21 Female DJs That Have Paved The Way In The Electronic Music Industry

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best female djs 2020 in the edm industry

BEST FEMALE DJS 2020

The female presence in the electronic music industry has always been there although it hasn’t been as popular or extensive as their male counterparts, and that’s been a long-standing problem with the dance music industry.

In such times, we take the opportunity of International Women’s Day to celebrate 21 female DJs that have paved way for themselves and are setting standards for the industry to follow. We have decided to not rank them as every artist on this list has their own signature style and is from different corner of the wide Electronic Spectrum.

1. Alison Wonderland

Australian DJ/ Producer Alexandra Margo Sholler AKA Alison Wonderland is an avid Bass music producer. Her Debut Album “Run” Charted No.1 on US Dance charts and secured a Solid No. 6 on ARIA and is Certified gold. She also released a lot of Hit singles such as “Lost My Mind” Alongside Dillon Francis and “Messiah” with M-Phazes. She is now a go to Headliner for any Big festival and Shows High potential in regards to Bass music which is really popular in the United states. She was the winner of the Billboard “Breakout Artist” Award in 2018 and just like every intelligent human on this planet, she doesn’t believe in Pants.

2. Amelie Lens

Amelie Lens is a Belgian Techno DJ, Record Producer and Owner of Lenske Records. She is one of the select talents that is setting the bar in the rising Techno industry. Formerly known DJ Renée, Amelie started out with a lot of Minimal Bass Heavy Techno in her sets and slowly started adding much needed additions like Acid Techno and Dark Techno into her heavy Arsenal. Her Fabled EXHALE parties were seen all across Europe the past year. Her most recent compilation EP “The Future” Charted high on Beatport Techno charts with Her personal record “Future” charting at Beatport #1 just after release.

3. Anja Schneider

Anja Schneider is a known name in the electronic music industry for a decade now. This DJ/Producer/Radio Broadcaster/Label Owner first started out under the radio “Kiss FM” which is popular in Berlin. In 2000 she moved to Fritz Radio to host the show “Dance under the Blue Moon”. This has been one of the most popular formats in Radio and Schneider hosted it till 2017. In the spring of 2017, She jumped onto Radio Eins and started looking after the program “Clubroom”. She was a Big player in Mobilee Records until 2017, when she started her own Imprint “SoUs Music”. Her label provides a safe haven to any creative producer out there.

4. Annie Mac

Irish born DJ and Radio host Annie Mac is one of the notable names in Electronic music for many reasons. Her first BBC Radio 1 was Broadcast in 2004. From then on, Annie Mac went on to be featured in many radio shows on a regular basis such as BBC Two’s “The Culture Show”. Apart from that, she regularly holds B2B Performances alongside DJs Jonny Birchall and Will Phillips at venues such as Moles Club, Zero Zero, The Nest etc. She also founded her own festival which is named the “Lost & Found Festival”. This festival takes place on St. Paul’s Bay in Malta. The four-day event happens at multiple venues in day and night settings.

5. The Black Madonna

Kentucky born DJ/Producer The Black Madonna started her career in the late 1990’s by selling mixtapes at underground raves. Her name Black Madonna references the Black Madonna paintings of Virgin Mary, a Tribute to her mother’s favourite Catholic saint. She is also an activist. One can see her donning a T shirt with some thought provoking message from time to time. Apart from her unique DJing persona, The Black Madonna is wildly known for continually releasing wildly flavoursome House and Techno records.

6. Charlotte de Witte

Belgium based DJ/Producer Charlotte de Witte is one of the best definitions for modern day Techno. First started out as Raving George, Charlotte made downtempo Dark Electronic music and disguised herself under that moniker. However, she did get her big break by winning a studio Brussels Competition and played at Tomorrowland in 2011. Over the years, she became a regular headliner at festivals such as Awakenings, Dour and I love Techno. Her signature sound of Acid techno and Classic Belgian trance has a wide base of fans all around the world.

