THE VISION
HE.SHE.THEY. includes everyone at their events around the world. From Bristol to New York City, Berlin, Dallas, Rome, Helsinki, Chile, South Africa, Australia—the list goes on and on. But how do they ensure that everyo- ne feels included? Surely, most clubs would dream of this being an organic process. Steven explains, “A lot of promoters say, ‘The main people who come to our parties are men.’ Well, yes, because if you organize a night with three straight guys DJing and girls who are size 0 with breast implants dancing, guess what? Guys will attend. Who would have thought that if you design a night like this, it won’t attract a diverse crowd? It’s no surprise that gay black men aren’t coming to the event. When you showcase different types of people, you’ll see that the dance floor really changes.”
Sophia, “Our only criterion when recruiting new dancers is simple: whatever your skill is, we want to embrace it. Maybe you’re a contortionist, maybe you’re 4 feet tall, or maybe you’re brilliant at drag. Whatever your gift, let’s celebrate it and share it with people. Let’s also mix different types of people with the Ben Klocks and Eats Everythings of the world. This approach helps diverse audiences come to see these established cis straight white male DJs, while also introducing them to perfor- mers from completely different demographics.”
By introducing these familiar fanbases to a more di- verse lineup,
HE.SHE.THEY. can win those fans over and build a more diverse, talented pool of headliners for the future.
Sophia explains, “All of those fans of these artists, who might often be other cis straight white men, will come and watch. They will also see that the artists they idolize and look up to are totally cool with who they are sharing the stage with. They’re vibing with the dancers. They’re smiling, they’re laughing—it’s fun. It’s not awkward or weird; there’s no segregation. For an audience to stand there for eight hours and watch the journey of that party, seeing all different people come and take over the podium and the decks, it is a fucking party. That reflection feeds out onto the dance floor and hopefu- lly influences how people interact with those around them who are different. Fingers crossed, how you can ever measure this, I don’t know. But its existence is just the hope that it’s happening. Maybe they take a little bit of that spirit and essence and carry it out onto the streets with them when they leave. And they might be less likely to laugh along with a transphobic slur they hear from politicians or in the news or whatever. Or at least, they question it and think: ‘Hey, I was on the dan- ce floor the other weekend with all these different peo- ple, and we had a great time. Why are we being told in other ways that we’re all enemies and should be afraid of each other? Why are women being told they should be afraid of a trans person sharing their bathroom?’ It’s not actually real. It’s not what really happens. If we can create beautiful environments under a shared joy of music, which all these people have in common, then maybe that changes things a little bit, just a little bit.”
Steven adds, “There’s no right way to be queer, there’s no right way to be a woman, and there’s no right way to be non-binary. Many people come to
HE.SHE.THEY., and it’s noticeable that some women who are lesbians have longer hair and present more femme. We’ve all had bad experiences within queer spaces. Sometimes peo- ple come up to me and say, ‘Oh, it’s not that queer here.’ And I respond, ‘Who do you think is not queer?’ I point out, ‘No, she’s a lesbian, she’s a lesbian, she’s straight, and she’s a lesbian.’ We’re trying to break down some of those barriers as well. We don’t think we’ve solved all of mankind’s issues.”
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