Why EDM is a Boys Club

The truth is that the EDM DJ/Producer scene is a sausage fest, it’s facts. Over 32 million people attend music festivals every year in the US, 51% of the attendees are women, but over 94% of most DJ lineups at EDM festivals are men. EDC Las Vegas set the groundbreaking record of having 15 female DJs in their 250 person line-up in 2018 which averages out to 6%. There were only 11 out of 200 DJs at Ultra 2016 and only 4 female DJ’s were nominated for DJ Mag top 100 in 2017. Only 6 women have been nominated for Producer of the year award in the entire 59-year history of the Grammy’s and it’s been 15 years since the last nomination. There’s no denying that EDM is a male-dominated entity. 

But why is that? I’m Amina Zena, and I’m a female DJ/Producer currently living in New York City. I’ve been playing instruments my entire life when I was in the middle school band and high school choir there was always an even amount of boys and girls, but once I got into college I started working at a radio station and almost all the DJ’s and staff were men. In 2015, I started taking DJ lessons at Dubspot in NYC, and considering that NYC is made up of 52% women I was surprised to be only 1 of 3 females in a 20 person class. Once I got into the production courses the following year I was the only female. It wasn’t until 2017 that I met another female producer and we laughed about what its like to be the only female at a producing seminar and how awkward it can be to be. So we sat down and came up with a few conclusions as to why there aren’t as many female DJ/Producers. 

The imbalance of female DJ/Producers has a lot to do with how we’re taught to view men and women in society. It’s not that women aren’t as musically inclined, because in the singing world women often dominate the charts and ticket sales. I think specifically in the EDM community more men are producers because of the language we use surrounding the term producer. We call producers engineers, and engineering has always been seen as a more scientific job and one that’s better suited for men. DJ’s lead the pack, and men have been taught to be leaders while women are supposed to be passive followers. Producing is often spoken about through a technical, mathematical lens, even one of the major DAWs that’s used in the industry is called Logic, and according to society logic is for men while emotion is for women. But in reality, music is a special blend of math and emotions and is one of few activities that involves simultaneous use of both sides of the brain. Music is the universal language, it transcends age, race, gender, and its time for the EDM festival lineups to reflect that.  

So it’s not that women couldn’t produce if they wanted to, because so many women do. It’s just that it’s not been marketed to us in a way that seems relatable according to society’s idea of what a woman should want to do. Being a DJ/Producer is also a tough business, so on top of needing the necessary music skills, you need to be an entire brand. It’s only very recently in human existence that women have had as many rights and economic opportunities as men, and based on everything going on with the #metoo and the #timesupnow now movement, it can be intimidating for women to pursue a career in entertainment. 

So what we need to do in order to fix this imbalance is to join together and support the female DJ/Producers who have sacrificed so much to keep the party going and pave the way for the future generations. My goal is to create the first all-women stage at an EDM Festival for this upcoming 2019 season, with at least 20 female DJ/producer acts and I challenge EDC Las Vegas to top their record and be the first to support women in this way. If you’re a female DJ/Producer who’s ready to work together to create a positive change I’ve started a Facebook group called “The Female Dj Lineup” where we can stay up to date. Let’s keep the PLUR alive in the EDM scene and put more female DJs on that stage than ever before this upcoming Festival Season!

Written by,

 Amina Zena

DJ/Producer

“Amina Zena is a real party rocker!” - Agent Orange

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The Female DJ Lineup

A Friday Night in Manhattan.

I'm starting this post on Friday March 28th at 11:30pm. I'm writing this post in my ridiculously comfortable memory foam bed. And ya know what? I had a great day so I thought I would share it, because sharing is good and I haven't made a blog post in forevs. I'm half white, I can get away with saying the word forevs.

Considering this post is entitled A Friday Night in Manhattan I'll go ahead and jump to 5pm today. Although my morning was fantastic (I trained a few clients and taught a Zumba class and aSculpting class) I'm only going to give you details of my evening.

5pm I get on the Subway and head to the Lower East Side.

5:48pm I get to Essex Street to teach Zumba to kids at an Elementary School. I work with a non profit organization that promotes wellness in the schools from time to time so that's what I did. It was so much fun, I mean how can you not love kids? Kids are so excited and appreciative of the little things in life,they're like a breath of fresh air, well at least from time to time. I can't imagine having kids right now, I'm only 24, I got a few solid years left ....

