Siobhan Bell, our final guest of the season, is bringing us back to a subject we love: deejaying.
Currently, she’s getting inspired in her new home of California, and we talk to her about her musical journey from London to Los Angeles.
On Episode 024 of The MICK Show, we also get into how she’s honed her craft, what advice she’d give to young creatives and the reality of being a traveling artist.
You can follow Mick (@mick) and Siobhan Bell (@siobhanbell) on Instagram. And you can check out her mix for Highsnobiety here.
“The MICK Show” is presented in partnership with @maximmag.
MICK: All right, welcome back to The MICK Show. This is the last episode of season two. I can’t believe we’ve made it through. And I love it, because for those of you that don’t know, like for those of you that have just discovered this show via either the Maxim channels, or through the wonders of the podcast ecosystem, I am a DJ first and foremost, but I do like to pepper the guests and people who speak my language, which is that of DJing and music, and so our first episode two years, or two seasons ago, we had D-Nice. We’ve had so many other people on this show and we’re ending, we are ending season two, with Siobhan Bell. How are you?
Siobhan Bell: I’m great, thank you.
MICK: We’re happy. So, now I sound like we’re gonna just talk about nerdy DJ shit the entire time, but we are not. What I try to focus on with this show in general is people who have a lot of cool shit going on, right? So, I think it’s very important for people who are creatives of any ilk, of any genre, to just be multihyphenated in every way, because [inaudible] nothing in this pandemic. It’s not very smart to put all your eggs in one basket, A. And B, anybody who is creative in one aspect can absolutely apply those same metrics and those same skills to other things, and it’s awesome to see how you’re able to do that, as well.
So, let’s get into all of those sort of things. How would you even identify what you do? If I sat next to you on a plane right now and you don’t know me from anybody, and I’m just like, “What do you do?” What do you say?
Bell: Well, first, I would say I’m a DJ, because that’s my first, my passion, but I do do many things. Model, businesswoman, what else do I like to do? I’m a foodie. Add that into the mix. Yeah, I would just call myself an entrepreneur, like a businesswoman, really. But yeah, DJ.
MICK: Nice. Now, have you noticed over the last… I mean, I’ve been DJing significantly longer than you, but just because I’m old, but I’ve noticed especially over the last 10 years. When I used to tell people on the plane that I was a DJ, people would look at you with a little confusion and disdain.
Bell: Yeah.
MICK: But then in the last five years when you tell somebody that you’re a DJ-
Bell: It’s like amazing, right?
MICK: Sometimes I don’t want to tell people because they don’t shut the fuck up. They just want to talk and talk and talk, and I’m just like, “Yo, I gotta sleep, bro. It’s a red eye.” How have you noticed the perception of this career has changed over the last 10 years?
Bell: Yeah. It’s definitely changed. When I first got into it, there wasn’t many girls doing it, too, so that was kind of like, “Oh, you’re a female DJ.” So, that was always like a topic. And now there’s loads. There’s so many female DJs. It’s amazing. It’s not unusual to be a female DJ anymore. And yeah, just the creative space has definitely expanded now, so you can kind of say, “Oh, I’m a designer.” Just opposed to the normal jobs that we’re used to hearing. So, yeah, someone’s really amazed that I DJ.
MICK: As a DJ who really understands fashion, as well, obviously you’re looking at clothes and seeing them from a creative perspective, as well as probably doing the music for a lot of these brands and clients. How do you reconcile when a stylist or a brand really wants you to wear some shit that looks actually like shit? You know, because you’re the one that’s getting photographed in it.
Bell: Yeah. I think because of how I am, as well, like I kind of make things work, but also, I DJ for a lot of stuff that I enjoy and I like, so I’m quite selective on who I work with. So, I’ve been fortunate that all the brands I worked with were all my style, and I’ve wanted to work with, down to Louis Vuitton, Fendi, Miu Miu, DJing at fashion parties, so it’s all been kind of hand in hand. Yeah, it’s been like a plus, actually, because I get to dress in my favorite brands while I DJ.
