Compiled by In the Key, this directory is designed to help you discover new music from female, trans and non-binary electronic music producers. Organised alphabetically and by genre, the details provided are taken from the artists’ public profiles – ItK is impartial and is not endorsing, or affiliated with anyone listed here. This is by no means an exhaustive list, so please feel free to suggest producers we may have missed, and please help us keep the Directory current by letting us know of any broken links, or incorrect information.
DJ MELL G
Producer based in Hamburg, Germany.
Ebhoni
Producer based in Toronto, Canada.
Elisa Bee
Producer based in Milan, Italy.
Record collector, producer, but first and foremost a DJ, in the last 13 years Elisa Bee lived and breathed music. Having already spun, amongst others, at venues such as Air in Tokyo, Onzieme in Osaka, Tresor, about:blank and Wilde Renate in Berlin, Tenax in Florence, Magazzini Generali in Milan, Nouveau Casino in Paris, Black Market in Manila and performed for brands such as Nike, Adidas, Diesel, Reebok, Huawei, Sony, Antonio Marras, Dazed & Confused to name a few, Elisa’s name has quickly become to be reckoned and demanded also from record labels. It’s in 2017 that Elisa’s profile grabbed the attention of UK artist DJ Haus, who signed her “Mind Game” mini LP for his own imprint “Unknown To The Unknown”. The EP got widely welcomed by the international press and artists scene, with Dixon, Len Faki, Benji B and Roman Flugel showing their love for “Mind Game”, “Pulsar” and “Awaken” more than once in their sets. Lots of tracks and remixes came out in 2018 and 2019, when Elisa landed on Kneaded Pains (Dense & Pika’s label) with her “See You There” four tracks EP. 2020 is the year of Elisa’s debut on Posthuman’s label Balkan Vinyl (UK): with “Orbit” EP she reveals once again her multi-genre attitude, exploring Techno, Acid and 90’s UK Rave sounds. Aside from her studio and gigs duties, Elisa is now hosting a monthly residency on the independent web radio Radio Raheem in Milan. What to expect from Elisa’s future? For sure she’ll keep on collecting records ranging from almost every genre, be it house, techno or hip hop, reggae or jazz, likewise she’ll keep on rocking dance floors around the world, releasing new records and generally spreading good vibes wherever she is.
Hannah Holland/Batty Bass
Producer based in London, UK.
Hannah Holland has played a pivotal role in London’s alternative and queer London club scene since the mid-noughties, arriving on dancefloors sharing electro tinged techno but equally inspired by the influential sounds of DnB and jungle heard at legendary parties such as Metalheadz, which she had frequented in her early teens. The cultural melting pot of London, community, musical exploration and the transcendent potential of dancefloor have always been her biggest inspiration. Having already been “borrowing” (and perhaps never since returning) Kraftwerk, Grace Jones and Talking Heads records from her parents, the influence of this metropolitan musical soup ensured that Holland emerged on the decks with a unique musical character and diverse taste, hallmarks of her sound that she has not lost since, whether undertaking residencies at iconic parties such as Trailer Trash, rocking Glastonbury’s hedonistic and spectacular NYC Downlow, or undertaking far-reaching marathon sets at Berlin’s Panorama Bar. Founded in 2009 as both a record label and party, Batty Bass began Holland’s outlet to explore the disparate strains of electro, acid, techno and house that drive her charismatic DJ sets forward, delivering party-friendly wax cuts from like-minded producers such as Josh Caffe, The Carry Nation, Mama, Lauren Flax and Justin Robertson’s Deadstock 33s. The imprint also provided Holland with a self-determined platform for her own music, memorably including ‘Paris’ Acid Ball’, an acid-tinged anthem that continues to summon voguing sweat in queer spaces worldwide. Holland scored another anthemic moment in 2017, in collaboration with longtime friend and creative partner Josh Caffe on ‘Fade To Me’, released on Crosstown Rebels, following the ‘Lush EP’ ft. IMMA/MESS, via seminal UK house imprint, Classic Music. Meanwhile, her powerful remixes of DJ Hell, Goldfrapp, The Knife, Planningtorock remain as forward-thinking and exciting as the acts themselves. In 2019, Batty Bass will release a wealth of new material from Holland herself, developed alongside her role writing, producing and playing with the dark-pop band, Black Gold Buffalo, who released their self-titled, long-awaited debut album in 2018. Capturing much of the same rave euphoria and timeless sound in her early work, Holland’s upcoming releases reflect the changes in the landscape of UK dance. Recent appearances have included Fabric for the extravagant Lovechild/Vogue Ball, alongside the notorious London underground parties Savage, Chapter 10 and Adonis. On the fringes of the capital, Holland is a regular at the annual Field Manuevers boutique festival, and across the Atlantic, has guested at the infamous US rave The Carry Nation, alongside her recurring appointments at Panorama Bar in Berlin.
Joyce Muniz
Producer based in Berlin Germany and Vienna, Austria.
In the day and age where anyone can become a producer or a DJ with a laptop and a bit of cheap software, the real polymaths stand out. Joyce Muniz’s background as a singer combines in powerful synergy with her slick production sound and her supreme skills as a selector, with each facet of her creative output feeding into and fuelling one another.
Rose Bonica
Producer based in Cape Town, South Africa.
Rose Bonica is a live electronic act, music producer and visual artist based in Cape Town, South Africa. Rose’s production style is complex, self taught and unpredictable. The layering of her sounds can feel like anything from astral projection, a warm sunny picnic with friends on the side of a lake to a hard core torture technique. Unexpected sounds illustrate the authenticity of Rose’s private production process that happens in her studio overlooking the ocean in the small coastal town of Hout Bay in South Africa where she has lived her whole life. Her work is a reflection of her perspective on everything from love and pain to the joys of domestic cats or the experience of navigating a world in crisis.
Shygirl
Producer based in London, UK.
Blane Muise, better known by her stage name Shygirl, is an English rapper, DJ, singer, songwriter and co-head/founder of record label and collective NUXXE.