Interview with Reid Speed

Reid Speed is not afraid to play rough with the boys. In fact, she holds her own better than some of her male-counterparts in the EDM scene. A pioneer of the Speed-Garage and 2-Step genre , she still takes the lead for bass-heavy Drum/Dubstep, and owns and runs her own label, Play Me Records and Play Me Too. It was the year 1996 when she first started spinning records, and according to her artist bio:

“Reid started out in the New York City underground working behind the counter at the legendary Breakbeat Science store, holding residencies with Stuck on Earth, Direct Drive & Camouflage while in college at the School of Visual Arts.”

RS has released CD’s “Under The Influence” (Moist Music) 2009, ”Resonance” (Breakbeat Science) 2003, and ”Life After Dark” (Breakbeat Science) 2001. Discography includes work with Dino, Hot Mouth, Mike Balance, Flinch, Doc Trashz and other musical heavy-hitters. She has been and always will be one busy lady, elbow deep in projects, her label, her tour and music.

Her music is not dainty nor is it ladylike, which is fine by us. Reid Speed delivers grimy, eardrum-melting party tunes that elevate your inner-bass monster to unimaginable heights. Like she says, if you like soft and minimal you will hate her, which is fine; we wouldn’t want to play rough with you anyway.

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Nice rear, why ya here? I’m just serious. Where is Reid Speed from and, in a nutshell, how did you end up at this juncture in life?
I was just a bad kid and I loved to sneak out to the Limelight and raves to dance all night. I was hooked the instant I first realized a DJ was essentially making a live mix-tape for hundreds or thousands of people at once. I was big into making mix-tapes for my friends as a child.

The DJ world seems to be a tumultuous and highly competitive place, and that’s just for the dudes. Do you find being a female DJ tougher or can it be to your advantage? When do you praise your glorious sweater-kittens and at what times do you curse not having “cajones?”
The DJ industry is a very competitive boys’ club for the most part. Since I’m not a guy but I play hard music, I’ve always had to make my own path to success. In some ways being a girl is an advantage, because promoters love the idea of female DJs. Its harder on a real business level because when you get to a certain level by not playing by the rules, or not playing the “sexy” role, the boys can and often do just shut you out, which is frustrating. But it pushes me even harder to find my own way to do it better, by being nicer and more accessible… not by being fake or pretentious and mean, just being all about the music.

What do you love about tour? What makes you miss home?
I love that I get to see the world doing what I love to do. That is the most amazing blessing of touring, especially this past few months being able to bring my amazing artists and friends along for the ride. I miss home when it’s been too many nights of un-squishy pillows in cold hotel rooms…then I just want to teleport or hitch a ride on a magic carpet to my bed and husband and cats.

A male fan comes running up to you after a set and whispers in your ear. If he (A) turned you on, what did he say? And if he (B) turned you off?
(A) “Here is a blunt for you!”
(B) “You’d be way hotter if you played trance.”

A female fan comes running up to you after a set and whispers in your ear. What did she say either way?
“Meet me in the VIP in 5-minutes, I have a blunt for you!”

Fill in the blank. You can’t leave home without [keys].

Your ideal gig?
Red Rocks or Fabric.

I want to submit some tracks and get on your label, Play Me Records. What do I need to bring to the table and what industry knowledge should I have prior to reaching out to you?
What we look for with the label is properly made, full-frequency range dance music with interesting melodic concepts and impeccable bass. If your stuff sounds as good as or better than our last release but has it’s own point-of-view that is uniquely yours, you would be a good contender. If you are not currently signed and don’t already have a relationship with a label, you should never send works-in-progress, or “WIPs.”

An important tip: To keep your tunes safe until they are signed, and so they cant be leaked after, it is suggested to send clips of self-mastered,  finished tracks to best show them off. If a label is interested you can then send them a full-version without having to worry the 10 labels who didn’t sign you will share your tune once a label has picked it up. Putting the full-version on soundcloud for anyone to hear and or DL is not good from a label’s perspective.

Describe what do you love about having your own label. Did you always dream of having your own or did an outside factor cause its existence?  Tell us about some hurdles and triumphs.
I love music and am an avid collector thereof, so it only made sense I’d end up running a label someday. But there was one thing which really led to the formation of Play Me. Our friend, Mark Subsonik, runs Subsonik Sound. Mark’s distributor (Symphonic) asked him about starting an electro house label. Mark came to me, as that wasn’t really his thing and I had just done “Under The Influence” (my 2009 electro CD release on Moist Music). I agreed to come on as the A&R and that’s where it began. Mark didint really like the music and left shortly thereafter, and we quickly expanded to include dubstep, drumstep and drum & bass. Things just took off from there. The biggest hurdle we face today is the high level of competition from bigger labels, often big house and even mainstream labels, who have the resources available to promote their artists, who are now getting involved in dubstep and being multi-genre. But as much as it’s a hurdle to chart success at times, their involvement opens up a new world of listeners to our music, so it’s really a hidden win for all of us. We continue to grow as the scene grows.

Are there any pre-set rituals you do before you play a show? What will RS look like to a fly on the wall 3-minutes prior to playing at the Bass Monster Halloween party Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel, October 28th, in Providence?
My main things I need for a good set are  enough sleep, a good meal, stretching, and a shower. 3-minutes prior to performance the fly will probably see me sitting onstage wondering which track I should open with. Im pretty tame!

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For those of you who are in the New England area this Halloween weekend, come to True Crew and Tight Crew’s “Bass Monster Halloween” show to see Reid Speed in action. Click the flyer for event details.

Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel
79 Washington Street
Providence, RI
Starts 10/28 at 8:00pm
Ends 10/29 at 3:00am

Get your tickets here.

 Photos included in this post are all personal images taken by Reid Speed.