by Malc Barry
1. Hi Beth, how are you? Great to be speaking with you today! Tell us a bit more about yourself, the music you play, inspirations, best gigs so far and how you got into DJing?
Hi guys! Thanks for having me, I’m doing really well thanks, considering the circumstances! My name is Beth Mawer, which is also my artist name. I am 24 years old and I'm originally from a wee place called Lanark, roughly 40 minutes from Glasgow and still living here. I first found my passion for music in High School, it was the only thing that kept me going really as school just wasn’t my forte, to say the least! I would sing, play the guitar and the piano and just loved learning anything related to music - English, Maths, and Science was NOT my thing. I left school in 6th year and straight into working life, a retail job in which I found myself working up to be a Supervisor, however, I have recently reduced my hours to pursue my djing career further.
I got into DJing around 3 years ago where I bought a Traktor mixer just to mess around on and was more of a hobby at the time, however, work took up most of my time and couldn't commit to it as much as I would have liked. In the past year and a half, I started to get back into it, this time being more determined to learn and bought an XDJ RX2 from Rubadub around January 2019. From there I found a growing passion to learn and received a couple of lessons from Jackmaster who helped me develop the skills and techniques I didn’t even know existed! I taught myself most things, however, the professional advice from Jack didn’t go a miss.
Ever since I turned 18 and could get into a club, I always headed straight to The Arches which has now sadly closed. They held the best nights and my love for house music just grew more when I could see live DJs do their thing, it was so inspiring! I like playing a variety of music during my sets because I think the signs of a good DJ is that they can adapt to the crowd and there’s always something for everyone. I always plan my sets for the bigger gigs but sometimes you need to be in the moment and see, hear and feel what is working well. I usually play House, Tech House & Minimal Techno (my favourites), and in any mixes of mine, you’ll notice there’s always a variety of different genres played. As far as my inspirations go, I have always said from the start that Ame is my favourite DJ, musically and every set he produces is top-notch! Being a bit of a fangirl I’ve seen him play 6 or 7 times, maybe more (I’ve lost count). Other artists who inspire me are The Martinez Brothers and female DJ Cinthie. Again they both produce great music within my favourite genres.
The best gig so far has got to be warming up for Solardo in SWG3 back in March this year. I played to a sold-out show of 1000 people and it was absolutely insane; the buzz and response from the crowd were amazing. I kept looking at my friends who were dancing at the side of the stage who reminded me that it was real life!
2. How have you been finding the lockdown? Missing playing out greatly we bet! What have you been doing to keep busy?
Lockdown has been tough, especially for someone who is rarely in the house. I’ve been mostly using my time to focus on anything music-related, whether it's practising and learning new skills on the decks, making mixes, doing live streams at home to keep myself and hopefully others entertained and of course the hours of searching for new music. I’ve been trying to use the time wisely because when are we going to ever get all this free time again really!? Whilst it's been hard slog being stuck in the house, it’s also been a great a time to reflect and be grateful for what you have; I’ve got a roof over my head, I’m healthy, I’m working and I have the privilege of having this time to focus purely on me and my music.
3. Tell us a bit about your mix! Any classics in there or all-new material? Do you like to prepare before a set or just go with the flow?
So I have mixed it up a little, as I’ve said I like to play different genres in the one mix if it all sounds good and transitions smoothly. Some deep house, house, minimal techno and a couple of unreleased tracks from a Glasgow producer Keary who has kindly sent me some of his work. I usually prepare my sets for bigger gigs, just so I know I have something to go from and so I can practise beforehand to make sure everything is sounding good. Depending on the vibe and response from the crowds. I’ll change it up on the spot too.
4. With so many DJs getting into producing to try further their careers, do you have any plans to start? Or have you started already?
Yes, I plan to start as soon as lockdown is lifted. I actually downloaded Ableton a few weeks back just to get a taste of what I'm getting myself into, it’s all going over my head a bit at the minute! As much as I’m all for learning myself, having access to expertise from producers is the only way I’ll be able to take that next step successfully - expect a phone call in the next few weeks from me for some advice! [Feel free to DM us, Beth ;)]
5. As clubbers, we all love an Ibiza trip, don’t we! What is your favourite Ibiza memory?
Awww man, there’s so many! It’s my most favourite place in the world. So many good times, but just being able to hang with my pals and enjoy the music is the best. My favourite memory has probably got to be when my friends and I got VIP into DC10, where we got to hang backstage with all these top artists which were pretty cool!
