If you’ve ever danced your heart out in The George over the past 30 years, chances are you’ve done so to the sound of DJ Karen Reddy behind the decks.
A legend of Dublin’s queer nightlife and DJ scene, DJ Karen has been spinning bangers, dodging “ridiculous” song requests, and keeping the dancefloor heaving.
In this interview, DJ Karen chats about how she finds new musical inspirations, the wildest requests she’s ever had shouted at her mid-set, and reveals a not-so-secret truth: the drag queens at The George party way harder than the DJs.
What do you think makes The George stand out in Dublin’s nightlife scene?
“Over the years, I’ve noticed – or more so felt – that if people come and go, say if they move away and they come back, it’s always said that it’s like a home from home at The George.
“Nothing has changed in a good way; it’s still the same. They feel safe in the venue, they know they’re gonna have a good time, and they just love being able to come back and feel welcomed.”
What’s your favourite night of the week at The George — and why?
“I love the energy of Thirsty Thursdays. Davina brings a lot of energy, and she’s a brilliant drag. I love Thursdays. I love Sundays. I love bingo.
“My favourite night to DJ is actually Tuesdays, because I can get away with murder. I can play around with my mixes, and no one really kind of bats an eyelid. I can go down a little housey route instead of staying to the pop route, and I love the energy that brings.
“On a Saturday night, Conor Behan plays brilliant music; they all love a good sing-along in The George. Saturday nights are bloody ballistic there. Sometimes you can’t even hear the music, you can just hear the crowd singing.”
What role does music play in creating a safe space for the queer community?
“Music lets them be themselves. It lets people express themselves.
“Even still today, I find a lot of people in the gay community are kind of locked in a certain stereotypical way, and they present one way outside the venue, and then sometimes will present completely different when they’re inside the venue.
“They feel safer, and they can express themselves, and they can dance widely, or they can just sit talking to people. The music just makes people gel better.
“It lets you express yourself, and that’s what music should do. It should let you express feelings and emotions, and just dance them off. You can see someone on the dancefloor; if they’re angry, they’re having an angry dance. And you can see someone having a lovely dance.
“I love people watching when I DJ and seeing how the music evokes emotions.”
Speaking of people watching, it must be interesting having a bird’s eye view of the entire night from start to finish?
“It’s kind of gas because in that DJ box – and I love that DJ box for that reason, because I have the whole upstairs – I can see almost everything from there.
“But the three big, massive mirrors let me see the bar, and – confessions of a DJ! – there are a lot of things I shouldn’t say I see from that bar, or I’d get a few people in trouble!
“It’s one of my favourite DJ boxes in Dublin, and I’ve played basically every single nightclub in this city since I started.”
Is there a Dublin venue (past or present) that helped shape you musically?
“One of my earlier clubs would have been Spirit, which is now The Academy. I had a residency there for about six years. And that was a massive venue. And it was a massive undertaking because it was a straight venue. And I had the gays where I was DJ’ing the middle room.
“Spirit used to go until four or five in the morning as well, when we had those extended license hours. I used to love the Bank Holidays there, because there would be iconic house DJs like Eric Prydz or Erick Morillo, or David Guetta.
“I remember one time DJing, and I looked up and Frankie Knuckles was walking through, like Frankie, the Godfather of House. He’s not gay, God rest him.
“And he was walking through the room, and I just kind of remember freezing and looking at and going, ‘Oh my f*cking god, how is this possible?’ And he just gave me a wave, and I tell you, I nearly f*cking crumbled. He was always one of my favourite DJs, and he still is.
“Spirit gave me a platform to play in more clubs; I played Oxygen festival for them. So they kind of gave me an extra footing on the music scene. And then they gave me the residency in the main room as well, and that was my mind just blown.”
How do you stay inspired or keep your sets fresh over time?
“I like a good thump and walloping bass line, so I will find the remixes of the Ariana Grande songs, and I will find the remixes of the Doechii songs. I could spend hours finding new mixes.
“Sometimes in one week, I would be on that computer for up to 20-30 hours, scrolling and searching through Mixcloud and SoundCloud and YouTube. I go through Instagram a lot of days to find music.
“I used to spend that much time when it was vinyl, too, because that’s how I started. I would go into record shops on a Tuesday and a Friday, because the UK releases were on a Friday, and the US would be released on a Tuesday, and I would spend hours in Abbey Disc scouring music twice a week, and I’d be in there for four or five hours twice a week.
“It’s just your ear. My ear became trained to what sound I liked. So I scour the internet now and type in songs and look for remixes or producers, and see what they’re producing and what they’ve got on offer. I can see if it suits what I like. If it suits my set, then I’ll play it.
“I know if I like a song within the first 20 seconds, if the bass line drives me in. It’s nothing to do with the lyrics It pisses my other half off when I’m looking for music upstairs, because she’s like, ‘can’t you just let a song play for more than 10 seconds?!”
What’s the most outrageous song request you’ve ever had at the DJ booth?
“I’ve had some ridiculous requests! Anything from Joe Dolan to Westlife. As if I’m going to play a ballad in the middle of a banging dance set? The Joe Dolan one caught me off guard. I was like, ‘what?’
“Anything that’s trending on TikTok – like something under two minutes long – forget it. It’s not going to get played because that’s not a song.
“My job is to get people to dance. It’s not for someone in the crowd to come up and go ‘play this now’, which some people will do. And I’m like, ‘but I’m already playing Rihanna. I’m playing it right now.’
“And if you tell me you’re leaving if I don’t play your song right this minute, forget it. Your song is not getting played ever, even if I were in the mood to take a request.
“I’m there to create an atmosphere and to bring people on a journey. So, of course, I’ll play Rihanna and Whitney and get them into a frenzy.
“But also, my job is to educate people. I’ll play something they’re not familiar with and they love it, and then they’ll ask me about it, or I’ll see someone hit Shazam on their phone to find the song.
“That’s my job. It’s not to be Spotify.”
Who are your biggest inspirations within the DJ scene?
“My biggest inspiration would be Frankie Knuckles. I like Al Gibbs. Al’s got a great career and has done a lot for Irish DJs and the scene in general.
“I’ve discovered a lot of newer producers recently. There’s a guy called Liam Pfeifer, and his stuff is amazing. I like another guy, Matt Nevin.
“I have a guilty pleasure in listening to Rihanna. I also have a guilty pleasure for Ariana. And I just think they’re very intelligent. Their songs are very clever.”
What’s your post-gig wind-down ritual?
“I go straight home. I’m too old these days. I drive home from work, so it’s four songs at night when you’re driving. So I would play four songs or else a podcast on my way home. And when I get into the house, I bring the dogs out, take a protein yoghurt out of the fridge, turn on Netflix, and eventually fall asleep.
“But it takes me anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half to unwind and stop the music banging in my ears.
“It’s that ‘boom, boom, boom’, I can hear the song. It’s like I’m constantly mixing tracks in my head. I start my set thinking I’ll play something and then I’d get home and I’d be like, ‘oh, fuck, I didn’t get to play that song.’ Next time!”
Who do you think parties harder, the DJs or the drag queens at The George?
“Oh, the drag queens! I used to party back in the day. I don’t anymore. I’m too sensible and too old these days to try and party.
“Certain drag queens – not naming any names! – tend to party heavier than a lot of the DJs, because we’re all too old.
“On the odd occasion, I might leave my car at home and have a drink at work. But definitely, the drag queens have taken that party crown and are running with it and winning!”
To experience DJ Karen’s legendary sets for yourself, check out What’s On to plan your next night at The George.