7pm Today was the first day in NYC that the weather was above 50 degrees so I decided to go for a walk in the East Village after Zumba. I came across the comedy spot that I've been wanting to check out for months so I stayed and watched some amateur stand up, it was free and hilarious, and I seriously commend anyone who has ever gotten on stage and attempted comedy. After taking improv classes I truly believe that comedy is an art form and being funny isn't easy, it takes a lot of balls.

8pmish I continue my walk around the village, not looking to do anything in particular but I definitely didn't want to go home. I stop into a deli and grab some sort of Vegan cleansing juice, and on my way out I ran into a childhood friend. Considering that I grew up in West Virginia this is super random and awesome. We literally we went to school from elementary all the way through high school, she was one of the cool kids, we ran cross country together during senior year. We caught up for a few minutes, then her friend asked me where I lived so I told her that I lived in Harlem.

And I always get the same sort of "ohhh" response. It's terrible that I feel that I need to explain to people why I live in Harlem, but my apartment is really big and nice and hella cheap and it's a one bedroom. It may not be the nicest neighborhood in town, or the safest, or the cleanest but Harlem has swag, and I'm pretty sure I get some street cred points for living up here.

9pmish After running into my friend I saw a pretty blue sign that said "$10 basic palm readings." That's right, I went to a physic. And although I don't believe that anyone can predict the future I do believe that are some people with a special hyper intuition that can teach you about yourself and solve problems. She told me I'm impatient and sometimes too honest for my own good, she hit the nail on the head with that one. I thought the reading was a little on the short side, it was only about 3 minutes but it's all good. I've been to 2 readings in the past, I never got sucked into paying more than $10 but I've always found it to be money well spent.

9:20pmish I stumble into a restaurant that only serves chicken nuggets, like really good grassfed chicken nuggets. Do I need to elaborate further. I basically had sex in my mouth. After leaving nugget heaven I came across the Trader Joe's wine store. The only place in town that you can get a decent bottle of wine for $3 and I'm seldom in the area so every time I go I pick up 3-4 bottles invite my friends over for wine night. Why not. I picked up 3 bottles for $12, and my cashier guessed I was 23 years old, that's pretty much 2 years younger than I am. Score.

10:00pm ish I get home to Harlem and wash dishes and marinate some tuna steaks for tomorrow. I was actually supposed to go on a date tonight but I gave him a raincheck, he's hot but his personality is kinda stale so I'll probably never actually go out with him. Dating in NYC can be a living hell or a great way to save money on food depending on how you look at it.

12:04pm and now I'm here finishing up my post, in my bed,finally being in the moment of this whole writing process and all I can think about is how funny life is. How I have to be up at 8:15am tomorrow so I can teach classes and train people. How hopefully I can convince my friends to go out tomorrow because it's been forever and I just need a drink a little rachetness. About all the stuff I didn't share in this post and how much fun my life is when I actually put it into perspective. About those hazel eyes. And on that...goodnight.

XoXo

-AminaZena

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Strippers and Love

This blog is a fucking mess. I kinda like it that way tho. It's nice to think that I get paid a little bit to post as well. Didn't see that coming. But anywho. I've decided today that this blog is going to be dedicated to my ramblings, nothing more (because I don't have too much more to offer than that) and nothing less.

If I could go back in time I would probably not expose my identity, only because I hate letting people in. Even as write I cringe at the thought of sharing this post, so I figure it's probably good for me to share.

I know it's not a big deal to pour your heart on out on the internet for a bunch of strangers and a few old classmates you haven't spoken to in years to see. (hope you caught that sarcasm) But really.

I admire all the people who keep it real on the internet and expose their insecurities, flaws and embarrassing moments.  We all do. We're drawn to them. Because they seem to have something we don't have. Which is the ability to not give a fuck and make it worthwhile.

You see I was born with a special not giving a f*ck gene that has carried me throughout all the crazy and daring moments in my life, but somehow when I go to share things online I freeze up. But at the same time that's why I love to do it. It's a rush, the fear, avoidance and unexplainable obligation I feel to post is my drug. Well one of them. Totally kidding. Calm down, I don't do drugs.

You see, the internet puts people in their place. Everyone is going to be able to find out what you're up to - if you're doing well or not doing shit at all. I've done things just to be able to post a picture on Facebook  or Instagram or Twitter and get likes, but is that really so bad?

I think it's time that people got a little more real, a little more bold and less scared to share their stories and be open and honest with the world. I figured out a long time ago that it doesn't pay to hold things in, eventually you'll burst.

You gotta use your struggles, your stories of triumph and trial and error to make the world a better place. Otherwise you're just wasting space (and probably working a job you hate because you haven't explored your passions and found a way to provide value in a lucrative and fulfilling way).

