GIGEE talks artistic vision, upcoming releases, and her journey through music
Known for her ability to push the boundaries of genre and style, GIGEE’s creative journey is a testament to the stories she tells through her beats and melodies. From Berlin’s thriving scene to festivals around the world, GIGEE’s music captivates audiences with its unique blend of influences and innovative approach.
As GIGEE discusses her latest track, ‘Babylon,’ her upcoming projects, and life on the road, we gain insight into her creative process and what drives her work. Her passion for blending music, fashion, and emotion is evident as she offers advice to aspiring female producers navigating the often male-dominated electronic music scene. Through her journey, GIGEE shows us a world where unexpected influences collide and where the dancefloor becomes a canvas for storytelling and adventure.
EG: Hi GIGEE! Welcome back, and thanks for chatting with us. Where are you right now?
GIGEE: Right now, I’m in Berlin! I’ve been here for a few days since playing KitKat on Sunday. As we all know – Berlin is such a cool creative space for our scene, so I’ve been meeting some awesome people here to discuss some upcoming work. 😉
EG: Lovely! What can you tell us about your upcoming “Babylon” release on Katermukke? Could you share with us the creative genesis behind this track?
GIGEE: A lot of the time when I’m writing music – it starts with a crazy big concept. I’m a super visual person, so with this, I had an image of an ancient city and landscape before I even loaded up Logic. I knew the sounds I wanted to work on, and the lead and melody came together quickly. The arrangement took a little longer, as I wanted to find a balance between the vision I had and the fact that I wanted the track to feel cinematic in places while also making sure that it was something that really worked on the dancefloor!
EG: How do you approach storytelling within your music, and what themes or emotions did you aim to evoke with this particular composition?
GIGEE: When I thought of what ‘Babylon‘ is, I wanted to convey the emotions I imagine I might feel living in that time. Of course, the landscape is kind of beautiful – so for that, I wanted to give space to the pads to give that warm feeling – but on the flip side, I can imagine that this time in history could be very sinister and unsafe, so I wanted the lead to give a sense of uncertainty. Really, I wanted to balance the light and dark elements of the track. Whilst the light and dark are always there – as I’ve been playing the track over the past few months, I noticed that I re-connected more with the dark or the light elements depending on my personal headspace at the time. I hope it can connect with other people in a similar way.
EG: Returning to Katermukke with ‘Babylon,’ you continue your artistic collaboration with the Berlin-based label. What draws you to this label, and how does their ethos resonate with your creative vision?
GIGEE: Dirty Doering has been a big supporter of my music over the past few years, we did a collab last year called BADABOOM, which did really well and ended up being one of the best performing tracks of the year. Marei – the label manager, is also a wonderful human who is very creative. There is a really nice vibe between us all, and they also put on really fun parties with the label nights. I really like how the label operates, and as I said earlier I’m also a very visual person – and I really love the artworks they’ve been producing lately – and I LOVE this one for Babylon!
“I would never want someone to come to one of my shows expecting to hear one style of music and be upset because I was unidentifiable to what they expected from following my music”
EG: Your music often defies genre boundaries. How do you maintain a sense of cohesion while exploring diverse sonic territories, and what drives your experimentation with different musical styles?
GIGEE: I’ve always loved a lot of music in different genres. I mean, some of my guilty pleasures in different genres will probably get me canceled, so NO WAY I’m mentioning it here – but I think it’s easy as a producer to play it safe and have music that is always very similar or for other producers who produce across a lot of genres it can be really hard to create an identity. I would never want someone to come to one of my shows expecting to hear one style of music and be upset because I was unidentifiable to what they expected from following my music.
So, for me, the answer is having an identity, which I try to do. It’s exciting to push the boundaries of that and maybe put some releases out that are a bit more experimental or have an unusual arrangement, but it’s very important for me that when I do so, the final DNA of the track shares my DNA as a producer.
EG: As a self-taught producer, your journey from behind-the-scenes ghost production to the forefront of the electronic music scene is remarkable. How does your studio process contribute to the evolution of your sound, and what role does experimentation play in your creative workflow?
GIGEE: HAH – a big role. As much as earlier I said, I often have big visual ideas for tracks in my head before I write them; from an audio perspective, I sit down with a relatively blank canvas. I start with writing the main hook/melody. Usually I write a few and just find my flow. I may start with 5-10 ideas, which I then look at individually to see how they could complement each other in the track in a kind of question/response format. From there, I have a spine of a track to build around. From then on it’s about finding ways to try new techniques and tools – but also making sure that I keep my identity. I think this is how, as producers, our sound evolves. Understanding who we are, and how we connect – but also wanting to find new ways to tell the next story.
