DJ G-String is renowned for her taste in dance music and ability to get the crowd moving. She cultivates a setting where the music seems to be alive and evolving. She has the ability to manually match beats on the fly while looping, sampling, and performing live mashups. When DJ G-String was a young woman, she started copying the beats of songs she heard on the radio onto cassette tapes. She became fascinated with music mixing at the young age of 14, and she made the decision to invest her time and money in learning the skill. When G-String turned 18, she purchased some turntables. Soon after, as her skills advanced, she began to spin at school events, weddings, and house parties. She was hired at a Chicago nightclub just one year later. Later, she encountered other nightclub vendors and booking agencies. She rose to the position of resident DJ at a number of nightclubs and guest DJ at other Chicago hotspots. She has had the honor of DJing alongside some of the best DJs in the nation.
Her unique style of mixes, original dance tracks, and mashups, which she has developed over more than 20 years as a Club DJ and musician, is what keeps her feeling alive. Recently, DJ G-String and TC5Official collaborated on a brand-new release called โI Want You To Know.โ This group effort is novel and enjoyable. It is the epitome of what it means to create the best vocal house music in the current scene. On the one hand, the production has a punchy, clear sound. On the other hand, it captures the warmth you would anticipate from the genreโs classics of yesteryear. Check out her latest single and the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how you got started?
DJ G-STRING: I am from the Chicago area and I started the passion of dance music when I was around 14/15. I got started on making music in general in my early 20โs, and really honed in on that skill when I returned to the music scene in 2019.
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
DJ G-STRING: I am self-taught but I also play a lot of instruments such as guitar, bass, piano, violin, etc. I invested in my voice with vocal lessons when I started my alternative rock band Digging4Julie. I wanted to do screamo so bad I had to get trained vocally all around. I left the DJ scene in 2007 before that to start that project.
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name โDJ G-STRINGโ?
DJ G-STRING: Nirvana, Soundgarden, Smashing Pumpkins, Motown and all disco. ย In the dance scene it was Bad Boy Bill, Kaskade, and Tiesto. I still have all of those tapes and cds -ha. The DJ G-String name was formed when I was in highschoolโฆ fill in the blanks.
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
DJ G-STRING: This is always hard for me to answer. I think my sound is different and somewhat vocal house style. I am driven by emotions with the music I make. I have to be in an energy space both mentally and physically to create. I canโt be stressed or anxious about anything or music is dead to me in that time. I write things about my life experiences or sometimes even my perception of events.
DJ G-STRING:
I am not sure. I just really make music. I donโt sit down and write a house track or techno track. I usually sit down and write the melody. I am always on the keyboard using piano plug inโs first without full song concept. I also use my own melodies I donโt use samples so everything is written naturally unless it is like a drum sample or riser etc.
6. Whatโs your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles โ and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative and entertainment?
DJ G-STRING:
I definitely think music is spiritual for me. I feel the goal is just as it happens and it is always personal. I think fitting into something I am not is hard for me to do and I remain authentic to my own sound.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfilment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
DJ G-STRING:
So in life, you get what you give in. Sometimes the reward isnโt as fast as you would like it to be. I donโt look at the overall picture; I look at the moment. When those moments are progressing than it is worth it. I use to think purging out as many songs is the way to go, but I realized that is A. a lot of work, and B. sometimes draining to where the real growth goes missed. Therefore each moment is calculated and if that moment is moving forward whether small or large than that is progress.
8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
DJ G-STRING:
My creative process usually happens almost always on a Friday night around 11pm; I am not sure why but this is a fact. I usually write a full song all night and canโt stop until like 4am. If I am feeling the melody and lyrics come into my mind it is the right time. I also sometimes sing songs in the shower and then melodies come after. I guess it depends. I collaborate with others for remixes, but for this track I want you to know I worked with TC5Official and I asked him if he wanted to do an original with me. I told him what I felt the melody would be, shared my input, we worked on revisions, and I instantly started writing the lyrics and sang the track. So I knew that was going to be a good track.
9. What has been the most difficult thing youโve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
DJ G-STRING: I think the most difficult thing is being a female artist in this industry. Most female artists are overly sexualized and have a fan base due to that and less on the music. I think the industry being dominated by men and not supported by those same men is challenging. I know that festivals just started making it better for women where there are a few women on the ballet but still heavily dominated by men. So to be seen you either go viral, become more of an object, or have to know someone that is willing to help. I have unfortunately experienced misogynists in the industry and that needs to change. I have been told some rude things and I am a very strong-minded, strong-willed female, so at times I think some promoters or agencies likely are intimidated by that. If I disagree with something I speak up and take action โ this is indeed a business to me so I treat it as such. I always calculate my actions to ensure they are honest, have integrity, and fair. I personally donโt care who anyone is in this industry, if you are disrespectful, I believe in karma heavily โ Reap what you sow. Life is simple โ Be a good human. If youโre a man in this dance music space, make it a goal to help lift up the women and minorities in this industry. It is 2022!
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far? DJ G-STRING: I think each release shows me a little more wins towards the goal. I canโt say most successful, but I will say having my first track on beatport charts was pretty neat and being in DJ Times during lockdown was cool too.
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