Everyone claims to be real yet has these locked up profiles on private, with stiff uncreative pictures of themselves and their "friends" - how about you post what you really want to post instead of the bullshit politically correct stuff that everyone else is posting.

Stop being like everyone else. Stop trying to fit in and just do you. Whatever that may be. If you truly want to be a boring typical member of society with no real goals, no real drive or ambiton

I know I can be a harsh bitch. It's my gift and curse. But I'm gonna keep running with it, it's what I do. So that's all I got for now.

fun moments (un edited)

my favorite moments are the ones that you know must come to an end. dating the guy you know is no good for you. chugging your 5th beer for the night. staying up until 3am when you have to be up at 7 the next day. the moments that you swear are the reason you're alive yet really do nothing for your existence.

But these superficial moments, the bike rides through central park, the zip lining through the national park,scuba diving in Mexico, they mean something. Those are the moments that you are really living, that you are really awake and alive and experiencing all the joy this life has to offer.

I firmly believe that. We work hard to play hard. make money just to spend it. and if that's all there is to life then I've done a good job.

Sometimes I think back on all the moments I could've caught on film, the outfits that turned heads, the conversations that made my mind race. and I wish I could share them with you. but I can't, and that's what makes them all the more wonderful. knowing that the time you spent can never be duplicated or re experienced, that everything was panned out in perfect timing to create a particular mood or feeling that you manifested.

You see I believe that you can have whatever you want and if you don't know what you want you're still going to end up in the crazy little pictures you painted in your head.

our imaginations carry more weight in our actuality than we give credit for and that is a fact. I on the other hand must be up at 5am. It's 10:26pm on a Sunday night, and I just came from a Thai resturant and before that I was at brunch popping bottles with some cool promoters and party people, and before that one of my friends from college fed me pancakes, and before that I was cleaning my cute little harlem 1 bedroom.

I can't believe all that happened in a day, but I'm glad I did. I needed the alcohol, the sugar and extra calories. The chance to wear exactly what I wanted and be praised for it instead of judged. The chance to put on a full face of makeup and run around Manhattan looking for a good time. These are the moments I live for, and if that's all I got, at least I can say I had fun.

Well that's all I Got for now. I'm off to bed,

xoxo, drunkly yours

AminaZena

No Body Is Perfect

One thing I've learned from working as a personal trainer is that everyone has hang ups about their body.  I've found that even the most "perfect" looking people find something to pick at, and as I've experience my own changes I've come to realize that the more in shape you get the more critical you become.

 The first thing I do when I begin working with someone is sit down and ask them their goals, I take their weight and body fat and we talk about why they want to work with me in the first place.

"I want to lose weight, tone up and be healthy" is pretty much the initial response I get. Basic. No depth. People tell me that at first because they don't want to expose their insecurities, but I see right through it and dig deeper. I'll ask why, do they have an event, a wedding coming up? Sometimes that is the answer and that is pretty self explanatory- wanting to look your best as you walk down the aisle makes sense, but I don't only work with brides and grooms, I would be broke as a joke if that was the case.

I continue to ask questions, because that's my job and that's who I am. Anyone who I'm friends with in real life knows that I'm wide open, I keep it "real" so to speak, uncensored and I like a good conversation. I'm genuinely interested in people, I love to listen just as much as I love to talk and that's what makes me great at what I do. Personal training is, well, personal so in order for me to train my clients in the best way possible I have to know them, who they are, what makes them tick. 

After 5-10 minutes minutes of asking the same question in about 10 different ways the wall starts to fall down a little bit, and they start grabbing their belly fat and telling me about their flabby arms and wanting to get back in shape because they just broke up, or they were always picked last in gym class, or they want to build muscle to impress their cute coworker, or they're depressed and need something to help them get out of a slump, or they need to be on point for an upcoming show.

And although I know that anyone and everyone- celebrities and professional athletes included- can improve their physical appearance and athletic capabilities I sometimes ask myself why certain people have sought out my services. Believe me, I appreciate their business, but sometimes catch myself wondering how such an athletic and good looking person comes to me with such insecurities.

I work with some women who have great bodies, dime pieces, could be models, curves in all the right place, no cellulite, flat stomach, already toned, who look in the mirror and say that their shoulders are too broad or that their legs are too skinny or their boobs are too big. I work with guys who have poppin 6 packs and say that they feel weak and undefined. And sometimes I  even catch myself wishing, if only my thighs were a little tighter, my arms a little more sculpted, my abs a little flatter. 