MICK: If you could go back and work with any fashion brand in the history of fashion or of any era, which one would it be?
Bell: I would say if I was to go back, I would say Chanel. I haven’t done Chanel yet, so that’s a dream to DJ for Chanel.
MICK: Nice. When you were growing up, right? So, I had Estelle on the show a couple of shows ago, who’s just been an awesome friend for a long time, and she was telling me when she grew up in London, all the random things she did in her youth kind of turned her into exactly who she is now, which was like she was always doing music, but then she had a job in a record store, but then she also was like a journalist who was covering music artists, so she had all these things going on literally at the exact same time. Then you wake up 10 years later, everything you did, and you’re kind of baked into one thing that exactly shaped who you were as an adult.
What was that for you?
Bell: It was when I… I actually studied, I was studying law, so I was on the other side. I actually wanted to be a criminologist.
MICK: Wow.
Bell: Then I got to uni and I, because I was quite quiet in school, and shy, so I wasn’t really going to parties, and I got to university and it’s like going to parties, and watching the DJs, and then… Yeah, then I was like, “I kind of want to work in the entertainment industry.” So, I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do, and then I start interning at Atlantic Records in the U.K., and that kind of just gave me insight of the music scene, and then from going out, you mentioned kind of the parties in London, and I grew up in East London, which is the kind of hipster, cool parties, where everything was happening.
And me and my friends just used to start our own nights. But we didn’t do it because… for an audience. We just did it for ourselves, because we just wanted to party together, and we just all used to DJ. We couldn’t DJ. And back then it was so much easier. We literally just got our laptops, we’d make playlists, and it was just kind of fun. It was really just all fun and then it turned into what I am today. So, yeah, and also we used to… down to fashion, as well. We used to sell clothes on Brick Lane every Saturday when we were younger. We was really the fashion kids.
MICK: What would you say your first big break was in your career and as a part B to that question, when it was happening, did you realize that it was actually happening?
Bell: It was when someone asked me to DJ abroad, and my first kind of gig was in Dubai, and then I was like, “Wow, I’m actually flying to go DJ.” So, I think that’s when I started to take it seriously, when I started getting on planes, and I was treated like… You know, getting picked up in the airports, staying in a hotel, and I was like, “Yeah, I want this life.”
MICK: That’s amazing, so your first flyaway gig was in Dubai.
Bell: Yeah. I was DJing every Saturday for six hours for like a whole year, and I was just doing it because, you know, it was just somewhere fun to learn to DJ, and yeah, and this guy just literally came in and was like, “Do you want to go to Dubai?” And I was like, “Okay.”
MICK: That’s amazing. Where did you play in Dubai?
Bell: A lot of their clubs are in hotels, so I stayed in the Hilton, and I was DJing. It was a really… It wasn’t a glamorous gig. It was like in a bar, but I was living in the Hilton for like three weeks. Yeah, which was really amazing.
MICK: Yeah. It’s interesting, because I love that you said that, and I love the honesty and the… Because I think a lot of times people look at careers of people in our world and they think everything is glamorous all the time, because that’s kind of what we show on social, but I remember the first big gigs I got that were flyaway gigs, that… I mean, they were awesome things. They were like All Star Weekend, and like Superbowl, and all these things, but the gigs actually weren’t good. But when I came home and told people that I got to do them, you know, people… It was just such an inspiring thing, because it made me realize A, I could do more. It made other people realize, “Wow, this guy is leaving the city. Maybe I can do it.” And it also kind of made me realize that I have… Like how you said you have a law background. I have a marketing background. I’m like, “You know, I could still take the fact that I went to Dubai, or Tokyo, or whatever, and even if the party wasn’t good, I could still leverage everything.” It’s just finding ways to leverage opportunity into more opportunity.
Bell: Exactly.
MICK: And it sounds like that’s what you did.
Bell: Yeah. Exactly. That kind of just opened my eyes that I could travel to DJ, you know? And I didn’t think of it before. Again, like the question you said about being a DJ wasn’t so normal back then, so I didn’t really take it seriously, as I was still trying to figure out, “Okay, I need to do something with my law degree or get a real job.” And I was able to… It just made me turn it into a career, that whole… that gig.
