10 Septeber, 2021
Local Mix 026 —
AJ Fata (ajhoneysuckle)
R&B
Electronica
Downtempo
Hip hop
Soul
We are hyped to introduce our latest Local Mix by our very own cool-girl AJ ~ AJ has put together a v tasty mix of sonics by artists in Aotearoa. We've been excited to have AJ get on our mix series for a hot minute now, so naturally, we took the opportunity to get her on the job during lockdown! Prepare yourself for some quality vibes, you'll want to get your party pants on, this one's a banger!
Image by @synthiabahati
I am...
My sound selector alias is ajhoneysuckle — I've also done some collaborative poetry under aije — I am from the Waikato and the beautiful islands of Samoa, I spent my childhood in the vibrancy of South Auckland, travelled a bit and now we here in Ōtautahi
How I would describe my music and some of my influences...
I'm not even going to lie I grew up in the church so gospel really influenced me but since then the palette has definitely developed, although that relationship of music and a feeling has always stuck (it's kind of lols comparing a *then me* church setting and a *now me* club scene, but that sense of being uplifted with other people is still experienced in both) I just think music is magical in the way it connects and communicates a frequency. It's hard to nod to specific influences. Also because music is such an evolving moving living thing. The range really goes from r&b, soul, rap, hip-hop, lo-fi, downtempo, spoken word, to dance/electronic, breakbeats, jungle, footwork, ukgarage, 2-step and ukfunky. Whether it be mixing or producing I will always be drawn to, amplify and experiment with sounds of my bloodline — taonga puoro, pate drums, pūtarāra, ukelele and beautiful harmonies.
My idea behind the mix...
This particular mix is a collection of sonics by artists in Aotearoa. I really wanted to stay in touch with the great talent we have locally with this one. There's obviously soooo much more, but this just a tasty treat of what I'm lovin at the moment.
A trend I'm really into at the moment...
Idk, what makes something trendy? It will be forever sexy to express who you are, where you're from and what that means to you. For me I enjoy the embrace of both my feminine and masculine energies.
My go to performance outfits...
This will always be something comfy and cute. oh! and a pouch strapped around me so I won't lose my things (like my usb).
How everyone can support your music...
By buying music from Aotearoa, digging into the genre you love, vibing with the community that comes with it and checking out my soundcloud for other tasty vibrations ::)
AJ's INF DEF selections: