Artist Spotlight: Lex on the Decks

Lex on the Decks is the epitome of multi-faceted.

A DJ, radio host and artist to name a few of her ventures, it’s remarkable the amount of graft Lex is putting in, and it’s paying off. The fourth season of her ‘Hot Girls’ series began in May, a podcast designed to  continue the conversation of underrepresentation in music with an array of new guests as well as paying respects to ground breakers with well researched biography episodes. Lex also has her own magazine called Cleopatras which focuses on the achievements of women across a variety of industries, as well as rising within the DJ sector, making her name spinning afro and organic house with residencies on Bloop London And Trickstar Radio.

I caught up with Lex to discuss her many artistic ventures, the importance of maintaining authenticity, and her view on the increasingly vibrant UK scene.

It’s simply incredible how many different creative endeavours you are currently pursuing! How do you deal with time management? 

Aw thank you! Yes, I have a few balls in the air. I’m very protective of my time and very conscious of how I’m spending it. And that starts in the morning - I get up around 6am and then I generally work through the weekend. I’m definitely an advocate for hard work because in my experience that’s the only way to guarantee results for yourself. 

Which aspect of your vocation are you most passionate about? Why?

I had to think about this really hard! (lol) but honestly, I think it’s actually interviewing people. I really love hearing and sharing people’s stories and journeys. Seeing their passion always makes me feel a nice kinship. Close second is DJing out, because it is just the most fun thing ever. A banging song that you love + a good crowd of people hungry to dance. Ugh. Love it.  

 I know you mostly spin tech and organic house, but what kind of music do you personally listen to? What artists have caught your attention this year?

I listen to such a broad range of music depending on my mood. A lot of rap and rnb as well as house. Artists this year... Bellah would be one, Fred Again, Band&Dos who are Latin American, Late Replies have been super consistent this year, and then also recently TSHA; what a talent! In the electronic scene I think Blackchild (ITA) is probably my ‘artist of the year’. 

What’s your opinion on the underground UK scene? We at The Pit are really excited about the direction it is heading in, would you agree? 

I would absolutely agree! I think it’s thriving! There are some great venues and spaces opening up, there’s a lot of people proudly backing the underground and building economies around it. I think people are genuinely so hungry to get out again and dance as well as come together as a community. Everything starts in the underground. You know I think the great thing about streaming channels is you as an individual can find the music that you really love and often that’s more niche than you could get on commercial radio or charts, so it definitely creates space for a diverse underground scene.

I know you play and have started to curate events - how has it been coming back to that post lockdown? 

So fun. Honestly so fun. My own events I’ve actually pushed to next year to focus on production this year, but being able to play out again and get inspired for that has been so energising. 

Within the industry, individuality and authenticity is a really difficult thing to attain. How do you manage to remain true to yourself? 

This is true. I think the secret to it is firstly making sure you spend enough time checking in with yourself and then making sure you’re only surrounding yourself with people who get who you are. Get what you stand for, what you want to create and what it means to you to create authentically. I also think it’s important to build your own business model or infrastructure. Otherwise, if someone else is really holding the purse strings for your career then you’re more vulnerable to their sways. Creative people need to create and they need to love their output. I think that’s mandatory for self-preservation. 

How did your magazine ‘Cleopatras’ come about, and how does it help support the achievements of women across the creative industries? 

A couple of years ago, a series of events had me questioning why I’d made certain decisions in my life. I did a lot of reading of old philosophy and different kinda ‘self-growth’ type books and reached the conclusion that there was an information gap in what women needed to know to be able to build their business and careers, vs what was often presented. So I created Cleopatras to answer that. We work to tell really transparent stories of women both in front and behind the scenes - how they’ve overcome certain challenges, things which have guided them etc. Knowledge is power!   

Your Apple Music charted Podcast, ‘Hot Girls’ is in its 4th series. The show sees you discuss issues like underrepresentation in the music business. How much of an issue do you see this, and how do you think it can change for the better? 

Yeah, I mean if you look at the stats it’s a huge and often overlooked issue. The reason I think it is so important is because of how culture speaks to young people and influences their view of the world. We need to be hearing diverse voices on the radio, seeing them on stages, and across different platforms. The mechanics are there in terms of groups working to address the issue, platforms which are technically super-democratic. As in, anyone can upload to soundcloud/spotify etc. It’s just making sure that what gets filtered and funnelled through the industry is representative of the huge spread of talent out there!

In your opinion how can we, as listeners, aid in the battle for diversity within the music industry? 

Care about it and be conscious of it. That’s really the most important thing. And care about it in demographics which you yourself don’t sit in as a minority - that’s also important I think. 

I know you are going to be releasing music soon. What can we expect from you in that respect? 

Thank you! Yes, I’m super excited! Many hours of studio time. It’s house based, definitely influenced by what I like to play out but I’ve been creating both more radio-esque tracks and club latin-house vibes. At the moment I’m not working on an EP or singular project, as I just want to get these tracks out, but will probably look to do an EP next year. 

What else is to come from you in the future? 

I have plans [winks] definitely being more visible on the club and festival circuit and getting my sound out there. Some things I like to be in front of, some I like taking the BTS role… ultimately I really do want to shape the industry of the future and make it a thriving one. Because, what is life without music?!