Today we’d like to introduce you to Sophia Lin.
Sophia, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
The first time I put the needle on a record was when my parents had a Chinese Karaoke Restaurant and my dad would teach me to change the songs. I was too young to remember it clearly. I didn’t start at a young age as many other entertainers did. In my childhood, I always had a bunch of dreams I wanted to pursue and took piano lessons, and that clarified that I always knew I wanted to be some sort of musician. Growing up in a strict Asian family, I didn’t learn a lot of pop culture. I was a bit sheltered and many things were forbidden. Piano lessons were my first introduction to music. I also sang in my school’s choir and later played the clarinet (though I wanted to play the flute). This drove me to be more curious about music in general. I was looking for an outlet to express my creativity. My affection for art led to my passion for performing and recording music. The moment in my life when I realized that music was the career path that I wanted… It didn’t happen right away. I would get distracted with life and working three to four jobs at a time, but somehow always got drawn back to music. It grew on me, even though I knew my parents didn’t want me to pursue being an entertainer. I kept going back to the thought. And here I am today. Exploring the world, meeting amazing people, playing music, and being fortunate enough to have some fun moments with new people with my travels. MUSIC IS A UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE. IT ALLOWS ME TO CONNECT WITH PEOPLE FROM ALL AROUND THE WORLD.
I Started DJ’ing underage clubs and went to college for music and fashion, then I started my professional DJ career and it’s been non-stop ever since. I may not have been born into show business or grew up in a city that has a ton of entertainment opportunities, but getting a late start has its advantages. I feel like I’m a better artist. I feel like I’m bringing a lot more life experience to my roles. You can never be over-prepared. I am FULL TIME with DJ’ing still! I haven’t had a real job working for someone since I can remember… I’ve always been a great multi-tasker.. I currently juggle and manage between being a Music Director for several LA venues, Co-own a Health & Wellness business Viv vitals, throwing an all Female lineup party with Miss DJ Bliss called ‘DOYENNE’, and I have recently been learning to produce my beats. I don’t want to stand behind the decks forever or play a bunch of records that I didn’t make. Anyone can do either of those. I like the challenge to stand apart. Yes, it is possible. It takes discipline and I’ve cut out pretty much everything. TV shows, most movies, scrolling through social media feeds, etc. I try my best to do everything in large batches like meal prep, errands, etc. I have plenty of clothes etc., so I can even let my laundry and dry cleaning pile up for quite a while. I try to be efficient with everything but I never take shortcuts that will come back and create more work for me. I stack as many things on top of each other as possible.
What else should we know? Can you give our readers some background on your style?
Today, my style as a DJ varies and while I typically get booked to rock an open format (multi-genre) party, my passion takes me back to the Electronic Dance genre every time! One of the main reasons why I started DJing was my love for Electronic Dance Music. I would spend hours looking at Napster for Breakbeat and Trance records in the early 2000s. What sets me apart is that I’m extremely technical with beat matching and EQ-ing each song seamlessly. I work hard to always have smooth transitions and luckily I have sensitive ears and can’t stand key-clashing! LOL, I’ve had DJs tell me I almost sound like a pre-recorded mix. If you catch me live, you’ll notice that I layer and blend records and use little chops. Its almost as if I’m producing live while I’m playing and adding in different elements and energies to the record. I love not only playing today and tomorrow’s hit records, but I also incorporate the older songs, ( not just the obvious ones. ) I enjoy being experimental and push the boundaries of traditional club music programming with remixes and live mashups! My music taste has the Spotify Algorithms confused! I have a plethora of music to choose from in my computer library. 😉
Over the years, venues would ask me to work when I was already booked. I would oftentimes refer other DJs I felt were dope. This led me to become the music director for venues where I would coordinate all the booking details, schedule, and handle sound and vibe curation. One of the things that I’m proud of so far is that I’ve been able to create new opportunities and work for other fellow DJs in the community. Ever since I can remember I’ve always been a networking machine. I like to meet new people and I don’t feel like anyone else is competition. Everyone is like a unique chef and cooks up a different flavor to the table. I’ve been a huge supporter of other female performers from the get go! I used to go out every night of the week in LA when I first moved here and got to check out the scene and get to hang out with other females and it was a lot of fun memories. I’ve been fortunate enough to build a strong network of fellow DJs and through that, I was able to co-create DOYENNE. A Los Angeles-based monthly music and industry event that features an all female lineup of live, world-class DJs, singers & musicians. Each ‘Doyenne Session’ falls around the New Moon or Full moon. The moon after all is a feminine symbol and represents the rhythm of time. DOYENNE /doiˈ(y)en/ Noun: A woman who is the most respected or prominent person in a particular field As for DOYENNE, our goal is to grow it big enough to bring the party into different cities, states, and even countries. Ultimately we would like to make it into an all-female line up festival.
In your view, what is the biggest issue artists have to deal with?
I moved out at 17. I had many hardships but what didn’t kill me made me stronger and who I am today. I’ve gotten thrown a lot of lemons in my career and life. But I smile, push through it without announcing it to the world, and I’ll make you an awesome glass of pink lemonade. There were are so many crazy stories that it would have to be in a separate interview. Obstacles / Challenges: Time management is one of the biggest challenges when you have so many different projects going. At any one time, I will be traveling, performing, dealing with agents or promoters, “doing interviews..”, working on music bts, preparing for the next events, and taking care of the financial side of things. It feels like I’m always under pressure whether I have a million deadlines bts or at a live event, I have to think quick on my feet, and always have a contingency plan.. I thrive on clutch situations. I’m TYPE A and a multi-tasker.. I’m always ready to rock. Having balance is another big challenge. Keeping it all under control, remembering to stay grounded/balanced through it all in all areas of your life, and maintaining your health and stress levels to keep everything going. I also can’t always predict the drama of travel plans changing or dealing with some of the flakes in the entertainment industry. But, I can put people into the trunk if they don’t pay on the backend! – Kidding. Some quick advice for young women that want to get in the industry… First, you need to know that while on-stage, Dj-ing appears effortless, there are things that audiences never see or know. Especially the preparation before the show. There are a lot of unglamorous Bts work in show business. It’s not all fun and games. Ultimately have respect for yourself and treat others as you want to be treated. Always pay it forward.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.djsophia.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: instagram.com/djsophialin
- Facebook: facebook.com/djsophialin
- Twitter: twitter.com/djsophialin
- Other: linkedin.com/in/djsophialin
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