Jess (Jjess) Ajoke grew up in east London, established her DJ career after leaving university in 2017. Since then, she’s navigated the music industry from all angles, working in radio production, playing clubs and festivals, and curating a professional identity online. Starting work in radio production for the BBC was a way in, though Jess describes the constraints it had on her creativity. This encouraged her to navigate the industry on her own; “I wanted to explore how the different sounds in my head could sound to others […] explore my own avenues and work on my own terms.” By carving out spaces that once felt unattainable, Jess has found creative agency and a stronger sense of identity.
“My background’s in radio,” Jess tells me. “That’s actually how I got into DJing. I was working with [people] that played so many different genres of music. It opened my ears and my mind to all the different sounds out there.” “I always wanted to DJ, I just didn’t really know how to start. I still didn’t feel like I could call myself a DJ […] for a few years.” This separation came from a feeling of inaccessibility. As a Black woman navigating a predominantly white cis-male industry, Jess recalls feeling anxious in certain spaces: “It was as though I didn’t really belong [in them].”
Jess (Jjess) Ajoke
