In the Gayborhood, the album Beneath the High Sea remains on repeat! Denver bass producer Yoko Music caught up with OFM and shared how she turned her dreams into reality. We took a deep dive into the origins of her DJ career, the emotional background behind her debut album, her words of wisdom for LGBTQ musicians just starting out and how she strives to support other marginalized artists within the industry.
When did you start producing music? Tell me a little about your journey.
I started producing, a little over five years ago now. And I was DJing before that, so that’s what really got me into it. Back at CU we had this club there called Club 156, and It’s where a bunch of pretty prominent people now have started their passions. It’s really fun to look back on.
I realized, “Oh, I just want to be able to play my own stuff.” Like that’s the ultimate goal, right? So I started producing, I was still in college at the time, and I did not really have the time to go take lessons. I just YouTube tutorials my way until I figured it out and had some pretty cool teachers along the way as well, to help me get to where I’m at.
Who or what do you feel helped influence you musically along the way?
There are a few points of inspiration for sure. The main reason I dropped everything when it came to DJing and learning how to produce was, somebody had sent me Rezz’s Ultra set back in 2016 or 2017. I was sitting there like, “Are you kidding me? She’s playing mostly her stuff. I could totally do that.” And I just like clicked in my mind, “Oh, there’s a female who’s doing it, and you can easily see yourself in that spot.” That was the main catalyst to everything.
Along the way, I had a few friends help me out. One in particular, his DJ name is DJ Hansel. He was a huge teacher for me. I was just hitting him up all the time just to be like, “Yo, how did you make that sound?” I was really focused and didn’t really practice song structure building. I just focused on how to make weird sounds, and then it got to a point where I would, like, throw everything together into song.
My main inspiration for the past three years is Skinny Limbs. He’s like my best friend. He started producing way before I did. I think when I met him in college I had only been producing for like a year and a half or something like that. He wasn’t really making bass music, so we just kind of put our brains together and started learning deep bass music together. I cannot thank a human more for being by my side.
How would you describe your sound or genre?
I never stick to one. I do make a lot of certain styles, but anytime I log in, it’s just kind of like how I’m feeling during the day. I explain it as definitely bass-heavy. I like to focus on a vintage science fiction vibe. When it comes to writing music. Each song definitely has a story behind it. So I try to stick to certain themes, sort of vintage scape; I use a lot of classical instrumentations like muted trumpets, violins, cellos, saxophones. So that’s what I’m trying to focus on just heavy, heavy, deep, you know, chest thumping bass.
You’ve been busy lately. How was the Deep Dark and Dangerous Takeover B2B Album release party?
That was the busiest, most chaotic two weeks of my year for sure. Just right before the DDD takeover, I was actually playing the wormhole, 10-year anniversary in San Francisco. I opened for Truth that night as well. Truly those crowds, the Deep Dark Dangerous crew, I eat them up; they eat me up. It’s so fun. I love having that deep 140 (BPM) crowd in front of me. They’re just always ready to always rock. I can’t thank Truth enough for putting me on that lineup because that was one of the most crazy nights of my life. I had never been to Meow Wolf before; everything was insane to me and my friends. We were just running around with tears in our eyes laughing our asses off, it was awesome. I truly will cherish that night for so long and then be able to hop right into my own release party. It was just a great two weeks. I was smiling from ear to ear the whole time. That was truly awesome.
How accomplished do you feel self-releasing your debut album, Beneath The High Sea?
I was just talking to my girlfriend the other day about this. There’s always this imposter syndrome that hits, and I’ve always struggled with. But I released my album, and there was just this full-circle moment I experienced. “This is a goal people strive for. Musicians strive for their whole lives to put a full project together, and especially by themselves. It was a lot to like look in the mirror and realize, like, “Hey, you actually did that. Take a second to breathe and congratulate yourself.” So it was very heartwarming, very validating for myself, I finally was able to accept the fact that I’m where I have strived to be for a very long time.
What were some of your inspirations behind the Beneath album?
Long story short, my deepest fear is the ocean. I grew up on the ocean all the time, though so I’m still infatuated by it. My best friend now, about three and a half years ago, passed away from terminal brain cancer. His favorite place was the water. He liked to sail and to scuba dive. He was just always telling me all these crazy stories of him being out on the ocean, deep in the ocean, this and that and the other.
