With Brisbane Festival coming into full swing, Brisbane Street Serenades is partnering up with organisers from Blak Social to host Blak Warehouse Party – a family friendly celebration of First Nations electronic dance music and culture.

Following the success of last years’ Street Serenades, during which 190 suburban streets and cul de sacs across Meanjin/Brisbane hosted free, mini concerts, with a diverse range of talented acts. This year’s program consists of seven bespoke events across all four corners of our city.

Starting at 5PM on Friday 9 September at The Paint Factory in Yeronga, Blak Warehouse Party promises an exciting line up, featuring electrifying First Nations artists from Brisbane and beyond like DJ pgz, Sovblkpssy, DJ Kritty, Dameeeela, and more.

Blak Warehouse Party will be a highlight of an already stacked Brisbane Festival. So, to whet your appetite, I sat down with Melbourne based artist DJ pgz (Paul Gorrie), and Sunny Coast based DJ Kritty (Kristy Barker) to see what they have in store for audiences on the night.


Hey guys! For those who haven’t heard of you before, could you introduce yourselves and tell us a bit about how you got into the scene?

DJ Kritty:

“My real name is Kristy Barker, I am a Wiradjuri woman and I currently live on Gubbi Gubbi country – so the Sunshine Coast – but I spent most of my DJ’ing years in Sydney. That’s where I got started, I really got into DJ’ing because of people like Nina Las Vegas. I used to be a hectic Triple J listener, and her mixes on House Party, and then on Mix Up is what got me into it. I saw her playing a gig here on the coast and got to meet her, she’s the reason I got put onto pretty much everything.”

“Through her I started working on Triple J Unearthed, so I moved to Sydney. I got connected with the Sidechains crew.”

“I was a little club rat. I went to all the club nights, and that’s where I got to play some of my real favourite gigs. We got to open for SOPHIE which was definitely a highlight.”

“Then we became broke in Sydney – because it’s really expensive there – so I moved back here (the Sunshine Coast). Had a few free days so I started volunteering at Australia Zoo and that’s how I got my job.”

“So yeah, I’m like a DJ slash Zookeeper, which people always find really weird. I don’t think there’s many of us out there!”

“I’m also in my final year of a Bachelor of Human Services – basically it’s social work – and I have a very hectic schedule. If I’m not at work, I’m at uni. Then outside of that I’m trying to do assignments and prep for gigs.”

 

DJ Kritty, Brisbane Festival

DJ pgz:

“My name is Paul – DJ pgz – and I’m Gunaikurnai and Yorta Yorta man, currently based on the lands of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nations, down in so called Melbourne. I’ve got a few different things that I’m active in, which is a music and radio show on 3 Triple R, which is a local station down here in Melbourne. Then DJ’ing and writing, music producing and programming for schools as well. So yeah, a few different things.”

“In my early days I was a drummer. I think about things that keep the beat, you know? Music that’s very drum focused, and dance music is one of those things. It’s like… you can get lost in the pattern of the drums and it can change speed and tempo quite easily as well, which kind of is a huge drawcard for me.”

“Coming through my indie folk era in my younger years living in Melbourne, I was interested in playing with people and experiencing playing in a band. Meeting Lauren Moore, she’s from Brisbane, and having that connection and playing with local Aboriginal artists has been something that has been a huge inspiration for myself.”

“So, in terms of DJ’ing – I just love sharing music, which is why I have a radio show. That’s why when I DJ, it’s because I just want to have the best time with people.”

Awesome! How would you both describe your sound?

DJ Kritty:

“This is always very hard question for me!”

“I guess the way to define it would be genre blending. You can’t really put it in a box, it’s always forward thinking. I play a lot of bootlegs, like pretty fun, high energy stuff. It could be anything from rap, to trance, to like weird pop edits and R&B edits. So, yeah, it’s kind of difficult to explain to people.”

DJ pgz:

“I don’t have a sound that is quite recognisable yet, but I do have friends that have told me that when they hear my music, they can think of me. I don’t know. I just want to make dance music that’s got a rave element to it, but with attention to detail as well. Yeah, I just want it to be dance music, I guess.”

What are you looking forward to for Blak Warehouse?

DJ Kritty:

“Definitely the line-up 100%, They’re like some of my favourite DJs at the moment. I’ve known Dameeeela for a while, we used to play TBC together, which was really cool because outside of the OGs like Nina and Anna Lunoe – those real blazers of the path – Dameeeela was one of the first female DJs I really knew before I moved to Sydney. To also see her completely blow up – like she’s become huge – it’s really cool.”

“It’s gonna be tricky because I play a lot of their tracks so I’m excited to try and explore the realms of the Internet to find things that they’re not going to find, but also fits the vibe that we all play. So that’s what I’m most excited for.”

“Even if I wasn’t playing this gig, I definitely would be going because some of them, like DJ pgz, I haven’t seen live before.”

DJ pgz:

“It’s pretty cool to come back there (Brisbane) – the place where I developed my love for music. To be bringing everything that I’ve learned and figured out along the way and coming back there to present something feels pretty special.”

“Even though Brisbane doesn’t feel like home anymore, it does hold a huge piece of my history. You know, I was there for a long time. So, it’s pretty special to come there.”

So, what should audiences expect on Friday? Do either of you have any surprises for us up your sleeves?

DJ Kritty:

“Whatever it is, it’s gonna be a lot of new stuff. A lot of it’s going to be new releases. I do have a track that is unreleased from a producer called Talia that I’ll probably play because that’d be a nice surprise. But apart from that, I’m probably going to try and play Kylie Minogue. Like somehow, somewhere, I’ll sneak it in.”

DJ pgz:

“I know the DJs quite well and they just know how to get the party started, they know what people love to hear, they really read the room. When it comes to people at an event, they can tell whether they need to get more people involved. So yeah, I think something to expect is this like a lot of energy, just be ready to enjoy yourself.”

“For myself, expect me to do something that I haven’t done before, which is probably playing a few different genres that I just haven’t really dived deep into, but that will be references to my time in Brisbane when I was younger. Might be might be a few throwbacks.”

“Who knows? maybe I’ll get the mic out and start screaming around.”

Can’t wait! Thanks so much to both of you for sitting down and chatting with us here at the Westender! I look forward to meeting you both there.

Blak Warehouse Party is an all ages, alcohol free event for everyone in our Brisbane community. There’ll be loads of great music, and plenty of food and drink available for purchase from Sobah Drinks and Lenny’s MKR Mobile Kupmurri Catering Service. Get your friends and family together and come down to The Paint Factory in Yeronga on Friday for what’s shaping up to be a banger of an evening.


For more on the artists head to:

@dj_pgz

@Krittybarker

@Dameeeela

@sovblkpssy

Cover image of DJ pgz (Paul Gorrie), supplied.