6. We know the lockdown is in force now, but can you tell us about any future gigs that have been re-scheduled?
It’s hard to tell at the minute with the situation that’s going on, the club scene won’t go back to normal for a while I’m guessing, I hope I'm wrong, but it means we have a duty to make sure banging tunes are being supplied through live streams and mix to keep the scene alive! I'm playing at FLY Open Air which has been rescheduled for 19th and 20th of September, but we will just need to hold tight for now and hope that it goes ahead.
7. What was the on the one tune that got you into dance music?
This is a really random track, but there was always one song that stuck in my head and it was Julio Bashmo re - Au Seve. I went to Ibiza when I was 16 (with parents) and it was played everywhere! We would go to Bora Bora beach, or some more chilled nightclubs, and it played every night without fail. When I got back from Ibiza I started to search for similar songs and that’s really when my love for house music began.
8. And can you remember the first track you bought?
I remember this so fondly - it was Kerri Chandler: In My System. I went to Sonus Festival in Croatia around four years ago where we hired out this amazing villa, and I remember all of us dancing to it when the sun came up and it just brought so many good memories when I heard it. As soon as I started to buy music it was the first one I bought and played at my very first gig in Sanctuary in Glasgow. It's a classic and gets everyone dancing for sure!
9. Tell us one thing most people don’t know about you?
So apart from close friends and family knowing, a lot of people probably won’t know that I’ve only been DJing for a year!
10. Tell us a bit about your future aspirations. Dream venues you would like to play, artists you want to play alongside and labels you would love to see a track released on?
At the minute I'm really happy with my progress so far, considering its only been a year. I still have so much to work on but this is the perfect time to do so. I’ve been really lucky that I’ve been able to play on the same line up as Jackmaster, Solardo, Denis Sulta, Hannah Wants, Patrick Topping, Medusa, Darius Syrossian, Sydney Charles and a few others. I'm buzzed to just be concentrating on myself and how to better me as a DJ. Production will be on the cards soon, in such a competitive market I think it’s important now to be able to produce your own music to give you a competitive edge. My dream venue to play in is DC10, that’s the goal I'm setting myself anyway! The list is endless with artists I would like to play alongside with, but I if were to chose one it would be The Martinez Brothers; the music they play and produce is exactly how I want to be at some point, they know what they are doing! As for record labels, I'm difficult to say exactly because of what kind of music I want to produce, however, I would definitely say Cuttin Headz or Hot Creations would be my top 2.
11. Finally, do you have any tips for female DJs trying to break into the industry?
My advice for female DJ’s is that the industry has as big a place for female DJ’s as it does male. If it's something you are willing to invest your time in and want to pursue it further then just do it, or you will forever ask yourself ‘what if'. Don’t compare, or try to be like anyone else, yes its good to have inspirations but you are your own person, be yourself and as long as you are true to yourself and you have the right attitude, everything else will follow. It's good to spend some time networking and have some contacts in the industry whether it be club promoters, DJs, Producers as they will always give you the advice you need.
"The first step is to buy yourself a mixer, practice, practice, practice, and the rest is history :)"
Let us know where everyone can find you online?
Instagram - bethmawer
Facebook - bethmawerdj
Soundcloud - bethmawer
Beth Mawer Exclusive Mix:
Listen to the mix here
YouTube Preview here
Tracklist:
1. Detroit Swindle - The Break-Up
2. Kevin Yost, Peter Funk - Trust (Main Coxed Version)
3. Chesus - Special
4. Keary - Free Your Soul (Unreleased - White Label)
5. Jackmaster, Jasper James & Dukwa - Situation
6. Keary - The Cure (Unreleased - White Label)
7. Zakir - La Roulette
8. Stephan Jolk - Doubts
9. Silvestre - Paying the Rent
10. Bicep - Atlas
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