Remixing Biographies: Honey Dijon
Below is a rewrite of Honey Dijon’s biography as found on SoundCloud, complemented with information found on Wikipedia, an article on Crack Magazine, and another article in the New York Times. An attempt at improving the basics — using the active voice, removing clichés, putting the emphasis on the right places, fixing punctuation and spelling, and generally shortening things — it is also a personal exercise in applying “The Elements of Style”.
Honey Dijon has carved a distinct niche for herself in the world of dance music: forward thinking productions of her own, and cross-genre DJ sets, that, wherever played — be it Berghain, Space, or Smart Bar—result in total dance-floor chaos.
Born and raised in Chicago, the city’s music scene was an early influence. She fell in love with the soul and R&B records played by her parents at their basement parties, and when she became the one dropping the needle, there was no turning back; club life called.
Obsessively collecting tracks from local record stores such as Imports Etc and Gramaphone, Honey further developed her taste, and laid the groundwork for the style for which she is known today. While digging in the crates Honey also met Derrick Carter; the man who became her friend, mentor, and introduced her to the jacking sounds of Chicago House and Detroit Techno.
Having relocated to New York City, Honey met another musical giant: Danny Tenaglia. Honey describes Danny’s influence on her sound as a DJ, “The drama of his delivery and his risk taking always informed me of how I wanted to present music. Of course, Derrick and Chicago house were also very influential in my development as an artist, so it’s this combination of Chicago and New York that has helped me develop my signature sound.”
Blending Chicago’s bump with more classic New York sounds and European influences, Honey’s signature sound can now be heard in recorded mixes on various online platforms. But it is witnessing her live performances — her subtle mixing skills and the deft, almost sensuous transitions between house and techno delivering a warm, hypnotic vibe — that fully reveals her power.
In the studio, Honey blends her unique musical background with a forward-looking perspective, surprising her audience with her fresh take on dance music through her releases and remixes on Classic Records, and her collaborations with others artists such as Beyoncé and Madonna.
As a child, Honey also fell in love with art, fashion and photography. “When I was very young fashion offered me a world that was different from where I came from. I grew up on the south side of Chicago. I could get lost in the fantasy of a photograph or an editorial spread in a magazine. It was an escape from the everyday. The possibility of a more beautiful life.” She has followed this early interest into her current work curating the music for Louis Vuitton’s men’s shows, and her close collaboration with British designer Kim Jones.
An in-demand speaker and contributor on issues surrounding gender in club culture, Honey makes regular appearances on high profile platforms such as Red Bull Music’ Fireside Chat and Kindness Radio show. A gender-blurring style icon, The New York Times Style section profiled her, and she has featured in The Gentlewoman.
Honey’s approach to style also tells us about her own plucky approach to life: “Style to me is not so much about the clothes you wear but how you live your life in them. I am more interested in how a person walks, their conversation, ideas, confidence, and courage to live life on their own terms.”
