May 16, 2025 |
While the future of nightlife remains clouded by the smoke of uncertainty – with the ripple effect of lockdowns, strict council regulations and financial demands from landlords leading to the shuttering of 65 UK clubs in 2024 – our dancefloors have never been more exciting. Inside 10 Magazine Issue 74, we spotlight a series of DJs that are experts in their craft, taking eclectic sonics born on the British Isles to the biggest stages globally and providing soundtracks to the sort of nights out you’ll be telling your grandchildren about.
The rave-ready stylings of Angel D’lite demand to be heard on a proper sound system, beneath a sea of lasers. Sporting a neon pink bob and a kaleidoscopic wardrobe to match, she has a penchant for old-school dance floor euphoria. Moving between high-octane breakbeats, prog house slammers and trance excellence, she’s built for peak-time clubbing.
Angel D’lite wears jacket by MARQUES ALMEIDA
What’s one track that’ll never leave your USB?
I’ve Been Waiting by Paul Rayner.
What track never fails to fill a dance floor?
I rarely play the same tracks very often, but one that I have been loving lately is Rhythm Mi Ride (4×4 Mix) by Vybz Kartel, aka DJ Cosworth, an excellent human as well as a wicked producer!
What makes a great DJ?
Someone who can read the room and be prepared to switch things up. I often ask myself, “Who am I playing for? Is it that cutie who looks like they’re having the time of their life? Or the whole floor? Or am I playing for me, the space or the sound system? A great DJ has the ability to adapt and play for an empty floor or a popping dance floor, while also still staying true to their original sound.
What’s been the best night out of your life?
I went up to Manchester to see my friends Faff play at High Hoops at The White Hotel, my favourite club in the UK. I had lots of fun dancing with a cute crew of freaky dancers. It’s a queer party, but you have the most fab queens and divas twerking with the lads in trackies – clubbing heaven. Shutters up for the last hour so the dance floor spills out into the sun, unforgettable! Post-club posh hotel breakfast with my lads in Faff was a perfect closer. Another incredible night was Spielraum Weekender [in Amsterdam]. Everyone I managed to hear played so well, but I stomped especially hard to S-candalo, Jessica Nightlife and Spray. It was special for me because it was my first time playing for Spielraum, who now run a beautiful queer club called Club Raum that I’m a resident at.
What does music mean to you?
It’s freedom of expression, the gateway for dance and dancing, and most importantly, queer freedom, expression and exploration. It’s my personal, creative connection to the world. As cheesy as this sounds, music is my favourite drug. It can induce instant nostalgia and emotion. It’s an escape, a safe place, a space for culture and subcultures to grow and co-exist. Music is political, and you can always make a difference within your creative field, just like people did for us to live with the freedom we have today!
What shaped your musical tastes?
Going to illegal raves, ’80s synth pop music videos, The Prodigy and Top of the Pops. [Crate] digging in record shops, especially Tome Records [in Hackney]. Parties like World Unknown [in Brixton] and FWD>> [at Plastic People in Shoreditch] 10-ish years ago. Digging at [New Cross record shop] Planet Wax. Going to Dalston Superstore and South Bermondsey afterparties.
What’s the craziest thing you’ve seen from behind the decks?
Ha! This year at Field Maneuvers, during my set in the Lazer Dome, aka the Sputnik stage, which is my favourite space to play, there was a sort of… rave ceremony, if you will. It involved two people on a speaker, one inserting something into the other. But it’s probably not what you think. I’ll leave it up to your imagination but IYKYK. It was fierce.
What makes a great night out?
Excellent, varied music on a fat sound system, a cute crew and the right amount of shrooms! Sexy dancing, flirting, laughing, more dancing and an espresso martini at some point!
Taken from 10 Magazine Issue 74 – MUSIC, TALENT, CREATIVE – on newsstands now. Order your copy here.
THE FLOOR FILLERS
Creative Editor and Text PAUL TONER
Portrait by ANNIE FENG, courtesy of RESIDENT ADVISOR
Fashion assistant GEORGIA EDWARDS
Production ZAC APOSTOLOU and SONYA MAZURYK
