GET TO KNOW
Equality, diversity, and inclusion—that is what
HE.SHE. THEY. stands for. It’s not just a daydream for Am- sterdam this coming Pride Week. But what about the rest of the year?
HE.SHE.THEY., rooted in England, is an international house and techno event, record label, clothing brand, and, as the name suggests, a place for everyone. After the success of stage hosting at Doc- kyard Festival during Amsterdam Dance Event last year, founders Sophia Kearney and Steven Braines are bringing their unique formula to Amsterdam during Dockyard presents
HE.SHE.THEY. on August 3rd at the Thuishaven venue during Amsterdam Pride. They are also hosting two stages for Dockyard this ADE, one at Dockyard Festival x Mystic Garden Festival ADE, and one at Dockyard Warehouse Festival. There is cer- tainly a need for freedom of expression, acceptance, and diversity. While clubs like RoXY and Trouw used to naturally embody authenticity and diversity, this has faded more into the background in the dance world in recent years. Steven and Sophia want to make ever- yone feel welcome with their unique concept,
HE.SHE. THEY.. They could evoke nostalgic memories for some older ravers.
“‘Can you remember when dance music culture was all about breaking down barriers, rather than building them? When it didn’t matter who you were, as long as you were friendly and could be yourself? Well, we feel it’s high time to return to those inclusive, ideological roots. From DJs to performers, we’re about giving tho- se who push boundaries a platform, and we invite our partygoers to push their own boundaries,’” it says on their website.
Through their years of experience in the dance world, managing the biggest DJs and touring for months on end, Sophia and Steven have become experts in the house and techno industry. Steven explains, “With the DJs, we have straight white guys like Ben Klock who play for us, but we also have a mix of people. When you look up from the dancefloor at the DJ booth, you mi- ght see someone who is like you on one level—becau- se they’re white, or maybe because they’re a woman, black, brown, or queer. And then you can also look at the dancers and see a six-pack, but also someone with a much curvier body. There’s someone who might have a disability. We have all these types of people becau- se we want someone in the crowd to look up and feel like this isn’t just a place where they’re allowed. This is a place where people who look like them are present. Therefore, you are included; you are welcome.”
THE START
For some people, spending three hours wandering around a department store sounds like a typical Sun- day afternoon. For Sophia and Steven, this was how they became business partners. Tucked away in a showroom corner of a 1950s interior in the British de- partment store John Lewis in 2011, Steven was looking for a freelancer to help him in the music industry. Ste- ven reminisces, “The person who is my business part- ner, I want to be really dynamic, so why don’t I pretend I need to buy sheets?” Sophia jokingly interrupts, “Bull- shit, you just wanted to kill two birds with one stone.” Steven continues, “In music management, it doesn’t matter where you are. If you’re on a plane or your grand- ma has just passed away, some things can happen, and you have to be able to wing it and make it happen. So many people are asking, ‘When is the meeting going to start?’ Sophia was the one who said, ‘Okay, let’s go and sit down on the fake furniture and create the meeting.’ I was like, ‘This is my business partner.’ This is someone who can handle the situation. We’re in a department store, and she manages to turn it into a work situation in a pragmatic way.”
Sophia had the same feeling, “I remember us saying goodbye, hugging each other, and him walking off towards the tube. Then we looked at each other and thought, ‘Yeah, let’s try and do something together.’ I just had this feeling I was supposed to follow this. But to be honest, it was an unstable situation. This guy looked like he hadn’t slept for two years.” Steven re- plies, “I probably hadn’t.” Sophia continues, “It was the same feeling I had when I went to Glastonbury at 17 and realized I wanted to work in the music industry. I knew I had to just do it because it was leading me there, but it felt unstable.”
Sophia and Steven both had years of experience in music management for artists such as Miike Snow, Swedish House Mafia, Maya Jane Coles, Tricky, Tale of Us, Magda, Catz ‘n Dogz, and more. After the depart- ment store meeting, they became a management duo, although Steven preferred to work from home. Sophia says, “We used to get into bed together, order chicken, watch music videos on loop, and talk about everything we were going through, solving problems. One of the things we always came back to after touring with all these artists was: we stand in a million artist booths and look over millions of festival crowds. When you’re traveling from country to country and on the road for 5+ years, you start to get a real sense of what wor- ks in different countries, the social psychology of the crowd—things that we both find really fascinating. We couldn’t help but analyze all the data we were absor- bing.”
It came to their attention that not only on stage and in crowds, but also backstage in green rooms, there was not much diversity. Steven notes, “For example, if there were women, they were almost always in PR and mar- keting, often not in decision-making roles in the music industry.” They also noticed the need for diversity in the industry within their own friendship group. Sophia ex- plains, “We had a very diverse friendship group, largely consisting of people of color, queer individuals, and wo- men. Our friendship was incredible, but quite often we would all meet up for an afterparty in London, having been to six different club nights. Afterward, we would all gather together. During one of Steven’s and my chic- ken-eating meetings, we wondered, ‘Where’s the party we want to go to where all of our friends would be and wouldn’t have to come from all these different spa- ces where they felt most comfortable?’” Steven adds, “Sometimes it’s nice to be in a space that looks like a United Colors of Benetton ad from the ‘90s, where everyone is represented in a positive way. If you’re, for instance, a trans woman of color, you’re not the exotic one. There’s no reason why a black trans woman can’t have a best friend who’s a straight white guy. All people should feel safe and welcome in the bigger capacity spaces.”
All of this brought Sophia and Steven to Amsterdam in 2017. During Amsterdam Dance Event, the duo had four meetings in one day. Without a pitch, deck, or official preparation—just with an idea, a feeling, and an ideal vision in their minds. They got their first yes after the first meeting. Sophia recalls, “I remember us standing underneath an umbrella together, looking at Google Maps, trying to find the next meeting in the pouring rain, and we realized that the first party was just four months away and we had no lineup, no bran- ding, no logos, fonts—none of the creative elements or dancers.” Every other meeting resulted in a yes, inclu- ding an offer from Amnesia Ibiza for a 16-week resi- dency.
HE.SHE.THEY. was officially born.
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