It's easy to indulge in feeling bad about yourself, but it won't get you anywhere. The worse you feel about yourself the worse you treat yourself. You'll end up eating a pint of Ben and Jerry's 3 nights a week and it just ends up being a vicious cycle that never ends. Nobody is perfect and even someone who appears to be perfect sees flaws. We all feel down from time to time, but that shouldn't be the way you feel all the time. 

When it comes to fitness, you can't just focus on the looks, you'll go crazy if you haven't already. Your goal should be to achieve, to do 5 more pushups this week, to improve your 5k race time by 1 minute, to get up to your 5th floor walk up without losing your breath and the improved looks will come. It's a package deal; get better at doing something in the gym and you'll look better as a result. Make fitness strictly about fitness and you'll end up looking better than you thought you ever could - I know this first hand.

This is my before and after, even though some people might think I was fat before I thought I looked good, and all of my workouts were based on fitness goals, and not aesthetic goals.  I ended up looking better without really tying because working out was and still is all about fitness for me. 

So in the meantime stop criticizing yourself so much and accept the fact that you are amazing just the way you are! You're not perfect and that's okay, and your recent crushes' ex girlfriend who's always posting swimsuit selfies on Instagram isn't perfect either. We're all imperfect but that's what makes us special, that's what gives us our uniqueness, our look, our "thing" that no one else has. So stop being being so hard on yourself and go hard in the gym instead. Eat clean, get your sleep, drink water, workout like a beast and trust that there is more than one person out there who thinks you have a bangin body and would love to grind up on ya in the club all night long!

That's all I got for now. Go check out my YouTube channel and Instagram page for more fitness stuff!

XoXo, 

 AminaZena

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Food Labels Lie

We live in a society where everything is all about labels- you have to have the newest Nikes, you need to rock the Louis Vuitton purse, the Apple computer. All these labels matter, they mean high quality, high status, and the same thing applies to your food.

Believe it or not, food companies lie on their packaging and the government doesn’t really care that they do. There are bunches of knock off foods running around and the FDA and the USDA really don’t regulate shit.  Hostess Bakery could plaster “Whole Wheat” all over their Twinkie packages and swear up and down that their Ho-Ho’s are “Organic”; doesn’t mean that they are and it doesn’t mean they’ll get in trouble for it either.

Just because you pick up a package that says “All Natural” doesn’t mean it is.  If you really want to know what you’re eating you either need to grow it your damn self or you need to read the ingredients list. It’s the only way to know if what you’re eating is safe and isn’t full of growth hormones and pig feces.

Bread is the best example of this.  Breads (and pastas) with labels and packaging  that says 100 percent whole wheat can in fact only be made with whole wheat flour; products that are 100 percent whole wheat are usually organic and can be found at health food stores. Anything that isn’t 100 percent whole wheat is made with white flour, stripped of nutritional value and full of sugars and carbs that give you cellulite.

So other not so healthy breads try to get away with looking healthy by putting things like “multi-grain” and “made with whole wheat” on the labels to seem like they’re just as healthy as their competitor – fucking posers.  Breakfast cereals like Trix say that they use more whole grain than any other ingredient- they do, they use whole grain corn which has basically no nutritional value at all.  

Wonder Bread and Wheat Thins do the same thing; claiming to be made with healthy grains when in reality they just food coloring to make their white flour look more like whole wheat- SMH.

The same goes for eggs- labels that say things like ‘cage-free’ and ‘free-range’ try to make it seem like the  eggs you’re eating come from cute little chickens that pranced around on a sunny farm their whole life. The only qualification for eggs to meet that labeling guideline is that the hens were not raised in a battery cage. The hen could still be full of steroids and grew up in a warehouse, was beaten on a regular basis and literally never saw the light of day - so freakin’ messed up.  The best way to check your egg quality is to buy them from a local organic farmer or to look for the “Animal Welfare Approved” label.

Like stated earlier the only way to really know what you’re eating is to grow it your damn self, but the second best way is to read the ingredients list. A good rule of thumb is- if you can’t pronounce it don’t eat it. Another good rule of thumb is to use your common sense-duh.

If you’re eating something that’s bright neon green, covered in sprinkles or can be fully cooked in the microwave in under 10 seconds and says “All Natural” on the package it’s pretty obvious that it’s not. Don’t be an idiot.