EG: Your tracks have achieved international acclaim. How does this global reach influence your approach to music production and performance, particularly in terms of engaging with diverse audiences?
GIGEE: Thanks! I know my style, and I know that, above all, I want to make music that I want to play and that people can smile to whilst they’re dancing. For me, it’s the most important element. “Is it FUN?” Of course, there are also tracks that I’ve written that are more designed for summer festivals than clubs in the winter. It’s also why I held the release on ‘Babylon’. It was finished towards the end of last summer, but for me, it felt like a summer tune and not something I wanted to release when it -was 10c outside. For example, I also have tracks that will work well in Berlin, but maybe they are not the right flavor for Paris. Different countries, and even cities within the same country, can have such a different vibe. I write what I want to write, but the more I travel, the more I experience what different people in different places like to hear.
EG: Festival season is upon us. Are there any particular festivals or venues you’re especially excited to perform at, and how do you prepare for these high-energy performances?
GIGEE: Oh YES! I recently played my debut at Miami Music Week. The Spectrum team had a label showcase at M2 with Resistance, and it’s got me really excited for the rest of the summer. A few standouts are my debuts this year at Extrema Belgium and Junction 2 in London, and I’m also very excited about the LAS Festival, as it is in Poland, and it’s always exciting to play a festival in your home country!
In terms of preparation… for sure, festivals are different from clubs, and the weather also plays a big part. Set times at festivals are a lot shorter, so I think it can be easy for many artists on a similar stage to end up playing the same “hot tracks” in their 1/1.5-hour set. For me, it’s balancing what the crowd wants to hear and giving them stuff they didn’t know they wanted to hear. If it’s a hot summer day, I also think it’s super important to give people a break musically, with perhaps some more progressive stuff that still fits my style – but lets them keep energy for when we drop back into the bigger tracks.
“We are very privileged to do what we do and share these moments with people worldwide. Not everyone has these opportunities. I think humility and compassion are important”
EG: Beyond music, you’ve expressed interest in fields like fashion and philanthropy. How do these diverse influences inform your artistic expression, and do you see potential intersections between these realms and electronic music?
GIGEE: Art is Art. I’ve always been a big follower of fashion, and it’s something I see as a natural connection between music and fashion. I think you can see this clearly when you go to a big festival and see what people wear. A lot of the time, you can confidently guess which stage/genre they are going to be heading to based on their outfits. So in this way, as we are expressing ourselves with the music we make, and the clothes we wear, both form part of our identity. There is an emotional connection between both, too. In the same way that over the years when I look at my hairstyles or clothes – I can see how I was feeling emotionally at that time, I can also hear how I was feeling when I wrote different music or was listening to different music. I think all forms of expression connect to our emotions. This is an area of connection that really excites me for future projects. As for philanthropy, we are very privileged to do what we do and share these moments with people worldwide. Not everyone has these opportunities. I think humility and compassion are important.
EG: For aspiring female producers and DJs, your journey inspires and guides. What advice would you offer to emerging talents, particularly women, navigating the often male-dominated landscape of electronic music?
GIGEE: Be unapologetically yourself. You deserve to be where you are, and you always need to be your own number 1 fan, cheering yourself on. There have been some great moves in the last few years. We have a lot more awareness in the scene, there are a lot more women in the workplace. There are still stigmas. I still come across people now who assume that as a female producer, I must have a ghostwriter, but worrying about what other people think is more likely to break you than make you. When you believe in yourself, the external noise gets quieter. Make sure you have a supportive team and friends around you – and focus on your own truth, not other people.
It’s also so important to keep working hard each day. Consistency is so important. You can’t just write one track and then sit back and think, “OK, I’m done”. If it’s your passion, you have to find your motivation and the “Why” for what you are doing – and keep going and keep going. Things won’t always go as you imagined, even if you worked hard – but that’s never a reason to stop! Learn from it, and keep working. I learned more from my challenges than when things came easy.
EG: As ‘Babylon’ makes its debut, what’s next on the horizon for GIGEE? Can we expect further explorations into ancient narratives or perhaps new sonic territories waiting to be uncovered?
GIGEE: Expect the unexpected! I’ve got quite a few unreleased tracks in the pipeline at the moment. Each has its own story that is personal to me, but there is no plan to release a series of ancient city stories right now. Haha.
EG: Once again, thanks for the time, and all the best!
GIGEE: Thanks so much for catching up with me again.
GIGEE’s latest release, ‘Babylon’, is now available via Katermukke. Stream and download here.
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