7. Deborah de Luca

Born in Scampia, on the outskirts of Naples Deborah de Luca certainly had a rough start. She began her soon-to-be glorious career as a Waitress and even as a dancer in a club. Now, Her Techno is staple for any Underground fan around the world. She regularly plays at clubs all across France, Portugal, Greece, Germany, Morocco, Slovenia etc. She also releases a lot of her productions under her own label “Sola_mente Records”.

8. Dani Deahl

Dani Deahl is a Chicago based DJ/Producer/Music Journalist/Blogger. She ran the music blog DSquared from 2009 to 2015 and is currently an editor at DJMag. She is also widely known for her “Show me your Kitties” Tour which was planned promoted and sold by her very own staff. Through that, she made an Active effort to make a Ticketing system that donated to non-Profitable cat rescue charities and promoting shows without any promoter or a middle man. She is also a championed women’s rights activist.

9. Ellen Allien

Ellen Fraatz Aka Ellen Allien is a German DJ/Producer and the founder of Bpitch Control Music label. She is one of select women that saw the rise of electronic music and was a part of it. Her style can be Best described by IDM and Techno. Her four to the floor style of music is very popular in Germany back in the day. She released many albums under her name. Stadtkind, Berlinette, Orchestra of Bubbles etc. are to name a few. In 2019, Ellen Allien launched her new imprint named UFO Inc. where many of her own and her close associates tracks are being released on a regular basis.

10. Ida Engberg

This Swedish born DJ started her career when she was 18. She found her first big break when she worked for the Spybar in Stockholm, Sweden. After that, she was found working with the likes of Roger Sanchez, Eric Prydz, John Dahlbäck etc. She is now married to her fellow Swedish DJ and Drumcode boss Adam Beyer. On the side, she is also a loud advocate for Climate change action and is seen on various platforms promoting sustainable use.

11. Honey Dijon

Miss Honey Dijon aka Honey Dijon is a Chicago based warehouse Techno artist and a Fashion icon. She is known for her Genre Bending sets and her Unique musical taste. Her first taste of electronic music was during her mid-teens when she started Clubbing in the south side of Chicago. During her time in the clubs, she met with DJs such as Derrick Carter and Mark Farina. Later She made a move to New York where she met Danny Tenaglia. She is a Trans Artist and vocally supports trans rights through her art.

12. Maya Jane Coles

Maya Jane Coles is a UK based Audio Engineer, DJ and Record Producer. She is of Britain and Japanese Descent. Under this alias Coles plays Techno and under her Nocturnal Sunshine moniker Maya Jane Coles tends towards Trip hop and Dub influences. She was previously part of a DJ duo named She is Danger with Lena Cullen. She is can be seen in many live mix sessions alongside industry greats such as Annie Mac. She was also seen on many magazines such as Mixmag, Rolling stone etc. and is claimed to be a highly “Influential” DJ of modern times. Her best known records can be seen over record labels such as Dogmatik Records, Capitol Records, Haven Sounds, State of the eye, Verve Records etc.

13. Nastia

Ukraine born DJ and Record Producer Nastia had some surprisingly unexpected starts in her career. She got her first exposure to nightclubs when she visited her sisters in Donetsk and that’s where she decided her colorful career. She managed the Infamous KISS FM and also hosted her own Radio show “Propaganda”. She later launched her own record label named after her very own radio show. Her dark and heavy hitting techno is what put her on the global map and lets her go freely across many dancefloors across North America and Europe. She was also one of the first people to call out techno for becoming rather predictable which sparked a debate in the community for the better.

14. Nifra

Hailing from Slovakia, DJ/Producer Nifra is surely one of the most talked about female trance artists of all time. She was first scouted out by the legend Markus Schulz himself and she took no time to join Markus Schulz Group. Her first big break happened when she played at the Ultra Miami music festival. She is now regularly seen playing on Stellar trance festivals such as Transmission, Dreamstate and A State of Trance. She continues to receive constant support from Trance legends such as Armin van Buuren, Ferry Corsten, Paul Oakenfold and Paul van Dyk.

