Fresh from her set at the LA3C Festival on Saturday, December 10, DJ Freya Fox took the crowd by storm with her unique mix of upbeat EDM and chart toppers.
We recently had the fantastic opportunity to chat with DJ Freya Fox and find out more about her passion for music and how she got her start in the DJ industry! We also discuss what fans can expect from her next.
Hi Freya Fox, awesome to meet you! Can you introduce yourself?
Hi, I’m Freya Fox and I am an EDM, artist, producer, and vocalist. I started producing music when I was 12 years old and learned piano at the age of three by ear! I was fortunately gifted with perfect pitch, and my family saw the potential, especially since my grandpa’s brothers and he were professional musicians in the Philippines.
What inspired you to become a DJ?
I first started as a wedding and events mobile DJ when I was only 17 years old after my friend taught me how to mix on vinyl and two technics 1200s with a vestax mixer. I eventually scaled my mobile DJ business with the help of my parents and money I had saved up. We did tons of school dances and debuts (Filipino girls’ coming of age)
So I got a taste of that feeling of commanding a crowd at a young age. Fast forward to now I’ve come full circle - I finally took the leap to pursue my music career seriously after doing other businesses for a while .
I’ve always been an entertainer and naturally gifted at it but it wasn’t until 2022 where I really believed in myself enough to go for it.
Who are DJs you've looked up to?
Porter Robinson, Madeon, Jai Wolf, DJ Qbert, Jeff Mills, DJ Enferno (live remix project especially), and Armin Van Burren.
Do you think there are any similarities between DJing and streaming?
Yes very similar in that both require you to know how to read a crowd , improvise live, and of course entertain above all else. Streaming really helped me become super confident on the mic and improving with the crowd. I’m extremely interactive I feel during my performances , which translated from talking to chat on live streams.
The only difference is that online you can’t feel energy and you don’t get the same level of interaction at all.
Do you remember your first setlist? What songs were in it?
Honestly, I don’t because it was so long ago, over 10 years ago. But I’ll say for sure the following songs were definitely in it
Party Rock Anthem - LMFAO
SHOTS - Lil John
Sandstorm - Darude
Better off Alone - Alice Deejays
Crank Dat - Soulja Boy
9 PM Til I Come - ATB
Amongst many others.
Photo Courtesy of LA3C
How does it feel to play at a huge festival like LA3C?
Absolutely unreal to be honest because this is my third festival and it was definitely one of the biggest. My first big festival was Life is Beautiful which Penske Media also has a stake in. After LIB, they decided to book me for LA3C and I was so excited. I love festivals as an attendee and they changed my life for the better - so being able to help others experience that now as the artist is what I live for.
What was your favorite part of the night?
When I played my Clarity remix/cover live and everyone started funneling in from SEVENTEEN’s set. I noticed people were on the way out because their set ended before mine, but the carats showed me major love before exiting the festival.
I led a call and response sing a long and there must have been 1,000 people spread across the fields all singing Clarity with me. I was crying because it was so beautiful.
@freyafoxgg LA3C - Freya Fox Performs “Clarity” (Together Live / Second Sky) Live Remix with over 1,000 people / carats singing along with her at the Hot Import Nights stage. This was the final song in Freya Fox’s live EDM set which ended after Seventeen /SVT performance at LA3C. Carats were leaving the festival when they stopped by to listen to Clarity (Zedd x Porter Robinson x Freya Fox) live Remix. Ravers and Kpop Stans alike joined together to sing this EDM classic / electro house classic at LA3C festival. This was the inaugural LA3C which collaborated with Hot Import Nights where Fox sang, DJ and performed a Live EDM show Electronic Dance Music (EDM) #ravetok #electrohouse #ravemusic #festival #porterrobinson #zedd #femaledj #edmvocalist #la3c @porterrobinson @Zedd @la3cofficial ♬ original sound - Freya Fox EDM Artist
What skills do you think DJs need to be successful?
People skills and good music production ability. They need charisma to be able to truly entertain a crowd - it’s not enough to just get up there and mix. Anyone can do that To be honest - but if you really know the crowd you are going to play for then you’ll succeed.
To further this DJs need to be producers these days because everyone wants to hear new music - that’s a DJs job ultimately. If you can produce your own tracks and remixes then you have a better chance of succeeding these days.
What message do you have for your fans?
Don’t stop believing like Journey famously once sang. Because you can accomplish anything you put your mind to as long as you truly believe in yourself. If you aren’t willing to take a chance on yourself then how can you expect anyone else to?
Especially growing up Asian American, there’s a stigma to go to school, get a stable job (Doctor, Lawyer, Engineer, Military, Nurse haha) and just be ok with that.
But the reality is that there are tons of other careers out there and I especially want to encourage young artists of any medium to go pursue that. Nothing wrong with any of those career paths but I feel like many people chose them because their parents wanted them to.
If you are going to/ are in a field just for the stability/money then I guarantee you will eventually burn out and not be happy at all - I know cause I been there done that.
So chase your dreams no matter what those may be.
What can we expect from you next?
More music and a full EP coming next year to add to my latest single “I’m Too Free” which just dropped on all streaming platforms and social platforms (please use it in your TikToks haha )
I’m also hoping to go on tour and also support other artists on their tours as well.
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Check out "I'm Too Free" out now!
A special thanks to Freya Fox and Daniel Lee for the interview.