From live concerts to club nights, DJs play an important role in setting the tone and pace of the music industry. As individuals charged with the responsibility of putting us on to the hottest tracks and up-and-coming artists, they curate the sonic vibes. Although it’s still a male-dominated industry, we’re thrilled to see more women taking over the decks and spinning tunes.
As part of our job to highlight women doing their thing here at FEMME MAG, we’ve rounded up a list of 7 DJs we feel you need to keep on your radar. From Lagos to Berlin, these DJs are taking their setlists to global stages and forging a community of die-hard lovers along the way.
Let’s get into the list.
1. DJ KISS
DJ Kiss started her deejaying journey as a second-year student at the University of Ilorin. In 2018, she won the Esteem Nigeria Youth award for female DJ of the year. She’s also won the DJ Neptune DJ challenge. A party favourite, you can catch DJ Kiss on the decks at both the Mainland and Island Block Party. She has an extensive work history with Jameson and performed at the Livespot X Festival in 2021. DJ Kiss usually plays afrobeats, deep house, trap and amapiano.
2. DJ HONEEAY
Oyin Ilupeju quit her 9-5 in May 2021 to focus on building her career as DJ Honneay, amongst other things and hasn’t looked back. The self-proclaimed ‘Director of Vibes’ is booked and busy in Lagos. Her mixtape Ijoya debuted in 2020 and was a delicious mix of tunes. She’s performed at the Mainland Block Party, PGM Live, Lady Donli’s WILD Sessions, Lagos Cocktail Week, and our very own FEMME FEST. Honeeay has also recently collaborated with Native Sound System, to create a mix for NTS London. When she’s not on a stage doing her thing, she’s working as the CEO of her bag brand, Bakwai Bags.
3. DJ JESS AJOSE
Jess Ajose is a British-Nigerian multi-genre DJ. Jess kick-started her DJing career in 2018, for a community radio station she worked for at the time. That same year, she landed her first major set with Boiler Room. Since then, she’s been a regular on Boiler Room and has performed at many more gigs. Some of them include: Wireless, No Signal, Pxssy Palace, Colours Factory, Native5 and the Warehouse Project. In 2021, she joined the PinkPanthress tour as its official DJ. When Jess isn’t djing, she’s busy being a creative producer, and running her music podcast, Chocolate Darlins FC, with co-founder, Keke.
5. DJ KEM KEM
Kemi Lijadu, known as DJ Kem Kem, made her deejaying debut in 2017 opening for Princess Nokia at a magazine launch party. So far, she’s created mixes that draw heavily from her experiences living in Lagos, London and San Francisco. During an internship with Quartz Africa, she also acted as the in-house DJ. Dj Kem Kem has also collaborated with Lisa Folawiyo, The Garment, Nolly Babes, and has been featured in Dazed. In December 2021, she opened for Tems at the LivespotX Festival. When she’s not captivating her crowd with the smoothest transitions, she’s busy expanding her artistic repertoire as a writer, artist and more.
5. DJ KIKELOMO
Kike Oludemi, known as DJ Kikelomo, is a London-born DJ based in Berlin, but with one foot in Accra, Ghana. Beginning her career in 2017, Kikelomo has built quite an impressive CV. She is a former member of the No Shades collective: a DJ training and mentorship program for femme, non-binary and trans individuals. She’s played at multiple festivals and is a favourite on the Berlin club scene. Kikelomo has also deejayed in Seoul and Tokyo and opened shows for Skepta’s BBK crew. 2019 saw a collaboration with Adidas and the Overkill shop, where she made a t-shirt that paid homage to her Nigerian roots.
Kikelomo’s sound is a fusion of house, techno, hip-hop, garage and electronic music. In 2021, SoundCloud featured her as a DJ to watch. MixMag also featured her mix on its list of best mixes of the year so far, in September 2021. She’s currently the co-founder of the music community, Oroko Radio, and the host for Boiler Room TV.
6. SENSEI LO
Sensei Lo is a DJ and producer of Ghanaian heritage, born and raised in Lagos. She began her career as the resident DJ for a private lounge. Since then, she’s been the resident DJ at HOT 93.3FM, Lagos, and most recently, the resident DJ for Bounce Radio. Sensei Lo has performed at several festivals and events, including the Chale Wote Arts Festival, Major Lazer live, ART X Live, Glastonbury Festival, Homecoming, Budweiser’s BUDX, Gidi Fest and FEMME FEST. She joined Oroko Radio as a resident in January.
So far, she’s known for her Afro-Electronic sound and is a member of the Lagos Afro Electronic DJ collective and Village Sound System. As an electronic music producer, she’s being represented by More Time Records. She released an EP called Pisces Moon in February
7. SIMSS THE DJ
Simi Pwol, known professionally as Simss, took up deejaying as a first-year university student and has been honing her craft ever since. She has worked as the resident DJ for City 105.1 FM. Simss is well known for holding it down at the Mainland Block Party series from 2019 to date. Right now, she’s the official DJ to Ayra Starr and Victony.