MICK: What’s been the weirdest thing that’s ever happened to you while you’re DJing?
Bell: You know, there are different ways to DJ, so I used to DJ with my laptop, and I remember I was DJing, and it was so hot in the club, and my laptop just like went out. Finished.
MICK: Wow.
Bell: So, that actually scarred me, so then I learned on USBs, because I was like so scared to take my laptop up. But yeah, that’s the weirdest thing that’s happened.
MICK: So, wait. So, you DJed on USBs from then on?
Bell: Yeah. The scene I was in was a very underground, sweatboxes-
MICK: Right.
Bell: It wasn’t a super club or anything. It was like very, like everyone dancing on everyone, so it was just like crazy in those clubs, so it would become like a sweatbox. And yeah, my laptop would just like cut out.
MICK: Yeah. I’ve absolutely had that happen more than once, and it’s never good, but what I think we should tell the audience is like people don’t realize the level of personalization and craft of what it is that we do, and that they probably think, “Well, if there’s another DJ, you could just use their laptop, right? Because isn’t everything on Spotify,” is the comment I always get from people. And people don’t seem to understand that this is like… This would be like a doctor walking into an operating room that has used the same scalpel for 20 years and then all the sudden somebody just gives them some… like a Swiss Army knife.
Bell: Yeah. Definitely.
MICK: You moved from London to Los Angeles in the middle of a pandemic.
Bell: I did.
MICK: How did you pull that off?
Bell: It was kind of crazy, but I just… Do you know what it was? It was from traveling for so long, I didn’t realize… I didn’t actually have a place. I didn’t really live in London. I didn’t live in L.A. I didn’t live anywhere, really. I was just on a plane. So, then when I was in London, I was like, “This is not where I need to be.” And then I just packed up my whole house and then just moved. I did have to quarantine somewhere for like a couple… the 14 days, and I was safe, and then yeah, and I just came here.
I can’t really explain it. God was with me.
MICK: How has L.A. been for you during this downtime? How have you found ways to reinvent yourself or embellish on some of the other things you were working on while live music is taking a hit?
Bell: I feel like it’s been a great move. What I do find in L.A. is like people have a lot of studios and are more home based, or like just a lot more creative here. So, I was kind of able to still meet people, and artists that are like record… Everyone’s album mode right now, and recording. I feel like it’s been good just to be in that environment.
MICK: You know, you said studio. Let’s put your A&R hat on for a second. If you could put together a track with any producer you love, but of course you could be co-producing the track, and any three artists you love, of any genre, what’s the song you’re putting together?
Bell: I would definitely have to choose my favorite… Well, I have two favorite producers. Timbaland.
MICK: Okay.
Bell: I’m a bit old school, so I love R&B, ‘90s music, 2000s R&B, so definitely Timbaland with… I would say I would have to have Missy Elliot on there. Definitely Missy Elliot. Maybe, very random, Migos.
MICK: I could see that.
Bell: Yeah. And-
MICK: We’ll count them as one person for the sake of math.
Bell: Yeah. Yes. One more artist.
MICK: But throw me a monkey wrench. Throw me the, “Why the fuck is this person on the song,” person.
Bell: Okay. Calvin Harris just popped in my head because I just really love Calvin Harris’s style, and the way he DJs, and his brand, and everything.
MICK: I mean, he could sing the hook.
Bell: Yeah. Exactly. Yes. Let’s get him to sing the hook.
MICK: Okay, so like if nothing else, you need to create that mashup or something, so we could all play it.
Bell: Yeah.
MICK: Do you have any DJs that inspires you? Or are there any people that are creatives of anything that you really look to for inspiration in what you do?
Bell: DJ wise, you did mention a DJ, D-Nice. He’s just amazing. He’s been around for a while, as well, and he’s very old school. I’ve been watching his lives. He did a great job keeping everyone-
MICK: Killed it.
