In recent years, there’s been a surge of talented female drum and bass artists who’ve been taking the scene by storm.
While the role of DJ in the drum & bass scene has historically been heavily male dominated, this new wave of talented female jungle DJs are successfully building careers on the trail blazing foundations laid by the pioneering ladies in our scene such as DJ Rap, Dazee, Kemistry & Storm, DJ Flight, Wildchild, Empress & Robyn Chaos.
Read on as we introduce you to some of the top female drum and bass DJ’s that you need to watch in 2023…
Harriet Jaxxon
With a selection that spans all eras of D&B / jungle; Harriet Jaxxon is one of the most exciting, unique and diverse drum & bass DJs to emerge in the UK in recent years.
Honing her DJ skills as a touring DJ for Ministry Of Sound, by late 2017 Harriet had made enough noise to attract the attention of the scene’s biggest headliners, warming up for the likes of Andy C, Shy FX, Chase & Status, Sub Focus, Wilkinson and Dimension.
Her skills are now in high demand at festivals across the world. She hosts regular shows on Rinse & is one of the leading female dnb producers, making banging music on labels such as UKF & Souped Up!
Kara
There aren’t many young DJs in drum and bass who have been making as much noise as Kara has in recent years.
During COVID pandemic Kara took the internet by storm with her live streams and mixing clips, catapulting her onto D&B festival line ups as soon as events started happening again.
While still in her early twenties, Kara has become one of the most booked young artists in the scene, bringing her signature energy behind the decks to festivals including Hospitality on The Beach, Rampage Renegade and Westfest, and countries as far as New Zealand. But the Beaconsfield-based artist is only just getting started.
Building a reputation as a producer is the next chapter in Kara’s journey. With early releases to her name including a remix of DJ Phantasy & Doktor’s ‘Junglist’ (which has had well over a million streams on Spotify) and an ID-demanding bootleg of Biscits ‘Your Body’ the early signs are looking bright for this promising talent.
Mantra
Described as ‘Wonder Woman‘ by original Metalheadz DJ Storm, Mantra has made a name for herself with her eclectic sets that blend elements of drum and bass, jungle, and other bass-heavy genres.
Mantra’s deep and emotive sound in the mix comes from an intense passion for the music, with her sets pushing the boundaries of drum and bass while still paying homage to its foundation.
Far more than just a DJ and producer, Mantra’s work developing, curating, and promoting the Rupture brand, as a label and as jungle’s premier event, speak to how deeply drum and bass culture influences her life.
Mantra, and partner Double O’s hard work, along with regular appearances on Rinse FM, have seen Rupture move from a party into a seminal label, supported by the likes of Om Unit, Doc Scott, Special Request, Digital, and Spirit.
In 2018 she started the initiative EQ50 to mentor and support women within the heavily male dominated drum and bass genre.
Kyrist
Kyrist has been active since 2011 and has quickly gained a reputation for her tight mixing skills and ability to create a dynamic, high-energy set.
Whilst many people know Kyrist for her releases on Dispatch Recordings, Sofa Sound, Hospital Records, and Broken Audio, she considers herself to be a DJ first and a producer second. Her sound is characterized by dark, brooding basslines and intricate drum patterns that are guaranteed to get the crowd moving.
She is also the founder of the label Kynetic Sound, which rebranded in 2022 (formerly Kyrist Music) with the release of her own ‘Translation EP’.
Charlie Tee
Charlie Tee is currently pushing drum and bass globally via her BBC Radio 1 show. Charlie Tee’s rise as a broadcaster started when she became the host of the infamous weekly D&BTV shows for Drum & Bass Arena.
Following D&BTV her career path lead her to hosting her own peak time show on the Kiss FM UK radio networks for an impressive 8 years.
In 2022 she became the first female to host of the Radio 1 Drum & Bass Show full time, a show which was previously fronted by Fabio & Grooverider, Friction & Rene LaVice
SHERELLE
It’s been a fast rise to fame for SHERELLE who’s breakthrough was with her 2019 Boiler Room DJ set, which went viral and allowed her to take up music full-time..
In September 2019, she participated in the BBC Radio 1 residency series which mixed up drum & bass, jungle and other uptempo styles. In 2020 she was recognized by DJ Mag as the year’s best British DJ & also named as the 2020 BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix winner.
In July 2021, her debut EP, 160 Down the A406, was met with positive reviews, and was acclaimed by Resident Advisor as “one of the year’s most exciting production debuts.”
Late 2021 saw the release of her studio mix ‘fabric presents SHERELLE’, which was met with positive reviews, with particular praise for its high level of intensity and genre mixing.
Lens
Since her first show as a relative unknown at Brighton’s infamous Volks, Lens had climbed the rungs of the line-ups, being billed at the scene’s most prestigious shows such as Sun & Bass, Hospitality on the Beach, Fabric and Printworks, as well as recording mixes for Radio 1, Kiss FM & Red Bull.
2018 saw Lens link up with the Hospital Records crew and it wasn’t long before she became a resident DJ for the mighty imprint’s parties. By July 2019 Lens took the helm of Hospital Records iconic Rinse FM show and became the touring DJ for Degs as part of his ‘Degs Live Showcase’ around the UK and Europe.
More Women Representing Drum & Bass…
Of course there are many more incredibly talented female drum & bass DJs to watch out for; Mollie Collins is the voice of D&B on Kiss Fresh, Larnie Moles does her thing on Reprezent Radio, and of course Laurie Charlesworth hosts an excellent podcast for DnB Allstars.
We also can’t forget DJs such as Ama, Georgia Phoenix, Flava D, MEL, Anaïs, Natty Lou, Bad Habitz, Frankee D, Sweetpea, Koven, Lady V Dubz, Siren, Sabrina, Miss Represent, Mrs Magoo, Something Something, Charlotte Devany, T-Lex & the many more female DJs who are all killing it behind the turntables & on the airwaves, week in, week out!
This Summers D&B Festivals
Don’t miss out on grabbing tickets for the summers most exciting drum & bass festivals…
