Meat Free Interviews: Stephanie Sykes

We first heard you play during your days as an Adapt resident in Manchester at the beloved Soup Kitchen. What was one of your fondest memories of this party and what did this residency teach you?

Those were the good old days!! Adapt was an awesome party! I have many fond memories from those days, I met my friends for life being a resident in Manchester. I learnt to just have fun behind the decks and to enjoy it rather than be stressed out.

In addition to your residency for Adapt, you’ve held ones at Jaded, Atomic Jam & Khidi over the years which is incredibly impressive. We would love to know how you approach the concept of a residency. No doubt most of your sets these days will be peak times but do you still love the task of playing a warm-up set if the opportunity arises?

I love to play warm up sets! I like to build the room and the energy and take people on a journey, it’s all about setting the right pace, too many kids today start playing at 150bpm and to be perfectly honest it’s such a fucking vibe killer.

In recent years, we’ve seen opportunities for DJs to play in relatively new techno scenes around the world. Of all the places you’ve played (Seeing as you’ve played as far afield as China, Kosovo, Indonesia)which of these countries/cities have surprised you the most?…and can you share any funny stories from these experiences?

My Dad came to see me play in Bali, it was quite funny to see him jiving on the dancefloor and chatting to all my girlfriends. My friends will tell you I have many funny stories to tell, usually it involves me loosing something. I’m very forgetful and I’m constantly leaving things in hotel room or airplanes. Or usually I’m making a fool out of myself, I have quite a few embarrassing stories to tell.

We’re obviously incredibly biased, but we think Manchester crowds are some of the vibiest out there 😉 Do you share the same thoughts? …What do you miss about Manchester/ UK crowds in general?

I love Northerner’s!! They are the by far the funnest and friendliest of people!

What did you get up to during the pandemic? What got you through?

Drugs definitely helped! Hahah… Nooo, on a more serious note my friends pulled me through. Trying to maintain a healthy routine, I got into running and I tried to spend time with my loved ones. My mental health really took a battering during the pandemic, I wasn’t feeling inspired and I wasn’t working, I just felt a bit lost in space really. I’m so relieved to have my career back. The routine is super important. I’m feeling more motivated than ever!

Having a number of wicked releases under your belt, you’re obviously no stranger to production. We’re keen to hear your thoughts on your approach to this process. Do you make music because you feel compelled to?…and do you ever feel pressure to put music out to stay “current”?

This question really resonates with me because yes I do feel pressure to keep current and release music but I also don’t want to write music on demand. Its a real creative killer for me. I like to live life, experience something then release that into my music. Usually when I come home from a gig and I’m feeling sleep deprived and super emotional is when the best work comes out of me.

Outside of your music career, what else are you passionate about and have an interest in?

I’m super interested in nutrition, I’m a diabetic type 1 and I actually got diagnosed when I was 25 and living in Manchester, so since then I’ve always tried to maintain a healthy lifestyle. I have learnt so much about my body since getting this disease, it’s really quite fascinating. I’m not super fit but I do try to run on a regular basis…. I do occasionally fall off the wagon I’m not gonna lie!

If you weren’t DJing what would be your alternate career?

I used to be a brand manager for Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Steel, sourcing out bespoke merchanise for events so I guess I would still be doing something like that, something office based! buuuut I was always getting sacked from my employers haha so now I’m loving being my own boss!! I guess I’m a hard one to manage….. lol

Having deejayed full time for a number of years now, what keeps you motivated about it? Do you set yourself goals? Are there any clubs/countries still on your bucket list to play?

I keep myself motivated by always researching music, I don’t like to play the same set twice. Obviously, I have my favourite records which get played time and time again. They always stay in the bag, or now a days on the stick…. Yes I have many goals that I’m working towards but they’re personal. I still have a lot of countries I want to play in. I’d love to play Norway as I’m half Norwegian from my mother’s side and I have loads of relatives there and I’m really interested to see what the scene is like. Some other places I still want to travel to and play in are Detroit, Colombia, Mexico, Tel Aviv, just off the top of my head! I want to play more in Italy, please Italian promoters book me haha I love Italians and I love Italian food, it’s my favourite kitchen in the world!