Ludo: So we’re kind of fighting towards normality.
Elkka: A balance, yeah. Balance is what should be normal, and I feel like that’s what we’re trying to achieve. I’m going to ask you this in a second, but for me, it’s about encouraging and elevating each other so we get to where we want to be and create our spaces ourselves, I think it’s about building platforms for each other. It’s not about, you know, the percentage. I think the percentage of female writers for PRS was about fifteen percent, which is terrible, but I think it’s up to us to fight and push on, and there’s a reason why I didn’t produce until this point in my career, because I didn’t feel like it was my place to. But now I feel like we’ve just got to disrupt that and allow everybody to have the chance, and we try to be proactive with that, with our events and our club nights. Sometimes I think people misunderstand and think that we’re trying to be anti something, anti-men, it’s not that at all, we’re just trying to rebalance what’s going on. But do you feel like the criticism we get sometimes is from having the name Femme Culture? This is a conversation we had at the beginning as well, like, is this limiting? The last thing we want to do is limit who we can collaborate with and who we can push.

Ludo: So, obviously there are double standards. If there was a record label called ‘The Guys’ Club, or whatever, we would sign to that. It would be fine. I’d definitely still DJ at an event promoted by GOLDEN BOYZ records. But it doesn’t work the other way around. I think the problem is, for instance, we put together a compilation for the UN Women to raise money for this campaign called HeForShe, which is all about equalising rights. So when we were gathering tracks for the campaign, we would sometimes have artists saying, “Oh, but you know I’m not queer? I may have a female artist name but I’m actually a straight man and I’m not sure I’m fit for this.” That is where the problem starts. Just because an issue isn’t your issue or you’re not affected by it, that doesn’t mean it’s not your responsibility to proactively try and be a part of the solution. I guess that’s why the fight exists, and we are living in this historical moment where we’ve reached a breaking point and we’re in this moment of chaos…
Elkka: And change…

Ludo: …And change. Whenever there is change, the balance shifts too, so we’re trying to provide a stable lane within this imbalanced world. Sometimes it feels like to elevate you need to knock somebody else down, but what we’re trying to do is make sure that this is not the case. All communities and minorities need equal spotlight. It’s obviously very utopian as well, but I think our mission is now to elevate together at no one’s expense.
Elkka: That’s the thing with change, sometimes you don’t feel comfortable, but because so many people have felt uncomfortable for so long – for various different reasons – this is why we’re in this time at the moment, because it’s reached a breaking point where something had to happen. I went to the Trump march, the first one, before we started doing this properly, and it was so inspiring to see the turn-out, and it was everyone, you know, it wasn’t just women there fighting for women’s rights, it was really exciting. But what’s going to happen tomorrow? We will all go home. So I really wanted to start doing something tangible and proactive. That’s when I decided to take this really seriously and make things happen, and I think that’s what’s happening at the moment, people can really make a difference and create something themselves and for their communities. You’ve Discwoman in New York, an incredible female-led booking agency, there are collectives and club nights like Pxssy Palace, who are another collective who provide safe spaces for everybody to go on a night out, it’s very queer-friendly. For me personally, going there was kind of life-changing because I felt like I could express myself and allow myself to just be free, it’s actually quite hard to find places that are like that, even in London. We’re just a part of that, we’re just a very small part of trying to make a difference, which we’re really proud of. I think that good people want to make good things happen and so we only work with people that we feel have that kind of energy, otherwise it doesn’t work.

Ludo: What do you think about the ‘trend’ of feminism?
Elkka: I didn’t set this up to maximise on what’s perceived as a ‘trendy feminist movement’, and if anyone ever thought that of us I’d be really disappointed. The only way to prove that we’re not doing that is by being around for the next decade and doing what we do, which is our plan. The conversation where it is a trend is a difficult one. Yes there are companies capitalising on it being a topical subject at the moment, but if a ten-year-old ends up wearing a t-shirt from H&M with ‘feminist’ written on it and feels empowered or curious about what it is – I can’t help but think that is a good thing.

Ludo: Actually we saw this in Los Angeles, when we were at a speech there and a mom was holding a little girl who had the ‘feminist’ t-shirt on and we were just like, ”Yes, Mom.”
Elkka: The simple fact is that this isn’t going to change overnight. But for me, this isn’t a short-term thing, and even if tomorrow miraculously things changed, we’d still be putting our parties on and creating safe spaces for people, putting on exhibitions, raising money for charity, because there is always a need for a good party and a good cause, I feel like that’s never going to stop.

Ludo: I think the fact is, when people do refer to it as a trend it’s insulting, because you’re talking about real people and real situations, so there’s no expiration date. We are just fulfilling a need that we felt within our community. So this is not a trend, this is not a temporary conversation because this is talking about our lives, this is what we stand for, this is what we live for, this is our job, this is our passion, this is our love, our peer’s love, this is who we are.
Elkka: YES LUDO! Also, I think it’s great that women are starting to have a more balanced existence within the arts and other industries, there are many people that are underrepresented and overlooked, so, for us, it doesn’t just stop at balance for women.

Ludo: What do you think about London’s nightlife scene in terms of inclusivity and safe spaces?
Elkka: So for one of our last parties we brought over BADSISTA from São Paulo, Brazil, which was amazing. Her London debut was a crazy, sweaty party, it was beautiful and it was one of my favourite nights. It was at one of our favourite locations, Alibi in Dalston, which is having to close down sadly. You hear about a place closing and you’re not surprised but it does hurt because it feels like we’re going to run out of spaces to do these things and have places to go where we feel safe to express ourselves. Ludo, do you feel like we’re at risk of losing somewhere to put on events, champion people, places to go? You live in East London.

Ludo: It is really sad, Alibi closing broke my heart because I was there every single week and it’s like our spot in Dalston, so you could always go there any night and you knew that you’re going to bump into your friends and you can just have a drink or get absolutely hammered, it doesn’t matter because you have a spot where you can go. So I’m sad, but I am not worried that London’s nightlife or London’s cultural scene is going to die, its just going to change, it’s just evolution.
Elkka: But, with the new time restrictions the Council are putting on venues, it’s clear that it’s all about development and property and people making money. But I don’t really understand, for instance, why Sadiq Khan has allowed this to happen, I think it could be really damaging and it’s really frustrating because I think that scene brings so much to so many people. I think what comes from it is that we just find new spaces to go. But I do feel like there is an element of being pushed out.

Ludo: It’s just history repeating itself. Hip-hop went through every neighbourhood in New York because it kept getting pushed out, they make it a cool area to be, it becomes appealing, and then the powers want to capitalise on it. This has happened throughout history. It’s really sad and frustrating but it’s not going to stop us.
Elkka: We’ll just go rave in a field if necessary, we’re always going to find something [laughs]. London is a fucking great place to party.

Follow Femme Culture here.

Interview originally published in HEROINE 9.

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