She is one of the youngest DJs in India and Siana Catherine has already carved a niche for herself. In her short career span, the 23 year old has not only performed in India but internationally too. She has performed along with Hardwell and Dimitri Vegas, among others.
Catherine’s music is a blend of Electronic Dance Music (EDM) and Trap. The Latin American and Anglo Indian performer also runs a podcast called Powermix, which broadcasts in 18 different countries. Catherine is performing in Pune with The Unknown at Penthouze, Mundhwa, today. We catch up with her prior to her performance:
What are you going to play in Pune?
My mainstream genres are EDM, Hard Trap, Dubstep and Hard style. I will be playing my edits and remixes. I will keep the flow in genres according to the place and vibe.
You have performed here before. What do you think of the Pune crowd?
This is my fourth gig in Pune. Straight up on previous experiences, it’s one of the cities in India which has got great nightclubs and the energy of the crowd is insane. The clubs have maintained their crowd pretty good.
You have been dabbling in music since you were nine. But how did you realise your passion for DJ-ing?
At the age of nine, I was more into freestyle dance. I had the feel for music always. I lost my family and have been adopted many times. Later at age 16, I got inspired by Tiesto-Lethal industry, the single which appeared in DJ Tiësto’s first album. I quit my part-time job to pursue DJ-ing which wasn’t just a passion, it was something I did to survive. And today I am here.
Being one of the youngest DJs in India, who are the veteran DJs you look up to?
Being one of the youngest DJs, seniors always look at me as a freshman. Going above and beyond is something what I have worked on. Age doesn’t matter but knowledge and situation does. Tiësto and Armin Van Burren have always been my greatest inspirations.
How do you find the EDM scene in India?
Here, people have great love for EDM music and festivals. This is one country where you cannot go wrong with the genre of music.
You perform at festivals, which have large number of crowds, and also at night clubs. Does the experience differ while performing at two diverse venues?
Yes, club and festival experiences are completely different. Performing at festivals like Sunburn alongside the world’s top artists, is a dream come true. I have learnt a lot. At festivals, you gotta warm up the crowd but it expects more bangers’ tracks which are my mainstream genres but as per my line up, I need to keep it mellow and at the same time make a great impression. I try to give them something new. I maintain the quality of my performance by doing my homework before the gig and keep the unique style in every track edited. Playing at clubs is a complete gamble because you have to change your style according to theirs. Just give them what they want and add your style to that. Club sounds and festival sounds make a huge difference. But at the end of the day, my job is to make people happy. It doesn’t matter if it’s a club or a festival, I give my best effort and keep it real.
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Catch DJ Siana Catherine and The Unknown at Penthouze, Mundhwa, tonight at 8.30 pm
Follow the writer on Twitter @DebaratiPalitSi
