We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jacqueline Little Aka JLittle a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Jacqueline Little, appreciate you joining us today. Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?
I really lucked out in the parent department. They made sure I always felt loved, supported, and safe. They eliminated extra stressors and points of worry, and told me my only job was to do well in school. If I don’t have anything serious to worry about, and I only have one job, I better do it well – so I excelled. My parents raised me telling me I can do whatever I put my mind towards, which instilled a ferocious work ethic. So when I decide I want to do something, I do it all the way – which is probably why I went from learning how to dj to playing for world famous artists in less than a year. My parents celebrated wins and praised me when I accomplished things, which made me want to continue striving for more accomplishments. I was very much an overachiever in all aspects of life growing up.
My father must have said, “You can do anything the boys can do” thousands of times. I took it to heart, which gave me the confidence to beat boys in sports, and now translates to me being able to get up on the big stages and perform. Whenever I got into a new hobby, my parents supported me fully. I raced motocross at the highest national level during my teenage years. When my life was on the line, I learned how to remain calm under the most stressful situations- so when that equipment fails on stage while I’m performing, I can control my stress and figure out how to proceed. My family sacrificed so much time, money and energy so that I could compete. It reaped its rewards in me mentally – I take no excuses, from myself, from others. Did you cross that finish line first or not? Did you fall off the cliff or did you make it back alive? There’s no room for excuses in that sport, and I have no room for excuses in life as a result. You either make an excuse or you make it happen, and when throwing events with lots of money on the line, when performing live and things are broken or going wrong, these lessons that were instilled in me taught me to make it happen.
Jacqueline Little, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Hello! I’m JLittle, a dj born and raised in San Francisco, California :) I’m a part of a collective called Soundproof- we currently produce music events in San Francisco and Phoenix, Arizona, and play in many other cities.
I’ve been obsessed with music since I was a little kid. Music plays in my brain 24/7, 365. I’ve been “mixing” in my head for as long as I can remember. I spent most of my free time and money attending concerts, but never imagined I’d be onstage myself. Growing up I was very shy and hated being the center of attention, and dj’ing seemed so complicated and out of reach. However, being deep in the music scene connected me with many talented musicians, and before I knew it I had tons of friends who were dj’s. This made it seem far more attainable- if they can all do it, why can’t I?
My husband knew I needed a creative outlet, a love for music, and an interest in learning how to dj – so he got me a beginner setup as a gift in early 2021, and that’s how it all began. Two of my friends gave me a few lessons and taught me the basics, and I ran with it from there. I would watch and learn from the numerous dj friends I had, from the professionals at shows I attended, and pick up little skills from everyone. I would hop on and play every time I had a few spare minutes – I loved it!! I could finally bring the sounds that I’d been creating in my mind into reality. It was a powerful feeling, and I was amazed by how endless the creative options were.
A few months later I was asked to play my first set by a great local crew called NuTekno at a restaurant in San Francisco. I never intended on playing publicly and did not feel ready whatsoever. Performing live was the last thing my shy, anxiety-ridden, perfectionist self would ever want to do. However with some encouragement from friends and my personal belief system to not let fear cause me to pass up opportunities, I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and went for it. It was a super low-key affair, I was the opening set, most people were eating and drinking and hardly even paying attention to the music, but for me it was terrifying. I remember throwing up in the bathroom beforehand from nerves. Well I survived and even had fun in the process. I quickly started getting asked to play more and more gigs after that, forcing myself to face my fears and step up and perform.
September of that year I joined Soundproof, who are some of the dj friends I referred to previously. These people are now family to me and I could not be more grateful to work with such an incredible team. They believed in me more than I did, they put me in time slots I did not feel ready for (because they knew I was), they worked their butts off to build the organization from the ground up. What started from free renegade parties outdoors, rapidly escalated to working with the premier clubs and booking agents in San Francisco and beyond. I respect their hard work, and dedication so much. They are opportunity creators and I’m learning so much from their experience in the industry. I see their selflessness giving up prime slots that they could have, to myself and other members on the team so that we can grow and progress. We have big things in the works and I’m excited to see what lies ahead for us!
I am most proud of bringing happiness to the lives of others. Soundproof promotes great energy, beautiful vibes, spreading love, and celebrating life. The best compliment I have received is that the success of our organization is due to the integrity of its members. When I’m playing, I’m expressing my energy through sound, and the feeling of connecting with others who are smiling, dancing, getting lost in the moment and forgetting about the stresses of life- because of my music- can not be beat.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
I’m motivated to change how male dominated the music industry is. I want little girls to grow up seeing female dj’s headlining events. I want people listening to music made by women. It’s frustrating how much of a boy’s club this industry can feel like at times. I often see event and festival flyers and it’s all or mostly men. Last I heard the percentage of female producers was 2%. This has to change- and the only way is for more females to blaze the trail, and for men to support women in the industry more.
It feels like we are judged more harshly, we aren’t taken as seriously, treated as if we are only booked for our looks, not given higher billings, not compensated as much. Many of my femme dj friends have been asked if we know what we are doing when we are playing, if we’re in the right place when we are behind the decks, men try to take over our time slots, get in our heads, etc. It’s infuriating frankly. They want to intimidate us and make us feel like we don’t belong there- but I use it as motivation to work harder, prepare more, and get up there and kill my sets each time- so the respect is earned.
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
Support them however you can!! Financially ideally, because artists need money to pay their bills so they can continue to create. Go to events, buy tickets, purchase the creations whatever they may be. If you are not financially in a position to do so, there are many other ways to help. Social media is unfortunately a critical piece of the puzzle – follow creatives’ pages, like posts, share stories, help disperse information about events and sales. Essentially help artists grow their following and expand their reach. Word of mouth goes a long way – refer them to gigs when relevant, tell your friends and family about their products and events. Recognize how much time and energy these people spend to bring art and creative experiences to life – and if they get nothing in return, they cannot sustain the lifestyle and continue brightening up society with art.
Contact Info:
- Website: soundproofus.com
- Instagram: @jlittlemusic
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/JLittleMusicOfficial
- Other: SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/jlittle_music
Image Credits
Saylor Nedelman, John Slacker