DJ Holographic is the Epitome of Detroit Love

Detroit native DJ Holographic is one of the city’s most beloved selectors, which in a city like Detroit means she’s got something special.

Carl Craig certainly seems to think so — he tapped the newcomer to mix the latest iteration of the Detroit Love mix compilation series, following in the footsteps of artists like Stacey Pullen, Waajeed, and Mirko Loko.

Released on April 16th via Planet E Communications, Detroit Love Vol. 5 is an 18-track journey of funkadelic dance floor exploration that shows us the grace and intensity of Holographic’s eclecticism, with tracks from Soul Clap & The Martinez Brothers, Erika, Juan Ramos, Underground System, and her own single, “Faith In My Cup,” featuring vocals from Detroit gospel choir trained singer/songwriter Apropos.

A core member of the city’s underground scene and LGBQT+ community, Holographic has already played alongside the likes of Moodymann, DJ Stingray, The Blessed Madonna, Robert Hood, and Seth Troxler (who recently invited her to take part in his Beatport Residency program for Black History Month) at clubs and events like Junction 2, Panorama Bar, Magazine Club, Space Miami, and the Dirtybird Campout.And last year she launched the Hitchhiker imprint with her debut EP, Parallel Shifting, a three-tracker that packs plenty of punch, produced alongside Alex Wilcox.

To find out more about the compilation, we caught up with Holographic, who also talks about first getting started with DJing, her hopes for the future, and how she’s found peace despite suffering great losses in 2020.

First off, how was your 2020?

Honestly, on a personal level, 2020 helped to give me such a clear understanding of who I truly am and taught me how to stay at peace within myself. One of my biggest lessons in 2020 for me was to let go of all judgment and give compassion rather than play the capitalist game of consume, consume, consume or produce, produce, produce, which a lot of the world did.

Instead, I really focused on slowing down and taking my time — meditating every day, trying to stay present with myself and everything around me.

There was a great loss around the world last year for everyone from dreams, homes, and even people. I lost one of my best friends, my grandmother, but I’m still able to be in peace, which I’m really grateful for.

I had a lot of work but I really tried to take it at my own pace and not overwhelm myself, or we wouldn’t have this DL5 compilation and my new single, “Faith In My Cup,” but I really took in every moment of the journey with present eyes. When I reached out to friends for their tracks I wanted to plan a story to tell for the mix and it really helped me to stay present and at peace.

Tell us about Necto Nightclub. What was it about that place that helped you learn and understand how to take control of the dance floor? How did you go from “coat check girl” to one of the club’s most phenomenal acts?

When you work at a club you really get to understand every role that the staff play in the overall experience of a nightclub — from the bouncer, to the cashier at the front, down to the bartenders and the bar-back. Knowing how to make their lives easier and how to make the staff happy is what will really make a difference to the vibe of the night.

If the club staff are happy, everyone can feel that — from the moment you walk in and are greeted by the bouncer, to the way the bar staff feel etc — all of it will impact on how clubbers experience a night out, and working at Necto really taught me this, which has been invaluable as a DJ.

Working at a club really taught me how vital the staff are in the experience of a night — this magic comes from the staff working really hard to make every night feel different.

Can you recall the first time you saw Carl Craig DJ? How did you two form a relationship and what was running through your head when he asked you to curate Detroit Love Vol. 5?

The first time I remember seeing Carl DJ was when I was invited to open up for one of his famous Detroit Love parties and I’ve seen him play many times now. He always takes you on an outer-body journey and does such a fantastic job.

I’ve seen Carl play at Movement but usually when I go to big events like this I’m walking around soaking up the vibe. I don’t really tend to consume events in terms of specific DJs who are playing, I’m there more to appreciate and enjoy it as a whole.

Carl and his team reached out to me to curate DL5 back in Oct 2019 (it was either right before I played my first set at Panorama Bar or right after) I can’t remember the exact moment, but I do remember feeling like the leading lady in my story, that’s for sure! I was shocked and humbled so early in my career to be asked to work on such a big project. I had only just started touring internationally so for them to have the faith in me on the series was huge for me and such an honour.

You’ve only just recently started producing tracks of your own. Can you tell us a bit about your time at Submerge and what the studio learning process has been like for you?

Last year was my first year of releasing music so I’m very much in the early stages of my career as a producer and the whole process has opened up a whole new world to me — it feels like bringing your child into the world

My new single “Faith In My Cup” is featured on the mix and there was a long creative process with this one track, which I had the inspiration for when I was touring in Europe back in 2019.

The whole concept for the mix itself was born in Berlin and recorded at Submerge.

What are some of the tracks that stand out to you the most in your Detroit Love mix?

I love all of the tracks on DL5 and I’m blessed to be close friends with a lot of artists who feature on the compilation.

I fell in love with each track and am still in love with them (even after listening to each song individually 50 times a day about three days in a row).

I have a personal connection to every track that I selected; Biphonic’s “Difficult People” is easily one of my favourite songs at the moment though, I’ve been playing this song like crazy and it’s always one of my go-to tracks in any set. It makes me feel so good every single time I listen to it, and as a DJ tool it’s super easy to blend.

What was the biggest challenge in compiling the album?

One of the biggest challenges was being innovative during the hard times of covid and still being inspired to see the project through lockdown. It was a cathartic process and knowing that the music was going to help others spurred me on and kept me going.

I was involved in all stages of the mix curation down to licensing details etc, so it’s been a real learning curve and new journey for me as an artist. This project was a saving grace for me last year.

Going into 2021 and the eventual (hopeful) return of live shows, what are some of the places and festivals you hope to play? What else can we expect to see from DJ Holographic later this year?

Personally one of my top priorities is learning how to take a vacation! I’m really going to try and do that this year when it’s safe to travel again. When you are touring as a DJ you don’t learn how to take a vacation as time is so structured around gigs and travelling, so when touring stopped last year I had to learn how to structure in downtime to keep a work life balance.

I’ve also been working and researching a lot on visuals and how to create them along with my music, so that might be something you may see!

I’m definitely a club kid and prefer intimate settings and parties like Buttons at ://about blank in Berlin, which is one of my favourites to play. I also really want to support local record shops as much as I can by maybe playing at a few in the future, they have really carried us through the pandemic.

I feel like we’re about to hit our version of the roaring twenties we had in the States. People more than ever are hungry for raves in new spaces — pop up warehouse parties, squats, new intimate locations. I think there’s going to be such an appetite for these kinds of parties, which I’m totally here for, as long as we can do them safely.