Bell: High spirits. Yeah. So, literally like… I just love the way he’s like… He’s stayed current for all this time, and like rebranded himself. I mean, I look up to a lot of producers, because I feel like producers is what we listen to. I listen to a lot of the production on music. So, yeah, I grew up on a lot of Pharrell, Timbaland…
MICK: What was the first piece of music you remember buying with your own money?
Bell: Well, I still do. I collect CDs, so I would see… I never bought vinyl. I was a bit young for that. But I had Spice Girls CD, Sisqó… Really random. Brittany Spears. I was really into pop. British pop.
MICK: Were you the person that would read all the liner notes on the art?
Bell: Yeah. I collect. That’s why I buy CDs, because I love the sleeves. And when you open them, there’s even like a poster, or there’s the lyrics. I love… I used to collect lyrics. We had this magazine in Britain called Smash Hits, and it used to have lyric cards, so yeah…
MICK: Wow.
Bell: And so, I love getting CDs. Even now, I still buy CDs, because it has the lyrics, and the cool… Also, there’s also the stories inside. Sometimes there’s hidden stories.
MICK: So, before we get out of here, what I’d love to know, because I think so many people from your social following, and then obviously all the music stuff, I think a lot of people really look up to you and look up to your creativity and all the different things that you’re doing. What are three pieces of advice you would give to the young creative that looks to you, like how you looked to your idols when you were growing up?
Bell: I would say don’t drink too much at the parties.
MICK: That’s gonna be the takeaway quote for the… That’s a good one.
Bell: Don’t drink too much. No, just literally just… When I first started DJing, I didn’t get… People didn’t actually take me seriously, and yeah, and I just kept going, and then I couldn’t get onto the lineup, so I did my own night. I just didn’t let anything stop me from doing what I was doing. And there’s always ways you can boost your brand.
MICK: Don’t take no for an answer is a great one. What are two more?
Bell: I would say to try and expand, as well, like also I don’t wait to be booked in other places. I took myself to New York. I spent a month there. I met the promoters. Went to France, met the promoters there. I just… I invested in myself by taking myself to these places. And that’s quite important if you want to expand your brand, is just like traveling, getting outside of your comfort zone. That was a really big one and helped me to become international and to be… I can go to any city, like especially coming from London and being known in the U.S., is like such a plus. Just because I was bringing myself here.
And the last one-
MICK: Amazing, life-changing piece of advice for the young version of you that’s listening right now?
Bell: I would say the big one is just not taking no for an answer, really. Just doing it. And I’m so happy that I did it.
MICK: Cool. Well, that is gonna pretty much wrap up all my random, silly questions for you here on The MICK Show. Is there anything else you'd like to say before before we get out of here?
Bell: No, just thank you for having me.
MICK: Yeah. It’s always good to talk shop about some fun stuff when we can.
Bell: Yes.
MICK: It’s good. Because I think when you talk about this stuff, especially when you can’t do it as much, it make… You realize how much you actually love what you do when it’s taken away.
Bell: Exactly.
MICK: So, talking about it for me right now has been a little therapeutic until I can get back out there and do it again.
Bell: Yes. Yes. I can’t wait.
MICK: Awesome. Well, thank you so much for finding the time. We will of course link to all your information in the show notes and I actually really have enjoyed that 2000s mix you did for Highsnobiety, so people should definitely go check that out, too. That’s such a fun… That was such a fun party time in the clubs.
Bell: Yes. Check it out.
MICK: Yeah. I love that music is back to like that 100 bpm, like I wish every new song sounded like a City Girl song. It’d be so fun to play.
Bell: Yeah. Exactly.
MICK: That was it for another episode of The MICK Show. Thank you so much for tuning in. Please rate and subscribe to The MICK Show wherever you like to listen and make sure to follow on IG @MICK and Twitter @iamMICK.
The MICK Show is presented in partnership with Maxim. The show is produced by Lantigua Williams & Co. Jen Chien is our editor. Cedric Wilson is our producer and mixed this episode. Manuela Bedoya is our social media editor.