Do you feel Female DJs are often overlooked? Us too. Although over the last few years we’ve seen dozens of female Djs rise to the top of the EDM scene, it is still clear there is a drastic imbalance when compared to their male counterparts. Many companies have taken action to support female artists and professionals throughout many facets of the music industry.
We’ve highlighted some of our favorite female DJs rocking dance floors around the world and releasing some of our favorite tracks. If you’ve been following electronic music, then undoubtedly, you’ve heard of a few on this list, but there are likely a few you haven’t and trust us, you’ll be glad you found them!
Perhaps one of the most well known female DJs is Rezz. She came on the scene in 2015 with her OWSLA debut EP Insurrection. Overnight she became one of the most talked about acts in all of dance music selling out venues like Red Rocks Amphitheater multiple nights in a row.
Originally from Niagara Falls, Canada, she began DJing at 16 and found inspiration from popular bass driven acts at the time. She’s established herself as one of the pioneers of midtempo, a rapidly growing subgenre of EDM. You can find some of her newer releases coming out on Deadmau5’s label Mau5trap.
Her newest release “Someone Else” with Grabbitz, has already racked up 5 Million plays on Spotify in just 4 days and has support from major YouTube promoters Proximity and Trap Nation.
If you live under a rock and haven’t heard of Rezz, do yourself a favor and listen through her Spotify. You’ll be glad you did!
Another Female DJ you may be familiar with already if you’ve been around the EDM scene is Alison Wonderland. Originally from Sydney, Australia, the classically trained cellist began to release remixes of a variety of EDM Artists and quickly gained notoriety and support from several top acts.
Mija has been one of the strongest and steadiest electronic acts in the past decade. Hailing from Phoenix, AZ, she started to DJ at the young age of 19 back in 2012. Incredibly, she quickly found herself playing a b2b alongside Skrillex on a Burning Man art car in 2014. Since then, she has proven herself time and again that she is a force to be reckoned with. She has really shone under labels like Skrillex’s OWSLA and A-Trak’s Fools Gold Records, but she self-describes her style as “fk a genre.” This becomes evidently clear when you look at her track releases; to date, she has released dubstep, future bass, disco house, trap, drum and bass, and most recently an experimental/indie pop album.
Released in February, 2020, her “Desert Trash” album really showcases Mija’s versatile artistry. The title track is a guitar-laden groove, while “Mind Control” would be more recognized as a house track. The final track, “Digression” is produced with happy-hardcore heavyweight Gammer and features a DnB sound. The album as a whole is incredibly cohesive and grows in emotion and power as Mija takes you on a journey through her feelings.
If you’ve never given her the chance, take a listen to some of Mija’s hit songs. You may just find a new favorite artist across more than one genre!
Any house-head knows this superstar’s name and has likely heard her songs many times over (even if you don’t know it!) Nora En Pure got launched onto the world-wide stage with her 2013 release “Come With Me,” which stayed in Beatport’s top 100 download list for more than seven months straight! Sometimes referred to as the “Queen of Deep House”, she was nominated and crowned as the Best House Artist (Female) for both 2019 and 2020 at the International Dance Music Awards. Nora En Pure has been producing beautifully imaginative deep house for about a decade now, but she clearly shows no signs of stopping.
Her newest release “All I Need” has over half a million plays on Spotify after only a month, with another ~70k on YouTube under her own channel. This emotional soundscape set to a 4-on-the-floor house kick will have you feeling all kinds of emotions. Featuring ethereal vocals and soothing basslines, this is the perfect track for a night-time drive or a quiet date night with your significant other.
Having played massive festivals like Coachella and Tomorrowland more than once, this queen plans to keep her title for as long as possible. Be sure to keep an eye on her career as it continues to blossom because Nora En Pure has cemented herself as a staple of the deep house scene.
