Pinks is no stranger to the graft it takes to carve out a career in music; from lockdown streams, late-night production sessions, shellin countless club nights and festival performances. She’s been steadily building her foundation from the ground up, and with her hometown debut headline show with Diversion Audio, an upcoming UK jungle and d&b collective this Saturday December 21.
With a Thailand tour to close out 2024 it’s clear she’s covering all bases to set herself up for a monumental 2025. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. First stop, her debut headline show! The Hi Vis Christmas from Diversion Audio at The Castle, London.
To celebrate, Diversion Audio founder Randoma has contributed to our MIXMAS series with this mental mix. Press play and get to know all things Pinks and Diversion Audio…
You recently released a dubstep mix with Wibbly Wobblers, which is quite different from your usual dnb, jungle, and bouncy 4×4 sound. What inspired you to start exploring the world of dubstep?
Pinks: When I was first introduced to bass music and raving it was actually through dubstep! I was introduced to it through the UKF YouTube channel in the 2010s, I was a teenager at the time and me and my friends used to hang out listening to it. The first raves I ever went to were dubstep free parties in East London and Essex, so I’ve always loved it. Dubstep is really having a comeback, especially the deeper sound which I’m thrilled to see. I started throwing in dubstep, ukg, and bassline sections in my dnb sets so it felt like a natural progression to record a full dubstep mix! I recently played a ukg, bassline, and dubstep set for Wibbly Wobblers’ debut event which was wicked craic.
Since your DJing is multi-genre, do you see yourself exploring that same versatility within the production side of your career?
Pinks: A hundred percent! I’ve been making a lot of ukg and dubstep lately and have some plans to collab with artists in the new year to make more, but that’s all I can say for now!
Okay wicked, so on your TikTok, you combine rave fashion with body positivity. Why do those two things resonate so strongly for you? And do you have any future plans to further explore the connection between rave fashion and mental health?
Pinks: I’ve noticed that rave fashion often lacks size inclusivity and as a plus-sized person who likes to express themselves through fashion it’s incredibly frustrating. Fashion is intrinsic to communicating your identity to the outside world, so when a whole culture that you are part of doesn’t commonly have accessible sizing it can feel like you aren’t able to fit in
I have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome which makes it harder for me to lose weight even though I work out regularly and eat relatively healthy, but even so I have noticed that I’ve been treated differently by some promoters and industry people when I’ve been a smaller size. Fatphobia is a very real thing!
I do have some plans to explore the connection between body shaming/fatphobia and mental health as a whole which can be translated to rave fashion and rave culture. There’s so much to unpack – perpetual body shaming can leave young girls more vulnerable to grooming for example. It’s common for girls to be told they’ll never find love if they’re overweight. At such a young and impressionable age, this can make them more susceptible to being taken advantage of.
I’ve heard loads of awful stories of fat shaming and I’ve been body shamed myself. This is something we will address more in 2025 on 1 More Thing. Back to your art, I love how you incorporate spoken word and poetry into your music. What inspired you to take this approach, especially since it’s so different from the current sounds circulating in d&b?
Pinks: In 2019, my Aunty Linda, who I was incredibly close to, passed away, and I was asked to do a reading at her funeral. I’d always written poetry, but after that, I couldn’t stop writing. It felt like her final message to me was to use my voice. That inspired me to experiment with combining my spoken word with dnb, and the moment I tried it, everything just clicked.
From streaming on Facebook in your home studio to now headlining a show—how does it feel to be headlining on home turf for the first time?
Pinks: Pretty crazy to be honest! I’m really excited for this headline show, the lineup is filled with some amazing up-and-coming talent and I’ve got Missy P hosting me who’s an insanely talented MC. I had a real full circle moment this weekend when I saw Nero at Drumsheds who I used to listen to when I first got into dubstep, the crowd was insane, I was with friends who I’d made through DJing jumping around and singing along to Promises, I just thought “Isn’t it mental that I used to listen to this song in my best mates bedroom and now I’m listening to it live at Drumsheds a week before my headline show.”
I would love to go back to when I was doing streams during lockdown to tell myself about what I’m achieving now!
On top of your headline show, you’re ending the year with a Thailand tour, including the infamous Full Moon Party! How did this tour come together?
Pinks: Yes, it’s such an exciting time for me! I played in Krabi last year for Krabi drum n bass which was my Thai debut but am now doing a tour! I had quite a rough time with my personal life this year and started 2024 in a way that I wasn’t very pleased with. So I wanted to start 2025 in a totally different country and new place, doing what I love. I reached out to @dnb.thailand on Instagram and Paul T and Edward Oberon, who shared a list of promoters across the country. I also made a TikTok asking for contacts and advice, which led MC R Vee to get in touch. He connected me with several people and shared loads of helpful advice as well! As it stands, I’ll be playing in Phuket, Koh Phangan, and Krabi with more potential locations to be announced.
