Cityscape

Movement Lineup Isn't All-Male: Meet Gabi, a Rising DJ and Social Worker

May 24, 2015, 6:05 PM


Gabi: " "That soul (I play) is sexier and softer." (Twitter photo by Festival Snobs)

Metro Times contributor Maximilian de la Garza comments without restraint about the gender imbalance at Movement Detroit, the 16th annual techno festival running through Monday at Hart Plaza:

Of the 139 performers playing Movement . . . this year, a mere eight are women. This may not come as a surprise to many, and, of course, it's shitty that this isn't surprising. . . .

As the festival has grown and the millennial crowd gets younger and more receptive, Movement's selection of dudes plus also more dudes does look a bit outdated.

De la Garza does his part to offset the tilt with advance interviews of two local DJs on Sunday afternoon's lineup -- Marissa Guzman and Gabi (Gabriele Schwarz).

"Gabi's music is a welcome reprieve from the skittering, frantic sounds of techno you'll hear at so much of the fest," he writes.

[She] dips into the grooves of deep house, a slinky meditative throb that lifts you up high and then gently brings you down. Gabi has mastered that fine art of balancing a crowd by knowing when to push them and when to reel them back in.

The self-taught DJ found herself touring all over the world in the last year as a resident Paxahau DJ. After her successful first Movement gig last year, she is in demand. . . .

She believes it's her choice of music that sets her apart from the rest. "That soul (I play) is sexier and softer."

Schwarz, a part-time DJ and full-time foster care social worker for Wayne County whose stage name is pronounced "Gābi," tells Metro Times' writer:  "I didn't even know I would be performing until the lineup came out."

Her showcase set on the main stage also draws attention from a Nashville-based music site, Festival Snobs, which tweets a mini-gallery to its 9,500 followers:

Schwarz also earns this early Monday from an Ann Arbor fan:


Read more:  Metro Times


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