Another rule of thumb; the less ingredients the better. One time I was craving mashed potatoes but I didn’t have time to cut and peel them so I opted for the instant kind. I had a package of instant potatoes from Idahoan, I took one look at the ingredients list and stopped counting after 25. I then went to Whole Foods, bought a box of potato flakes and the only ingredient was dehydrated potatoes. That’s 1 ingredient compared to over 25, and the Whole Foods brand is cheaper!

Eating right isn’t this black and white thing, it’s a big gray mess, but the quality of your food matters just as much at the calories you eat, what you’re eating, when you’re eating and how much you’re eating.

I always encourage people to shop at places like Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s because they’re companies dedicated to providing you with quality, ethical foods and they don’t sell anything that isn’t made with top notch ingredients. Even though I read the labels to everything I buy it’s nice to go to store and not have to worry about picking up something that might be infected with E coli or get recalled for having traces of lead and arsenic in it - and for the last damn time, eating healthy is not more expensive.

That's all I got for now.

XoXo, 

 AminaZena

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How To Be Confident

I have a medium sized list of tangible achievements. Landing big roles in high school plays, beating my own personal records in cross country races, I've earned scholarships, graduated from college, became a certified personal trainer, moving to NYC.  Blah, blah blah the list goes on.

But it's not these "accomplishments" that made me confident. I was confident therefore I achieved.

And I started to think about all the times I got what I wanted, I think about how I was so self assured. I'm not just talking about the big stuff like getting a job or an apartment. I think about the little things like how I was able to get a cab driver to take me somewhere for 10 dollars cheaper than he should've charged me, or how I was able to get in a club where I didn't know anyone at the door before all the people waiting in line, or how I can get pretty much any guy I want to wine and dine me and chase me for months on end without giving him so much as hug goodnight.

(My number 1 confidence jam)

And then I think about all of the times I failed and how it was pretty much a self fulfilling prophecy. All the times I've been rejected from jobs, or on my YouTube channel, or failed a test. Every single time I've been rejected or let down it's because I didn't think I was good enough, and that's definitely not the case the majority of the time, but it was in those moments of self doubt when I failed. You see where I'm going with this?

True confidence cannot be faked, that's called cockiness. True confidence comes from believing in yourself so much that other people will believe in you too. So how does one become confident? Why should you believe in yourself?

The real question is, why shouldn't you?

The most important step to be confident is to think positively. Stop saying I can't, instead say I will. Try it before you give up on it. So many times we tell ourselves we can't do something or that we shouldn't do something because we're afraid to fail, when in reality the only way you fail is by not trying. Write down a list of all the things you like about yourself and keep it somewhere where you can see it everyday. Just for a day let go for the fear and self doubt you've been clinging onto for so long and realize you're not so bad after all.

Decide that you are worthy of a great and wonderfully fulfilled life - not that you necessarily deserve it, but that you are worthy. Quite frankly you don't deserve anything you didn't earn. Just know that you as a person are worth great things and you can have whatever you work for. You were put on this planet for a reason, you have a purpose to serve.

But don't just talk about it, BE ABOUT IT. When you are engaged, and passionate and doing what you love something inside of you shifts. You feel alive, you feel assured, you feel as if you can do anything and no one can stop you. That's your confidence building up.

It's only when you start taking action and working on becoming a better person (or at least good at a certain task or trade) that you will be in a position to provide value to the world. When you bring value to the world is when you can start demanding certain privileges and treatment. Value doesn't always mean something you can make money from. Being a good listener, an upbeat person, a reliable friend; all these things add value to your life and the value you will be able to bring to others. You get what you give.

Looking good most certainly helps with confidence, and of course as a personal trainer I'm going to tell you to get in shape, walk tall and take care of yourself. Self grooming and having your own personal style matter, your outside is a direct reflection of what's inside, one does not outweigh the other. Think about the most confident people you know, they are probably some of the best looking people you know too. Healthy body = healthy mind = looking good = feeling good= doing good = confidence.

Make promises to yourself and keep them. If you make a promise to someone else keep it. Set standards, set the bar high and dedicate yourself to being the best version of you.

Being confident is not just state of mind, it's not just for celebrities and people who are in the limelight, being confident is a way of life. Waking up each day and being ready to go, ready to overcome obstacles and knowing that you are that bitch ( at least that's what I tell myself). Know your worth and know that you are awesome, be proud of how far you've come and excited to see how far you can go, don't be afraid to brag on yourself,stay humble and open to growth. Live and breathe that ish!

(Dancing like everyone is watching, that's real confidence lol )

And there you have it, my ideas on how to be confident in a nutshell. Hope you enjoyed =)

That's all I got for now.

XoXo, 

 AminaZena

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