall Stukes
Ana Miranda, better known as simply ANNA, was born two hours outside of Sao Paulo, Brazil in a town called Amparo. Her family is cemented in the Brazilian music scene, which helped to spark her passion to DJ. She got her start in DJing at age fourteen when her father encouraged her to spin after she told him she could do better than the resident DJ at his club, Six. In addition to her father’s ties to the club scene, her brother has a long running party called Blu Lounge and her cousin runs Boiler Room Brazil.
Her studio includes a massive array of hardware such as: drum machines, sequencers, and modular and desktop synthesizers. For example, in ANNA’s remix of Jon Hopkins’ “Singularity,†she prominently features a Moog Sub 37. In addition to the Moog, she frequently uses an Analog Rytm as a staple in her percussions. Although she has an extensive hardware collection, she frequently raves about the Sound Toys software plug ins on her Instagram.
To say that ANNA’s tracks drive is an understatement. Her bass is always on point, and her percussions always have movement. The details you find listening to her songs are impressive. They range from from subtle hi hat openings to reverb changes that emphasizes the bass. “Hidden Beauties,†released on Kompakt, is her most charted track to date according to Resident Advisor. The aforementioned “Singularity†remix is ANNA’s top play on Spotify. Her first release of 2019 is a remix of “Gazebo†by Fairmont on Sapiens. She has prior releases on Drumcode, Terminal M, and Nova Mute. With close to 20 years of DJing and producing experience, and the work ethic to match, you cannot ignore the force that is ANNA.
Sherelle
Contributor: Alex Rubenstein
Nothing gets the body moving or the feet shuffling quite like footwork or any tune coming in at 160 BPM. Now, you’re probably associating this sound with America and more specifically, Chicago. In truth, one of the most exciting selectors rinsing this sound is coming out of London. Sherelle Thomas, aka Sherelle, has been making waves with her bi-weekly mix show on Reprezent Radio and has a keen ear for all things juke, jungle, footwork, and left-of-center club bangers. Her high energy DJ sets fuse together these sounds in a rapid-fire way, making sure her listeners and audience can’t help but dance. Be ready to put your gun fingers in the air when Sherelle hits the decks.
Recently, she has been in the electronic music headlines after a raucous set for Boiler Room as a part of the Bass & Percs special. If you just read the headlines you may be aware of the fact that it isn’t her selecting that is being talked about, but the fact that Riz La Teef awkwardly rewinded one of her tunes. This is missing the point. If anything, it was a testament to just how much her set deserved 5 fire emojis out of 5 fire emojis.
Sherelle has supported legendary acts such as Dillinja, Kode9, The Prodigy, and others including DJ Paypal and Taso. She may not be a big name outside of the London scene yet, but given time she has potential to move dancefloors globally. If you’re looking for high octane club music, look no further than any of the many mixes she has available online right now.