This post is also available in: Nederlands (Dutch)
In this edition of MY FIRST GIG: Dutch Gysèle de Saint-Obin a.k.a. DJ/producer Gysèle. Recently she played an pounding set on a truck during ADEV, a kind of annual love parade through Amsterdam, during ADE 2024. She felt quite nervous ahead of her solo debut in 2017 at a DJ contest. “This was the moment to shine!”
“The first time I played solo for an audience was during a TWSTD DJ contest. I had played for an audience before, together with my friend Tiekie. But this was my first time solo. I had already practiced a few times with people around in the Studio 80 radio studio in Amsterdam, but until then, my solo sessions were limited to the living room. This was the moment to shine!”
Extremely Exciting
“I had everything planned from A to Z and was incredibly nervous. Just two years before, I’d placed my first record on a turntable. Plus, in the past, I always had Tiekie with me. We were a duo, even though we hadn’t been playing for very long. But this felt like the next step. Time to see if I could do this. Now I really had to do it alone! I found that both incredibly exciting and super fun.”
No Risks
“I had come up with a cool intro, mixing “Nannou” by Aphex Twin with another record I can’t recall right now.” (laughs) “I loved finding all the tracks, but I noticed I got nervous about having to play everything exactly as I had planned. I still get nervous about that. That’s why I no longer prepare my sets down to the last detail. You never know how a night will go, what the crowd will like, and what the vibe will be. But since this was my first solo gig, I thought I couldn’t take any risks.”
“It Does Something to You”
“A lot of sweet friends came to support me at my debut. That was really special. They supported me throughout the entire TWSTD contest, not just in the first round. It does something to you, you know. The crowd was mostly friends and family of the contestants: parents, friends, and a few interested people; it was a bit of everything.”
Spot-on Feedback
“Michael Verhaaf organized the contest back then. I learned a lot from his feedback. Every round, we got to hear from him and the judges what went well and what could be improved. Michael’s feedback was always spot-on. Without taking any notes, he could flawlessly recount what happened in a mix, pointing out specific parts and track names. He did this for all the contestants. I found his feedback sessions particularly educational.”
Perfectionist
“When it was finally my turn, I was so nervous that I think I made quite a few mistakes and didn’t really enjoy it. I’m quite a perfectionist—what DJ isn’t? (laughs)—so it really bothered me that I couldn’t pull it off as well as I’d practiced!”
Feeling Safe
“I found it difficult to deal with the attention you get while playing. In this contest setting, that attention was probably even greater than in ‘normal circumstances.’ I found that hard to handle. I didn’t feel, and still don’t feel, entirely comfortable with all eyes on me. This is a big issue I still struggle with. Experience has taught me that the better the set goes, the easier it is to handle. During my solo debut, I just looked down. My gaze was on my mixer and turntables, and now and then, I turned my back to the audience to grab my records. That felt safe. The fact that I only played vinyl earned me some high-fives, though. Many friends and family members looked at me expectantly and shared in my nerves.”
Audience Award
“In the end, I won the audience award after this gig, thanks, of course, to my wonderful friends. I received it in the final round. It was an incredible experience that I learned a lot from! The contest formed the foundation from which I started playing and experimenting.”
“Now, a few years later, so much has happened. I now do programming for Amsterdam’s Oosterbar, regularly play at events, and host my own party, Lang Zal Je Raven. The next edition is on November 22 at Radion (Amsterdam), where I’ll also be playing. During ADE, I’m spinning on Sunday at Koma in the Oosterbar. Additionally, I co-host the Monday Breakbeat Sessions on AMW Radio (Amsterdam Most Wanted) with my favorite buddy Merijn Lie, a.k.a. Lie-Dope. This past summer, I played nearly every week and recently was busy with preparations for ADE. I love DJing and producing, but I can’t do everything at once. Right now, programming is the priority; then comes DJing and producing again.”
This interview with Gysèle is originally published on This Is Our House in October 2019.
Who is Gysèle?
DJ Gysèle is a vinyl DJ and producer from Amsterdam. Gysèle loves to play a diverse range of music, but her deepest love is (early) rave and other electronics from the early 90’s. Gysèle plays uplifting and groovy tunes with high BPM.
Gysèle started her electronic music journey with Early Rave parties from the age of 15. Gysèle is also co-founder and resident of Lang Zal Je Raven, a succesfull 12-hour rave concept, hosted at different locations such as Radion (Amsterdam) and Suicide Club (Berlin).
Gysèle won the TWSTD DJ contest audience award in 2017 and has been playing often in clubs and festivals since then. Gysèle is founder and radio host of ‘Keep The Rave Alive’, a monthly radio show about rave music and culture.
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