15. Nina Kraviz

This Russian born DJ/Producer is nothing short of a sensation in the Dance Music Industry. From her Techno preferences to equipment choices, everything screams unique. Nina Kraviz is known for her Dark super-fast Atmospheric Techno that can bring anyone to the dance floor and make them dance till their legs go numb. She is also seen spinning on old school Turntables which is a gold standard for any proper Techno artist who knows their stuff. She can be seen performing all across the world in Countries like UK, Germany, France, Italy, USA, Greece, Turkey etc. on festivals like Time Warp, Awakenings, Dour and even Coachella. Not many know that Nina used to be a dentist before she embarked on her wild DJing and Producing Journey.

16. Nora en Pure

Nora en Pure is a South Africa Born deep house DJ/Record Producer. Her first big break was with her single “Come with Me” which remained on the Beatport 100 chart for more than seven months. Now, she is seen playing many major festivals all across Americas and Europe with B2Bs alongside legends such as Carl Cox, Joris Voorn etc. Her releases are often spotted on Spinnin Records, Tokenish, Enormous Tunes etc.

17. Nicole Moudaber

Nicole Moudaber is a Lebanese DJ/Producer and a record label founder. She also runs a highly praised and Award winning Weekly radio show named “In The MOOD”. Nicole first started off by promoting parties in Beirut during the 1990s and she then transferred to London where she slowly established herself as a DJ and a Producer. She was discovered by DJ Carl Cox back in 2009 and is signed to his imprint “Intec”. From there on, Nicole’s career is an Upward trajectory. She is also a vocal advocate of Lower eastside girls club, an organization that helps disadvantaged young women pursue a career in music. She is often seeing doing B2Bs with the legendary Paco OSuna.

18. Öona Dahl

Öona Dahl is an American DJ/Producer who is widely known for testing the conventional boundaries of music. Her form of Techno is light, Melodic and Refreshing which is carefully collected by her over the years. Her original productions span from Deep House to Experimental Techno wherein she seems to strike a virtually impossible balance between breaking boundaries and quality production.

19. Peggy Gou

Peggy Gou is a South Korean based DJ/Producer. With her first big break in the 2010s Peggy Gou rose to fame for having sets that show multiple genres such as House, Disco etc. and her ability to guide the various genres without anyone knowing the difference. Her singles “Starry Night” and “It Makes You Forget” are some the big ones in her career. She can often be spotted spinning on big festivals such as Coachella, Fly Open Air Festival etc.

20. REZZ

Isabelle Rezazadeh aka Rezz is a Ukraine born Canadian DJ/Producer from Niagara Falls, Ontario. First inspired by Deadmau5 and Skrillex, Isabelle started making music on her laptop at the age of 16. She went on to release her debut album “Mass Manipulation” on Deadmau5’s Mau5trap in 2017. Her debut album was named the best Electronic dance music album of the year at Juno awards. This album was followed by her second venture “A Certain Kind of Magic” which was released in 2018. She also released many different EPs with her signature “Gritty and Dark” style of bass music. Today, Rezz stands as one of the biggest headliners in north America and enjoys one of the most loyal fan bases across the community.

21. Simina Grigoriu

Simina Grigoriu is a Romanian born Toronto Bred DJ/Producer who also had a surprising start. She first started her music career with Freestyling and slowly fell in love with Electronic dance music. She started off as a DJ and Improved her prowess as a Producer. She started her very own imprint “Kuukou” (it translates to “Airport” in Japanese) which is a now place for continual techno release. She actively plays in many clubs across the world. this allows her to expand her style of techno on a regular basis.

This ends our short list of Female DJs that took the long journey and achieved brilliance. We are sure there are plenty more in the scene, that deserve recognition. We would love to know your favourite female artists too. Please let us know in the comments section and for more news and reviews, stay tuned to this space.

Mmkrishna Cherla

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