Jennifer Lee, more widely known as TOKiMONSTA, is another monster of a producer. Leaning more towards R&B, hip hop, and house, this woman could never be left out of our list. She’s got collabs with Channel Tres, Earthgang and more, plus remixes for the likes of Beck, Justin Timberlake and ODESZA. In 2015 she was diagnosed with Moyamoya Disease which left her without language and comprehension skills for a brief time. Despite this, she went on to create her 2017 album Lune Rouge which received a 2019 Grammy nomination for “Best Electronic/Dance Album.” From there she went on to play SXSW and Coachella and had another full length album in 2020 titled Oasis Nocturno.
This latest album points to Lee’s favor of the darkness and night time where she finds refuge in escaping from the hustle and bustle of the day. This album most recently features a lively Dombresky remix of the track Come and Go.
Always pushing her own boundaries, TOKiMONSTA will go down as one of the greats of our time. There really isn’t much she can’t do – smashing whatever she sets her mind to.
Next on our star-studded list of high powered women is Anna Lunoe. Born in Australia, Anna started her career as a radio DJ and slowly forced her way into the electronic music scene. She moved to L.A. in 2012 to pursue her production/DJ career, and she has changed the landscape of electronic music since then. Hosting her own radio show called HYPERHOUSE as well as Apple Music’s Beats 1 Radio, Anna is a crate digger; she is always finding the best underground tracks and bringing them to light.
Anna has a pretty heavy focus on house, although she hits all the sub-genres pretty hard. She’s dabbled in bass house, tech house, acid house, and more. Although she’s been laying low for the past several months, you’ve no doubt heard her smash single 303 on the dance floor or on your favorite streaming service. After 303, she released another track with Nina Las Vegas called One Thirty which is another dance floor hit.
Featuring collabs, remixes and features alongside some of the heaviest hitters in EDM, Anna Lunoe is a legend in her own right. Keep your eyes and ears peeled for her next release because when it drops, you won’t want to miss it!
Yet another Australian-born heavyweight comes by the name of Tigerlily. Voted Australia’s #1 Female DJ for 3 years straight, you’d be hard pressed not to find her on a major festival lineup. She started music school at the young age of 4 years old, which makes sense considering the success she has achieved. Focusing more on the Big Room sound, she has a collaboration with KSHMR and has played at some of the biggest festivals in the world.
Her latest track Get Down was released on Spinnup, a Swedish distribution service owned by Universal Music Group. This heater expands on the growing trend of mixing bass house with festival big room, featuring a repeating vocal on top of a syncopated ripping bassline. This one is sure to be a hit on the dance floor.
Tigerlily is a born and bred musician, but also a heavy philanthropist and brand ambassador. She’s an ambassador for JBL, Samsung and Adidas, while also having been featured in media from PETA, Women’s Health, GQ, Cosmopolitan, and many more. This superstar is out to change the world any way that she can, with her amazing music taking the forefront.
If you are a fan of techno, then you’ve probably heard of Belgian producer and DJ Charlotte De Witte. She’s known best for her tracks “You’re Mine” and “Closer” and has taken the stage at the biggest festivals in the world, including Tomorrowland and Ultra Music Festival Miami. Recently, she has been accused of using ghost producers behind the scenes. This has stirred up quite a bit of controversy across the scene because although the accusations have been made, she has recorded live sessions of herself producing which demonstrates she does know how to produce on her own.
This list could go on for a while, but we felt that these were some of the biggest names to check out. Just as in life, women in the music industry should never be overlooked. In life, we’d be nowhere without them, and here they have brought near endless amounts of creativity, energy, and change to the world. As we continue to strive to keep everyone on equal footing, it’s important to remember that women also have what it takes to make your next favorite song.
EDM has been mostly dominated by men in the past, but we all need to keep pushing our favorite female producers forward. While these women listed are great role models for anyone, keep your ear to the ground for the next big hitter. Names like Softest Hard, Blossom, Kendoll, and countless others are also starting to pave their own way and make huge names for themselves, so don’t miss out!