He was my number-one project supporter, always in the front row of every show, no matter what, you know, getting crowd riled. So this mainly was my dedication to him and his favorite journeys. It was definitely an emotional project. That’s why there are a few songs that are pretty emotional. You know, there’s some that are just heavy 140 hitters, but overall I spent a lot of time just trying to capture the emotions behind that in my relationship with him.
What song off the album do you feel resonates with you the most, and why?
There’s two. I would say the one that resonated with me the most while I was making it was definitely “Dead Weight.” It’s all my own vocals. It’s just this sort of spoken word, three-minute-long poem. It spoke to me at the time because I was just really, really sad when I wrote it. I had broken up with my ex, and I was just like, “Alright, it’s time for me to make an album.” That was my main focus for about nine months.
At the deepest point of that is when I wrote all the lyrics to it and was recording it myself. By the time I had gotten the whole album together and I was able to listen to it all the way through, it was like, I don’t know who that is anymore. I had moved past that hurt, and it was such a very heartwarming thing for me to see my growth.
Now the main song that I resonate with is “Shiho’s Seahorse,” which is like my favorite one for sure, just because it’s so different. The bass sound is so much more high and pretty. It’s almost like a chorus. It’s so free and creates its own atmosphere.
What has been the most rewarding moment thus far in your career?
My release party. I was able to throw it through Matt’s collective. Matt started Hemi.Wav, and his artist name is Skinny Limbs. Me and our best friends have always been a part of it. So when I had the idea of creating this release party for the album, I was like, “Well, if I get to curate this lineup and the entire night, it’s going to be with my best friends.”
I was able to highlight their projects as well as mine. Every single person on that lineup deserved to headline; we’re all playing 80% to 90%, if not 100%, original sets. So to be able to let them have the stage as well was the most tearjerking thing for me to see. All I want to do in this lifetime is to do music with the people that inspire me and lift me up and are reciprocal in that sense.
Why do you believe it’s important to highlight marginalized artists like yourself?
When it comes to specific marginalized artists like people of color or queer artists, we’re underrepresented. The scene has been conquered by this white, male presence. You can’t negate that; that’s just how it is, no matter if it’s the DJ on stage or the person running the show, you know, behind the stage, or the promoters, or people at the venue. It’s time for this new shift in new energy. I will strive to the end of my days to be able to highlight those fellow artists that are coming up with me that are just frustrated with the continual negative energy that just cycles and cycles and cycles. I think that it’s very important to be able to keep that fire lit.
What do you envision for your future; what are some professional goals you’d like to achieve?
I would love to keep putting my friends on; I think that’s a huge thing. And down the road, I definitely do see myself owning some sort of collective or label or just community that can reciprocate the same energy that this project really speaks about.
I really do love highlighting other other female artists, nonbinary folk, and anybody truly who’s part of that marginalized community in any way, shape, or form. I think the best way to be able to give them pedestals is to start my own, and I hope to one day, like maybe in five years, to have some strong base for that. Heavy Wave is definitely the home base right now, but it’s not my baby, you know; I have to create my own and I think that’s really the goal.
Do you have any advice or words of encouragement for other LGBTQ artists in the EDM Industry?
I would definitely say especially people that are just starting that feel they don’t have any real fan base, being able to drill in your head, just keep pushing no matter what words are being thrown from left to right and your ears. Just keep pushing; keep your head focused on your projects. The most important thing is to take time to actually sit down and set goals first because being able to focus on those types of aspirations is what drives you at the end of the day.
There will be a point in time where you start to be able to connect with other like-minded people who are literally on the same level of you, who have experienced some of the same hate and/or love that you have received. And once you get to that point and you find these collaborators, these friends, these wholesome communities of producers, other artists waiting for you. You just set those goals push, push, keep driving, and don’t let any words stop you because it’s sitting there. I promise. It’s waiting for you.
Keep up with Yoko Music on IG, FB, and SoundCloud at @itsyokomusic, and catch her headlining for Subciety Presents in Austin Texas at the SXSW Music Festival the week of March 15.
Photos by Vanwinkle Photo and Lashan Tennakoon
