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merging live performance with eclectic bass music selection
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW AND MIX
Born in Texas and raised in Alberta, Hilary now resides in Revelstoke, BC. Her early musical influences departed from the twangy norm to follow the bassy draws and soulful sounds of Brooklyn, Oakland, Havana, Kingston and beyond.
When she isn’t behind the decks, she can be found wandering in the woods, snowboarding, biking, teaching yoga and dancing as a member of 2 Canez, her clowning crew of cane-waving, wig-wearing granny dancers.
She facilitates embodied movement practise with Embodied Rhythms soundtracks that she curates, and her love of Caribbean music and culture can be heard on her thematic Stoke FM radio show, Irie & Fiery.
Dolla Hilz pours love into all of her performances and projects, ever propelled upwards by her passion for spreading joy, love and understanding through music and movement.
Scryer:
For those that aren't familiar with you or your music, who is Dolla Hilz, and what's she all about?
Dolla Hilz:
I got the nickname Dolla Hilz when I was a teenager and that stuck as my handle when I started hosting a radio show. I grew up in Calgary, and was involved in the music scene from an early age, volunteering at the Calgary Folk Fest and Sled Island. I am a music lover with a really broad taste in music, although I particularly love Jamaican influenced sounds with low low frequencies. I live in Revelstoke now, and I started hosting a radio show here on Stoke FM in 2016 called Irie & Fiery, an exploration of Island influenced music. That show ran for 4 years, and in that time I started to learn to mix and edit music. I’ve been mixing music consistently now for over 3 years, and as you can hear in my mix, I love variety. I go for a vibe, not a specific genre or BPM. Aside from mixing music, I am working towards a master’s in counselling psychology, teaching dance and yoga, volunteering at the hospice and spending as much time as I can in the woods, biking, foraging, hiking and snowboarding.
Scryer:
It's cool to hear you got into the scene at such a grassroots level. You've been right in the thick of it doing FM broadcasts too! That's gotta be lots of work, but it sounds like you've been bringing some great energy and good vibes to Revelstoke, and on that note, for the readers abroad, what's the music scene in Revelstoke like?
Dolla Hilz:
Word! Takes one to know one! I can tell you as someone who was super involved with radio for four years that it takes a lot of work and dedication! I strongly believe you need to define what success looks like in your own life; for some, it may be notoriety or money, for me, it’s being involved with something I am truly passionate about in a way that gives back to my community. That’s wealth :) Music and community support and elevate me, and that is the vibe of the scene in Revelstoke, no matter what you are involved with. People live here as a lifestyle choice, and that brings an abundance of authenticity, talent and passion.
The art scene is very small, so you pretty much know everyone. Prior to the pestilence, the music scene was getting really juicy here, with acts like TMSV and Joe Nice gracing our tiny venues. Recently, I’ve been connecting with a young group of up-and-coming DJs and promoters that are throwing small-scale niche events. Linking up with them (shout out Group Research Project) and watching the Revelstoke Art Council grow and flourish has got me so excited for our tiny little scene :)
Scryer:
That's cool to hear, and it's cool to know that the community is still strong and vibrant out there. If the scene is anything like your mixing style, I'm betting it's quite diverse in its tastes!
And speaking of your mix, you really do a great job of it! How do you approach mixing in general, both in a live setting and in the studio?
Dolla Hilz:
Thanks, I really appreciate that compliment! In terms of mixing at parties and events, I have a pretty relaxed approach. I prepare a tracklist (aiming for a vibe), and then I pay attention to what is resonating with people. My goal at any event is to make people dance, and if I can get a few booties poppin' and introduce people to some new music, that is a success!
When I am working on a mix, I have a vibe that I strive for, and aim to take listeners on a musical journey. I spend the majority of my time on track selection, working through the tracklist, finding the space in the tunes and the mix, refining, and by that point, I know what mixes well together and I practice and practice (and practice) until I get a version of the mix that I am happy with. I dance my way through the whole process!
I am really proud of how this mix turned out, the tracklist is a selection of tunes I’ve collected from the last year (plus) that I think will hit with Sub Chakra’s following. I chose mostly conscious hip hop lyrics from some of my all-time favourite MC’s: Rider Shafique, Finnoh, Sa Roc and Brother Ali to name a few. I was super happy to include some of my fav low end producers hailing from White Peach & Innamind recording labels, and I popped in a few tracks I felt like we all needed to hear, a fresh one from the late Lee Scratch Perry, a beauty from Mungo’s Hi-Fi and there is even a sample from a Bulgarian women’s choir from the 1980’s (Costals - Vagabond/Andalucía). Why not?
Scryer:
That Bulgarian choir stuck out like a sore thumb in the best way imaginable. It definitely put a smile on my face, but it was one of many over the span of your hour-and-43 minutes in the Sub Chakra spotlight. It's a fantastic listen from start to finish. The dub, the hip hop, the jungle... yeah, it makes for a wild ride! On behalf of everyone that tunes in, we appreciate the conscious curation of such select sounds. So now, what are your plans with music in the coming year/decade/century?
Dolla Hilz:
Oh my gosh, thank you! You’re really pumpin’ up my tires, I’m stoked that at least one person loved the Bulgarian touch, I love polka! I remember the Calgary Folk Festival afterparties would book the best bands, and year after year, there would be a polka band that would have us dancing like maniacs for the duration of their set!
My musical goals... I would LOVE to play on stacks of STACKS! Put my vibe-selecting skills to work and puppet-master a dance floor in front of a fired-up crowd on a beauty system! That is a life goal that I am working towards right now, I even drew a picture of it (available upon request). Pretty much right around the time I started to feel confident playing shows, the world shut down, so I just haven’t had the opportunity yet, but I can tell you that I’m READY! Put me in coach!!
With number one out of the way, this year, I’m really looking forward to playing community events as they continue to pop up, and creating a few more mixes for my embodied movement practice. It’s a pretty neat experience to teach a dance or yoga class/workshop to a mix that you created specifically for that purpose. I will continue to create mixes, as I find the process fun, cathartic and rewarding, and I’m keen to collaborate with some of my favourite platforms and musically-inclined homies.
The future is bright! I will continue to pour love into everything I do, whether it’s playing sets at festivals when they return, learning to produce my own tracks, or going on tour! There have also been whispers of a future in pirate radio, but I’ve already said too much!
Scryer:
Your passion shines through in your words as much as it does in your DJing! It's been a slice getting to know you and to learn a little bit about what's happening in the Revelstoke scene.
On behalf of everyone here, I'd like to extend a big ol' "thank you" and some double-barrel fingerguns for sharing your music and craft with us. And don't worry, we won't tell pirate radio you mentioned anything!