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Scratch and spin with DJ Yasmin
Kapanlagi
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Kapanlagi.com
Since Fahria Yasmin Baladraf, a.k.a. DJ Yasmin, stepped into the local electronic-dance music industry, her sounds have always ignited excitement on the dance floors, putting her on the list of top local DJs.
However, she never thought of paving a career in the dance-music scene, although the music has always been close to her since she was a teenager.
'I was just a regular music lover; I've loved listening to dance music since I was younger, but I never thought of pursuing a career as a DJ,' she said.
Yasmin was born into a family that loves music. Her grandfather was a gambus (folk lute) player who often played it until late at night.
Young Yasmin always enjoyed listening to up-beat music, loved dancing and even joined a modern dance group.
She started to listen to dance music in junior high school and began visiting music festivals in Jakarta during her high school years.
Yasmin said her interest in being a DJ was sparked when she met her best friend, who was a DJ, during her studies at Padjajaran University in Bandung, West Java.
She asked him to teach her everything about it, but at that time it was just for fun.
When she understood the basic skill of scratch and spin on turntables, she became more excited and felt that being a DJ was her calling.
'I've always loved dance music, so it was not that difficult for me to learn about DJ-ing,' the 28-year-old said.
But having been raised in a religious Muslim family, her decision to pursue her passion was challenged by her father.
'My father did not like the idea of me being a DJ because he thought that dance music was a negative thing,' Yasmin said.
Despite the objection, she kept on going.
Armed and confident with her new DJ skills, she performed in front of people for the first time in a billiard hall in Bandung.
'I still remember my first performance; it was New Year's Eve in a billiard hall and everyone seemed to be busy with the games and ignored me,' she said, laughing.
Today, she can perform in clubs and does many events in Medan, Batam, Bandung, Surakarta and Surabaya in a week.
As Yasmin likes to listen to all kind of electronic music genres, her tracks for a party usually consist of a mix of progressive, techno, trance and breakbeat.
In 2011, Yasmin joined with Princess Joana to form a duo called Duchess of Love to perform live, breathing fresh air into the local dance music scene.
She also collaborated with many local musicians, including Tompi, Shanty and Maliq n d'essentials.
Yasmin developed her musical capability by producing her own music as she in 2013 released an EP, entitled Cookies, comprising three tracks that are rich with progressive house sounds.
Her musical prowess has earned her many awards, including Best Female DJ of The Year Paranoia Awards in 2011 and DJ of The Year Paranoia Awards in 2013. The Paranoia Awards are the highest recognition in the local electronic dance music community.
'With everything I have achieved, I can prove to my father that dance music is not bad and I can excel in it,' she said. 'My father is now my biggest supporter.'
Having been in the scene for years, Yasmin never got bored of being a DJ. She, however, admitted that she found it hard to have regular sleeping habits.
'That's why apart from hanging out with my friends and family during holidays, I will also use the time to sleep as much as I can,' she said, adding that she would have wanted to be a make-up artist if she wasn't a DJ.
On her future plans, Yasmin, who admired Scottish music producer and DJ Calvin Harris and Dutch DJ Tiësto, said she would like to build a stronger reputation in the international dance scene by having more collaborations with international DJs.
Recently, she collaborated with Dutch DJ Indyana and they released a new single together, entitled 'Volcano'.
'But maybe in the next five years, I will marry someone. And I would also like to involve myself more in the behind-the-scenes process,' she said. 'I'm happy with who I am today. Being part of Indonesia's growing dance music scene is amazing.'
