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THRIVIN - N - MIXIN: ATTAGIRL!

Bootleg Bop Radio
Nov 28, 2017
4 min read

THRIVIN-N-MIXIN is a mix series which shares the beginnings of four club nights and the music that keeps them thriving. ATTAGIRL! is a club night & community initiative based in Singapore aimed at bringing girls together in art & music. Expect bass-infused and underground sounds.

DEAR READER "I FIND IT SO AMAZING WHEN PEOPLE TELL ME THAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC HAS NO SOUL. YOU CAN'T BLAME THE COMPUTER. IF THERE'S NO SOUL IN MUSIC, IT'S BECAUSE NOBODY PUT IT THERE" - BJORK

SINCERELY ATTAGIRL!

WHY THE NAME, ATTAGIRL?

Attagirl’ is an everyday word to acknowledge a girl’s or a woman’s effort of doing something exceptionally well. With its significant meaning, we felt that as the name of our collective, it resonates with what we do and what we hope to achieve for the community. Ultimately, we wanted to present a positive energy that is inviting in our approach.

WHAT WAS THE INITIAL REASON FOR STARTING ATTAGIRL! AND HOW HAS THE MISSION PROGRESSED?

When we first started in 2013, it was a few months after the three co-founders Amanda Ang (A/K/A), Serene Ong (DuriO) and Syaheedah Iskandar (Jaydah) graduated from the 2012 FFF Girl DJ Bootcamp run by some of the most important/veteran female DJs in Singapore. Being new DJs ourselves, the opportunities to play out were in short supply considering that the community itself is small and was largely male-dominated which can be daunting at times. In addition to that, most female DJs during that time were popularized by their image, or in other words, known as “the booby DJ”. The collective was established largely to steer away from that direction by putting music first. This includes organising our own gigs while also creating a community of female collaborators and extending similar opportunities to other female DJs, musicians and artists. However, we would also like to mention that we would not have gone this far without the support of many of our male peers who believed in us too.

IS THERE SOMETHING NOT IMPLEMENTED IN THE ATTAGIRL! EVENTS THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO INCLUDE OR DEVELOP?

We’ve had great support over the years from club venues, brands and media agencies that help push our manifesto, support our artists and collaborators. Now that we’ve been at it for five years, the question of sustainability has been popping up recently especially since the sounds we play out are mostly underground and bass-infused. Though we have been invited to play in various places that has in many ways, helped in contributing to our funds, it still limits the number of shows we can organise on our own which we hope to do more beyond Singapore and into other parts of Southeast Asia. Two of our members are from Malaysia but we hope to expand and collaborate with other likeminded individuals from the region. Also, electronic music trends are constantly changing and that affects the number of venues that can support us here in Singapore as most of them are catered to commercial sounds. Adding to that, now that the grounds on gender representation are much more even in the industry, the current discussion is to see how we can evolve as a female collective. Five years is a long time, and the approach of our ideologies has matured with us along the way. It only makes sense to reflect this progress as we continue the work we do, but also expand the discourse on female representation in the industry. It might affect our direction as a collective, our branding, our visual identity etc. but having these discussions are crucial in moving forward.

FACEBOOK: facebook.com/attagirlparty/

INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/attagirlparty/

SOUNDCLOUD: soundcloud.com/attagirlparty/

TICTAIL: attagirlparty.tictail.com

CO-FOUNDERS:

DuriO, DJ

Jaydah, DJ

A/K/A Sounds, DJ

CREW:

EMPYREAL, DJ

FATIM, DJ

KINNIE, DJ/PRODUCER