Before we have a few words from Diversions head honcho Randoma, do you have for up-and-coming DJs, who have yet to learn how to get themselves out there the way you have?
Pinks: Networking is really important. Get out there to raves that you aren’t playing and meet people, link up with other DJs that you vibe with and have a mix. Make connections and have fun! Also, if you’re feeling like there are opportunities that you want but aren’t getting, within reason see if you can organise them yourself.
Randoma, thanks for your mix. It slaps! Tell us all about Diversion Audio…
Randoma: Diversion is all about showcasing up-and-coming talent and helping people push themselves forward. Our goal is to grow the brand to a point where artists who live and breathe this music – artists who put their all into it – can use our platform as a spotlight to get the recognition they deserve.
When I got more involved with the London dnb scene, I realised there’s so much incredible talent out there, but not enough opportunities or spaces to help these artists shine. That’s where we want to come in – we want to bridge that gap and give people a proper chance to flourish.
I know we can curate something really special – events that stand out, bringing together good people, creating good vibes, and most importantly making it fun for everyone involved.
What drew you to Pinks for the headline slot of your winter show?
Randoma: Pinks is a phenomenal DJ and has been smashing it ever since we met her. Her sets are always super energetic and fun, but she also has a deep knowledge of the genre, meaning they’re diverse – not a set goes by where Shazam doesn’t come out!
What really stands out about Pinks is how she can really read a crowd. She has this way of keeping people locked in, whether it’s a heavy tune, an anthem or a deep cut that makes you stop and ask, “Da fuq is this one?” Her ability to connect with the crowd aligns perfectly with what Diversion is all about.
You’re super committed to your marketing—whenever there’s an event, you’re right at the front in your cone costume with a bunch of your friends, also in cone costumes. How did you come up with the name Diversion and everything that comes with it?
Randoma: It’s quite simple, really. I was driving about with a mate spitballing names for the promotion when something brilliant happened – we hit a massive Diversion and I gasped Could this be the name!?
The moment I got home, I started searching high and low and quickly realised the name wasn’t taken. I loved everything about it: the colours of the diversion signs, the arrows, the way it was instantly recognisable. I just started bursting with ideas – it all clicked, and I knew I’d found the name.
As for the cones and Anconio himself, that was a happy accident! I was prepping for Boomtown and thought, What can we dress up as that’s traffic-related? That’s when I stumbled across human-sized traffic cone costumes – so I ordered 12! What I love about it is it brings an element of fun and silliness. That’s one thing I’ve always been about, not taking life too seriously, only when it gets serious.
While having a gender-balanced and diverse lineup should be the bare minimum, it’s still not always the norm in the industry. What drives you to prioritize diversity in your lineups?
Randoma: There’s a few reasons for this, Pinks was one of my first DJ mates in London, she introduced me to so many incredible artists, most of whom were female. When I started thinking about lineups, they just came naturally and ended up being predominantly female artists which was really cool.
It genuinely baffles me how you can see a lineup of 16 DJs with only one or two women. There are so many amazingly talented female DJs now that those numbers don’t make sense anymore. I get that there are more male DJs as a percentage, but the balance should still be better, especially at the top levels.
Diversity in our lineups always comes together naturally, because I’ve built relationships with like-minded artists from all walks of life – people of different shapes, sizes, and backgrounds. The one thing they all share though, is they’re all human, and I treat everyone with the same baseline of respect without a second thought.
Having a diverse lineup makes the events better—it adds depth to the music, creates a more dynamic atmosphere, and makes the crowd feel more inclusive. What’s exciting is that I believe, as younger generations take the lead, this issue will start to resolve itself. But for now, it’s up to all of us to keep pushing things forward.
I know future plans are usually kept under wraps before the big announcement, but is there anything coming up that you can share with us?
Randoma: You want the inside scoop, eh? Well, let me tell you something! 2025 is shaping up to be an incredible year for Diversion. We’ve already announced our first event in Guildford, with the legendary Bryan Gee doing a 90-minute headline set (can’t wait for this one – it’s not like my first ever proper tattoo was the V Recordings logo).
Beyond that, we’ve just locked in headliners for two amazing events – one in March and one in April. The April event is going to be our biggest ever. On both events we’re teaming up with another brilliant London promotion – it’s set to be something really special. We’ll be announcing all of this in the not too distant future, so stay tuned!!
On top of the events, we’ve got some exciting projects in the works. Let’s just say we have our sights set on being far more than just a promotion. 2025 is going to be a year of graft, but I quite simply cannot wait for it.