“Wanna order a smoothie?” Sohmi asks. We’re stood at the Hommage Hotel beach bar in Sint Maarten in the Caribbean where the SXM festival annually takes place. I nod gratefully. Having spent the previous day dancing on a mountain peak (at the steepest zipline in the world), followed by an evening at the festival’s beach venue; I am in desperate need of something to revive me. Sohmi, however, appears fresh, breezy and relaxed. She is wearing a dusty pink crop top, a pale blue denim skirt adorned with flowers, and Prada accessories. Her blonde, washed out pink hair is tied in a black scrunchie and flows down her back. A septum hangs delicately in her nose as she peeks over her black-rimmed orange sunglasses, watchfully eyeing a nearby table who are being served mango smoothies.

Sohmi (real name Stephanie) is a Korean-American DJ, producer and vocalist trailblazing her own style of ‘minimal pop tech’. A classically trained pianist, she began lessons at the ripe age of three. Having landed on the LA dance scene just a few years ago, Sohmi quickly became the first Korean woman to become a resident at LA’s underground house and techno club, Sound. In a very short time, she gained support from the likes of BBC Radio 1’s Danny Howard, Manchester’s Josh Butler and Hot Since 82. “I slid into Josh Butler’s DM’s,” Sohmi confesses. “I was like, Hi Josh. I just opened for you at Sound. I do vocals. If you’re still looking for people to collaborate with, would you consider me?” She blushes.

Sohmi exudes an unwavering positivity and strong inner confidence that she tells me comes from being a very spiritual person, but she’s far from arrogant. “Superficial conversations really bore me. Sometimes I get too honest and too deep too quickly with people [I have just met] and all of my life’s deepest, darkest secrets are on the table. But what’s the point of talking about anything else? Small talk just kills me.” It’s this spirituality that led her to play in Sint Maarten, where she’d visited on holiday 10 years ago. “I love when life has full circle moments […] I believe in karma, everything happens for a reason. It feels more rewarding to [play] in cities that I’ve been to in my past life, pre-Sohmi, pre-DJ, pre-artist.”

SXM has to be one of the most surreal festivals I have ever visited. It is quite literally off it, for lack of a better phrase (trust me, there isn’t one). The festival itself feels like a tropical, sprawling fever dream, not dissimilar from its location. The island of Sint Maarten is half dutch and half french but the festival hosts people predominantly from the US and Canada. The clubbing experiences are as far away from a gritty, British club you could possibly get and everyone is extremely friendly (Londoners know how to party, but in my humble opinion we don’t mingle enough).

The festival’s island-wise takeover sees parties hosted on beaches, villas and hilltop sunrise sessions, against the backdrop of a sprawling horizon and lush rainforests. The lineup is varied but comprehensive; you’re sure to see some of the world’s most impressive talent. This year hosted huge names like Loco Dice, Adam Ten and Anja Schneider, as well as British acts like Fleur Shore, Mason Collective and AJ Christou. Simultaneously, there’s enough room to explore. This year I discovered new international faves like Tel Aviv’s Magit Cacoon and was blown away by Anyasa’s sunrise set.

If it sounds glamorous, it’s because it low-key is. But it’s not always sunsets, sand, and smoothies. In Sohmi’s opinion, the biggest misconception about being a DJ is that the lifestyle is constantly this glamorous, “it’s actually quite lonely. It’s the loneliest job I’ve ever had.” You might think, how can a room full of people who are all dancing and engaging with your music, be lonely? “Well, A, you’re not part of the crowd. You’re up there, often playing by yourself. I usually travel by myself. I don’t have a big team so I’m pulling up to a new city by myself. The production, songwriting, preparing for your sets, all of that is done quite privately.”

This is understandable, especially with the pressure to succeed in a world where streaming platforms reign supreme and vanity metrics such as likes, clicks, and plays really matter. I ask Sohmi if she ever feels pressure to write streamable songs that cater to algorithms like Spotify, Apple Music and TikTok, “There’s definitely that pressure in the back of my mind. Because for better or for worse, your streaming numbers are there for everyone to see and judge.” That being said, she is adamant she could never succumb to the pressure, “it’s haunting me, but at the same time I don’t let it really define how I write my music. Even if you asked me to write something for the algorithms, I don’t think I could. Nobody [who does] would come out sounding all that great.”

Earlier this year, the UK parliamentary committee declared that misogyny in the music industry in the UK was endemic. While on the surface, lineups are increasing their gender diversity, what goes on behind the scenes inside the industry’s underbelly can be insidious. Sohmi’s advice for women starting out? “Don’t be afraid to ask for help”. She recommends creating physical vision boards that you can print out and stick on your wall to help sustain focus. “Do not think that because you’re a woman that you can’t be asking for help. Whether that’s like, hey, could you teach me how to use this equipment? I’ve never touched a pair of decks before. Could someone show me? I’ve never used this software before, it’s not because I’m not smart, [I’ll be] a beast at Ableton in a few years, but this is my first time I’ve opened it, just like the rest of you.”

We both agree that as women, it’s hard to escape the ingrained tendency to talk ourselves down, consistently making up excuses for why we succeed – either to avoid appearing to be ‘showing off’ or to come across as more palatable. “I’ll have [my] music played on Radio One, but I’m still not good enough. There’s always some excuse, like maybe it was luck,” admitting this is something she’s trying to improve on.

Before Sohmi leaves, I ask what her dream festival line up would look like. Almost immediately she reels off Aphex Twin, James Blake, H.E.R, SZA, Summer Walker, Fred Again, and a hologram of the late RnB legend Aaliyah (Tupac style). What’s next? Tons of new music. “I’m coming out of my shell, I’ve felt shy about a lot of things for a while and I feel like I’m growing, blossoming, opening up and singing more. I’ve always been vulnerable, but I’m just going to really put it out there.” It seems she’s getting better at taking her own advice already.

Stream “Dancing With You” (Sohmi Fantasy Mix) by Amtrac, Sohmi below…

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