September has just arrived, and although summer may be ending, festival season is still in full swing. Especially in Southern California, where the newest festival series offering the most eclectic and unique musical acts is none other than CRSSD Festival in San Diego. Their fall edition, better known as #CRSSDtober will be their 4th event, and will bring out many big names like Miike Snow, ZHU, Claptone and more.
But one particular DJ has found their way onto each lineup since its inception, and that is San Diego resident and 4 on the floor maestro Lee K. The rightfully placed resident has had quite the year already; getting to perform at Coachella, Outside Lands, and completing a solo tour throughout South America. We had the opportunity to chat with Lee K about her experience with CRSSD, touring South America, and her new label which has just launched.
What has it been like to be able to kick off a new musical movement like CRSSD and represent it with your music? The scene in San Diego has developed immensely since the introduction of the event.
I feel very fortunate to be a part of the movement and see the festival flourish, because it means that something that we've been passionate about and working towards for so long is finally ready to expand to something of that scale. 5 years ago it would have been difficult to bring some of the talent that is present on the lineup and hope that it resonates with that many people. Me being involved as a resident DJ is really just an added bonus. I'm very grateful to be along for the ride in my hometown.
We've noticed that you completed your first tour through Latin America. Tell us about your experience.
It was that exactly - an experience. It's the longest I've been on the road at one time and did it solo which can be daunting, only because being in airports, airplanes and hotels alone for extended periods of time like that can make you go slightly crazy. Latin Americans are very passionate and educated on the musical front, which makes for very interactive and energy-filled dance floors. There is a lot of emotion being sent back and forth between the DJ and the crowd. They were some of the best nights I've experienced yet. I'll return early October to play in Lima as well as to go back to Argentina.
Your new label is ready to launch with its first release, and we'd like to know all about it! What goals are you set on achieving with your imprint?
I receive a lot of great music from artists whose music I play out. Starting a label is something that's been on my mind for years, so when I started getting more and more unsigned promos last year, I thought, why not start now? I'm not going into it with too rigid a plan - I think it's good to be flexible and see where things go. But I do know that I would like to grow it into something special and personal, familial, and be able to do my part to support artists I believe in and connect with. We had our first release on Monday with Ricardo Espino's "Yards" EP and have a two-track EP from a young artist from El Paso named Raul Facio coming out in a few weeks.
Richie Hawtin has picked you to open up some of his ENTER. events. How has he directly or indirectly involved you since you started your career?
I've been lucky to play on several gigs with Rich. We met at one of his events in LA a few years ago and hit it off chatting about Ibiza. Several months later I was asked to play the Los Angeles stop of his CNTRL tour and following that, several other ENTER. events as well as the Essential Mix Live show in LA. His team is great to work with and these always make for memorable nights!
Any other big news you'd like to share?
There are some festivals and other gigs before the end of the year that are unannounced at the moment but that I'm very much looking forward to. And I can't divulge too many details... but you may see some material from myself released before the end of the year. Stay tuned.
