New York City has long been synonymous with polymathy, with DJ, producer, multi-instrumentalist and label founder Chloé Caillet the latest creative visionary to spread her wings beyond a secular craft. The electronic trailblazer has, since emerging at the turn of the decade, risen to illustrious heights, dropping solo heat, offering up blistering live sets across the globe, and collaborating with some of the most revered industry names, including a recent augmentative rework of Dua Lipa’s pop hit, “Training Day”.

Alongside her sonic mastery, Caillet has been making strides across the wider industry. In 2023, she launched SMIILE, an event concept series and label, a project conceptualised and actualised by the multi-facet herself. Driven by her vision of diversity and community, Caillet is currently taking the LGBTQ+ club night global, playing across Europe and the States, including a forthcoming date at London’s Village Underground on April 13th.

We connected with Caillet, discussing her home city, her most iconic career moments to date, the ethos of SMIILE, and the queer clubbing landscape.

Listening to Caillet’s “Training Day” mix…

Read the exclusive interview…

Who and what inspires you?
Traveling has been incredibly inspiring for me. Experiencing different cultures and meeting diverse people has enhanced my creativity. While there are too many inspirational figures to name, my mom stands out for me, along with the remarkable women who have influenced and supported me throughout my life.

How did New York shape your artistry and creative outlook?
New York has definitely played a significant role in shaping who I am today. New York is a melting pot for so many different types of environments. You can find yourself in one evening going to a large variety of parties and events. Personally, these parties and events have shaped who I am today. Musically, I love being in diverse company and vibrant energies.

Your music blurs the line of convention – is this a natural characteristic of your sound, or something you’ve worked on achieving?
I’d say that this is more a part of my personality and who I am. I’ve never been one to follow rules or do what people tell me to. I’ve always been someone who likes to push the boundaries and figure out my own way of doing things. So, I love that you’re hearing this in my music because it was definitely unintentional, but it’s also a big part of who I am.

What have been your standout career moments to date?
I’d say headlining the main stage at the iconic Sonar festival was a great standout moment for me. Definitely playing at Glastonbury, Coachella, Circoloco in Ibiza and Panorama bar. Also recently launching SMIILE has also been one of my favourite projects so far.

Hearing my music get played all around the world is also pretty mind blowing, I never thought I would. It was crazy to collaborate with Kassav, a band I grew up listening to in my house. Releasing my EP with Circoloco was also a pretty magical moment in my career.

Congratulations on the newly announced SMIILE world tour! How does it feel to be taking it global?
It’s been incredible. It’s always been a huge goal of mine to take a party global. To see SMIILE take shape in so many incredible cities and work alongside creatives has honestly been a dream come true.

How was the idea for it first conceptualised, and in what ways have you seen it grow?
The party was first conceptualised as my dream party, one that I would attend with my friends. I aimed to create an environment that is diverse, inclusive, and a safe place, where I could collaborate with artists I admire and who inspire me. As the event grows, we’re receiving incredible feedback. It’s been such a fun experience working alongside my team, who have made this concept very special and to see many ravers letting go and having a great time.

What is the ethos of SMIILE?
The ethos of SMIILE is to let go, be free, be who you want to be. Share a moment on the dance floor with someone and honestly just smile, have a great time, and listen to good music.
The idea is to immerse yourself in the present moment, share an evening with everyone there, and not be on your phones so you can really be present.

From your point of view, what is the state of the queer clubbing scene?
In my opinion, there’s a lack of queer identity across all clubbing scenes, and I think this has really changed from where the electronic music scene emerged from. Today, there are a lot of incredible queer parties taking place and beautiful queer spaces being put together that share such a special energy, but I don’t think that energy is being transferred everywhere. Unfortunately, there are not enough festivals and clubs creating enough safe spaces and working with communities to bring this energy, and I think something is missing. But that’s why we are here to make a change.

As an LGBTQ+ artist, how have your experiences been in the music and live industries?
As a queer artist, I would say that it hasn’t always been easy. There have definitely been moments where I have felt judged, especially when I have been with partners and people have made pretty off comments. People pretend not to judge or care, but they definitely do. I’ve also experienced homophobia on dance floors when I’ve been with partners. I think most queer artists that I speak with have experienced almost all of these things. Every place should be a place where you can be who you want to be. I definitely think there is a lot of room for growth with this today.

Although I say there is still space for change, I have seen people making this change and creating safe spaces and bringing in more diverse lineups where clubgoers and queer clubgoers want to have a good time and be who they want to be.

What difficulties come with being a club-night promoter?
I think the main difficulty being a club promoter is that you really have to create a story. And sometimes, you want to book someone, and they’re unavailable, and they might be a key part of the story you want to tell for that night, so you have to get creative and look outside the box to see who could be a part of it. I actually love it. Everything you hear from the minute you walk into the room to the minute you leave is going to shape and create everyone’s evening, and it’s extremely important that everyone feels the right way.

What are you looking forward to most about summer?
I’m looking forward to reuniting with a lot of my friends. I’m excited to be playing at a few festivals and also new places I’ve never played at and visiting new cities I’ve never been to. I’m also taking some time off to get back in the studio, also working on some more collaborations with friends, and just getting back into that summer energy, which is always extremely fun but also extremely intense. But that’s why we’re here.

What are your career aspirations, short-term and long-term?
I would say my main aspiration is really to keep evolving as an artist and to always stay true to who I am and have a fun doing it all. To create safe spaces and bring up other artists with SMIILE and to grow SMIILE to be a community-driven movement to release music with us, to create parties, to attend our parties, and to potentially curate club stages at festivals. For me, there’s no limit to what we can do.

I also think a big aspiration for me is to really be able to bring up other people around me who I love and to give people a platform to also be successful and achieve their dreams the way I was given opportunities in my world. I would love to give back and to help out with music education and bringing music to people all around the world. And honestly, to just keep being an artist, working with music is my dream, and it’s what I love doing the most.