A Suffolk DJ will be hoping to inspire the next generation of creative young women when she leads a series of workshops at a national Girlguiding celebration in London this weekend.
Sophie Tott, from Woodbridge, is set to appear at Alexandra Palace to help mark the centenary of Girlguiding’s Senior Section, made up of members aged 14 to 25.
A former brownie, Mrs Tott specialises in fusing vintage and modern dance music to create a genre called ‘electro-swing’.
The 41-year-old, who performs under the name Tallulah Goodtimes, is looking forward to holding DJ workshops for hundreds of guides today and tomorrow.
The idea was hatched when Sophie met Girlguiding event manager Sarah Atkins at Latitude Festival last year.
“I’m really excited,” she said. “It’s something I’m passionate about. I’m often round young people who don’t realise that a passion for music can become a career.
“If I meet girls who seem to have that passion this weekend, I’ll tell them there are options and career paths available. They just need to pursue it.
Sophie has been DJing for more than 20 years, but discovered her passion for elctro-swing after starting a family.
“I started at 16, in the days of rave,” she said. “I had a boyfriend who was a DJ and we’d put on parties. When it came to the after-party, people would get on the decks. I just got fed up with watching.
“I had a break to have children. I wanted to spend their younger years with them, rather than travelling. Then I went to a festival where the promoters, White Mink, were putting on a party.
“People were wearing vintage clothes and dancing to music from the 1920s to 50s, but with a rave sound underpinning it. It kind of reinvigorated my love of music.
“I decided to put my own mix online, and within a week it had been listened to 25,000 times.”
Sophie, whose own five-year-old daughter has started playing with the turntables, will be leading 20-minute workshops with groups of guides on the basics of DJing this weekend.
“I’ll give them a brief introduction into musical phrasing before an overview of how to mix,” she said.
“It’s fundamentally about counting for the beat, so I’ll be selecting two or three tracks with a similar tempo.”
Sophie believes budding DJs can set out for relatively little expense thanks to recent technology.
“Getting started doesn’t have to be expensive,” she said. “You can get going with free apps and software.
“Obviously, the professional kit in the clubs can be ferociously expensive, but starting out doesn’t need to be.”
Visit tallulahgoodtimes.com to listen to music by Sophie and find out where she will be performing next.
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