‘I love Manchester, it’s got such a rich musical history’

When we went to sit down with Monki (real name Lucy Monkman), at Parklife festival we couldn’t get over how chatty and easy to talk to the young DJ was! The 25 year old from London, is no stranger to interviews though, being a Radio 1 presenter herself with her own show, she was more than happy to talk with VIVA during the first day of the festival. Here we chat to her about her biggest influences, what tracks she is most into at the minute and why Manchester is one of her favourite places to visit…

Hi Monki! How did your set go?

 I thought the tent was outside and I saw how muddy it was but it was actually inside so it was alright. Everyone is like super young this year, I was on the train which was full of people going to the festival, I had my cap on and looked at people and felt so old!

Is this your first thing this summer?

No, it’s not my first thing this summer, it is my first muddy festival! We had Annie Mac’s festival in Malta, which was the first of the year in May and then We Are Festival and a couple of others… It’s festivals now until September, it’s between them and Ibiza, I will be going back and forth. I’ll be doing the usual festivals like Creamfields and Bestival.

Have you done Ibiza before?

Yeah, last year I went seven weeks in a row but I couldn’t stay because I was coming back for other gigs so I was flying out each week and coming back! Last year I did Sankeys, Ushuaia and Ibiza Rocks. This year I will be doing Eden, will be back with Radio 1 again, Ibiza Rocks and Amnesia.

Will you be checking out the new club Hii?

I’m not playing there but I will 150% be going there! It’s more of an art thing rather than just music, they have really thought about how you feel when you go in.

Who are your biggest influences?

It changes over time. At the beginning it was Annie Mac and I used to listen to a lot of Pirate radio, which is where I ended up and then I ended up going to Radio 1. It changes over time. Armen Van Helden as well, I was supposed to be getting a one liner for my radio show but I said to my producer I want to meet him! He’s a bit cool isn’t he…

Are you doing any of your own interviewing whilst you’re here?

Yeah my producer is knocking about somewhere, I left him at the Kaluki stage! We just interviewed Richy Ahmed and Patrick Topping and then after this I’ve got to go and speak to the Martinez Brothers.

What would you say has been your favourite ever set?

There is a lot to think about, but in recent times I played Sonar, after EZ, with my other half Mele. We did this thing called NRG Flash, it was me and him, one mixer, four decks and an 808- which is basically a drum machine. We were playing live and did a seven-day tour around the UK and Europe. We didn’t think people would stay but they did and it was amazing!

Who is your favourite artist at the moment?

There’s a couple of artists coming up, there’s this kid called Billy Turner who makes real, honest, industrial techno and Skream put out an EP of his not long ago and is mentoring him a little bit. He only started making music a couple of years ago but he is sick and such a nice guy. He came on tour with me and he smashed it- I would look out for him!

Name three tracks that you are really into at the minute?

One of his called Alien. I played this track called ‘Circular Thing’ by Krankbrother, it came out a year ago so it’s probably old now but it still goes down a storm. Richy Ahmed has just done a remix on his label, can’t remember the name of the track but 432 is the name of the label.

Do you come to Manchester a lot?

Yeah, my other half is from Liverpool so I come here a lot. I love Manchester, it’s got such a rich musical history. When you come here you feel like you can play what you want and experiment. It’s one of the top three cities in the world that I like to play to.

In light of the current situation are you still feeling positive to be playing in Manchester?

 Yeah I watched the Ariana Grande One Love concert and props to her, she’s super young and it is probably every artist’s worst nightmare and props to all the guys that put it together and all the other artists that pulled together! It was a great gesture to what just happened and the people that passed away and the people that got injured so I thought it was great.

 

To listen to Monki’s BBC Radio 1 Parklife special click here.