"I can see my future, and everything is going to be fine" Interview with Fifi

"Hi, I'm Fifi. I was born and raised in Los Angeles, and I’m a producer and DJ." If you don’t know who we’re talking about (and talking to), now’s the time to catch up. Sophia Ziskin, better known as Fifi, has quickly built a reputation through playful, high-energy sets capable of keeping the crowd fully engaged from beginning to end. Her style naturally moves across different genres, from house to techno passing through afrobeats, while always maintaining a precise and refined instinct for what works on the dancefloor. This is what she told us.

Interview with Fifi, the Los Angeles DJ inspired by her roots

"My family is Algerian, I’m very proud of my roots and I love representing them strongly," she told us while sitting on our green armchair. "French, Algerian, but at the same time I’m also very much a California girl. I love the beach. And I feel like my music taste is a combination of growing up in California while also having a family that’s deeply connected to its culture. That creates a really interesting mix." This interesting combination creates a distinctive sound, we’d add, shaped over time also thanks to family influence. "I’ve always been very passionate about dance music. Both of my parents were obsessed with music and had very different tastes. My mom loved classic house, and my dad loved African music, very percussion-driven. Listening to both constantly really shaped my taste," Fifi confirmed.

Among her influences, of course, there’s also the city of Los Angeles. "I had a very non-traditional childhood and teenage years," she admits. "I was homeschooled and by the end of high school I was constantly around the city with my friends. I’d go to the beach, hang out. There was a huge sense of freedom. In California in general, you really breathe freedom. I felt very free as a child and as a teenager. And music was always central in my life. I always had this desire to discover new things. Life in Los Angeles is very relaxed: beach, surf, skate, music everywhere. I think that made me very chill. Everyone I grew up with is like that. It was a childhood made of music, sun, sea, and fruit. And I think that’s still what I’m looking for," she concludes.

Arriving in Milan, creativity, and the DJ world

Let’s take a little detour: how does she find Milan, being so used to the Californian lifestyle? "I had no expectations. A lot of people told me Milan was boring or even ugly, but I think it’s crazy to say it’s ugly. Maybe because it doesn’t have churches on every corner like other cities. But to me it’s beautiful and very calm. I also read that the population isn’t growing, and you can feel it: everything is very quiet, stable. It’s an old city, but in a good way."

But let’s get back to creativity and inspiration. "I get really inspired by going to record stores, digging and searching for new sounds. At the same time I’m producing more and more, and trying to improve my production skills. It’s important for me to keep pushing on both sides. It’s a very natural flow: finding inspiration in other people’s music and in older music helps me grow as a producer. I learn so much just by listening to new things." And about the DJ scene, she says: "It’s fascinating. Someone should write a book about it one day. There’s so many politics behind it, it’s a pretty crazy dynamic. Any male-dominated environment is like that. But I’m lucky because I’ve surrounded myself with really incredible men in this industry, who are genuinely great, which is rare." She then adds: "A lot of men - from my experience and from what I know from other female DJs I know - tend to diminish you immediately. At this point I turn it into a joke, there’s no other way, because otherwise you’d just end up angry all the time. So now I take it that way, as something to laugh about with my girlfriends. Female DJs need to stick together. It's hard out there but nothing makes me happy than seeing my girls thriving."

Let’s talk about stages. "I get really nervous before going on stage," Fifi admits. "I don’t have a fixed routine. Sometimes I need a moment alone, I go to the bathroom and focus. Other times I need to be around my friends. It depends." And her dream collaboration? "Two artists I’ve been listening to constantly over the past six months are Kelela and Rochelle Jordan. They have incredible voices for dance music, so that would be a dream. And production-wise, Jamie xx is my favorite DJ and producer. I would absolutely love to work with him, or even just watch him work to learn." The last question, as always, is about the future: "I think my future looks good. I feel like I can see it. I don’t want to say too much, but I’d say everything’s going well. I’m about to release a lot of new music this year. And I’ll be doing several festivals this summer. I love playing festivals, it’s my favorite thing. I also have some Boiler Rooms and a lot of music coming soon."