Aya
“When I’m at the booth, I’m fully myself and I can embrace all my strengths and vulnerabilities,” begins Ayano Ueno. By day, the Yokohama native is a flight attendant. By night, she takes her place behind the decks as DJ Aya—spinning for local label Midnight Shift and events collective Thugshop. “DJing is like an anchor that guides me back to myself when I feel lost. I can confront and overcome challenges without fear of failing and I’m constantly driven by my curiosity and ambition to learn and improve as an artist as well as an individual. It brings excitement and optimism into my life and it’s where I can evolve and grow as a person.”
Having first discovered her love for electronic dance music at raves while living in San Diego, Ueno began learning to DJ through bedroom sessions with friends after moving to Singapore for work. “It was a moment of finding my passion. I got decks and jammed by
