Finding a new tune: The rise of female DJs

Saudi weddings are incomplete without a DJ and many Saudi women are trying to carve out a career in this male-dominated industry. The popularity of DJing as a hobby as well as a profession among women is on the rise in Saudi society and with reason. It is a profitable field in entertainment that requires no academic qualifications. Practice along with some knowledge of the music techniques and tastes of the clients is sufficient to get started as a DJ. DJing is more than blending and song selection, and performing in front of hundreds (or more) people at a wedding or party is not easy.
Sisters Shahad and Shahnd began DJing at the age of 16 when their passion for music was discovered at a family party in which Shahad coordinated and played the songs. Their family encouraged and supported them in buying the required equipment to help them get started as DJs on a professional level at women’s parties.
However, it took them some time to get clients as the Internet and advertising were not easily accessible then. The only advertising available was through word of mouth and distribution of their business cards among women they met at various parties.
Shahad says her main concern is pleasing an audience that has varied tastes, which can range from Arabic to foreign music and old to new songs.
She says that playing at weddings made her discover her acoustic talent, which she later sought to further develop. She then gave the responsibility of song coordination to her younger sister Shahnda, who polished her DJing skills outside the Kingdom.
Interestingly, both sisters have different academic interests — Shahad is into the nursing profession while Shahnda specializes in genetics outside Saudi Arabia.
Shahad says DJing should not prevent a girl from achieving her academic and professional ambitions. She said one must not rely on the lucrative financial income that a DJ earns in one night, which is equivalent to a month’s salary. Balance between the two areas of interest is important in order to ensure a great future.
Shahad trained several girls so that they can fill up for her when she is busy with her studies or work.
She said one of the biggest difficulties experienced by a female DJ is the late night working hours that exposes them to uncomfortable situations, especially with their drivers. “However, at the end of the day, people from different countries recognize me because of my talent,” she affirms.
Sumaiya Ahmed, 22, known as DJ Soma, began her DJing career when she was 17. Her passion for music and her love to stay updated with the latest songs, in addition to her family’s support made her try her luck in this field. She trained in acoustics outside the Kingdom to perfect her performance.
She said song coordination is not limited to just arranging and operating songs only. “There are other important skills that are required, most notably a high taste in the selection of songs, knowing how to set the sound, and the distribution of the speakers appropriately to avoid echo, in addition to the most important skill which is the art of dealing with people and satisfying them and respecting time,” Sumaiya said.
As is usually the case, Sumaiya had a tough start. The required equipment was either unavailable or was expensive. Add to that the fact that she was unknown in women’s social circles. However, all that changed when the demand for her grew with time and as she expanded her business to include services such as lights, photography, theater coordination, sweets, dancing bands — both local and international.
Sumaiya points out that the nature of her work exposes her to the risk of robbery, especially of the equipment and so she remains constantly vigilant.
Twenty-six year old Ruba, a graduate in business administration, is popularly known as DJ Ruba. She discovered her talent in song coordination and music by accident. Due to her good taste in music, her friends and relatives asked Ruba to help them select appropriate songs for events. So she downloaded a sound integration app used by DJs on her laptop. She was gradually addicted to using it and found herself constantly playing around with music on it. She then threw a big party for around 400 people and coordinated music for them. To her surprise, she was bombarded by requests from many of her friends and relatives to play music in their parties. That was a turning point in her life because it was then that Ruba seriously considered DJing as a profession. Initially her family rejected the idea, fearing her academic studies would take a toll. However, her insistence that it would not affect her studies got her their approval.
Ruba explains the challenges she faced when she first began. “It was not about headsets or speakers, but about the lack of women in this field here. So to earn a reputation that would outweigh that of the male DJs who have been working since years in this field was a tough task,” she said.
However, Ruba managed to achieve success by working as a DJ coordinator in a number of concerts across the Kingdom as well as in other countries such as Egypt and Britain. She also worked in radio and later went on to release a music album that earned good profits in CD sales.
DJ Sofia, 34, has seen it all. She has seen the period of old recorders and cassettes transform to that of CDs and then to laptops. She mastered each of those trends to gain maximum customer satisfaction. She took lessons in devices of modern sound integration from a sound engineer.
Sofia believes DJing as a profession is devoid of any challenges as it is “entertaining, fun and profitable — all at the same time.” However, she couldn’t complete her studies in English because of her dedication to DJing. “I hope to finish my studies one day,” she said.
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