Finding A Flow With Jessica Skye

With the first rays of the sunrise, warm and lingering, when the world has not properly woken up yet, there is promise in the air. Jessica Skye‘s new deep house offering, ‘La Otra,’ will help you find your sense of flow. It will take you on a spiritual voyage of nostalgia.

Connecting the parallels of the wellness world and electronic music, Jessica Skye has been teaching yoga and DJing for more than a decade. Her newest single, ‘La Otra,’ teleports the listener back to pivotal moments of 2011 and 2012 during one of the party scene pinnacles in London.

For our interview, Skye reflects on this time as she looks back to her fondest memories on the dancefloor between Berlin and London’s bubbling scene, appreciating these moments set her on the trajectory she is on today. She reminisces over her early yoga-teaching days and always incorporates her own mixes. Over the years, Skye hosted standout shows at iconic venues like Ministry of Sound, Creamfields, Lost Village, Lovebox, Parklife, Snowbombing, as well as Feel Festival and Sisyphos.

Based in LA, Jessica Skye is a pioneer in the wellness and DJ world. On her recent yoga-inspired electronic album, ‘Fluō State 002,‘ she compiles her blend of ambient soundscapes and downtempo tunes, which can be used as an audio aid for stress, relaxation, and getting focused.

You can also come across Jessica Skye on Apple’s fitness streaming platform Fitness+, teaching yoga and meditation.

What inspired your new single ‘La Otra’?

La Otra is a really special record to me, and it actually came out of the music studio during lockdown. It feels super nostalgic, taking me back to moments in 2011 and 2012 when me and my husband first started dating. London’s party scene was having a moment, and for me especially, I was finding a new sound, a new community and a new scene that I felt really excited about and connected to. Some of the standout memories on the dance floor from that time are when the DJs pulled back and really allowed space for a moment with tunes like Soft (Life & Death Remix) by Pillowtalk, Ultravision by Seuil ft JAW, and Close Up by dOP.

What memories come to mind when you think of going to underground parties back in the day? What did they mean to you?

One of my fondest memories goes back to July 2011 during Melt festival (which sadly had its final event this summer), taking place just outside of Berlin. That weekend was really inspiring and influential for me, and has set me on the trajectory I’m on now. I remember hearing Ellen Alien drop tunes like Envision (Âme Remix) by Osunlade… AND IT WAS EPIC!

The sequence of events that followed, led to a bank holiday weekend in August that same year, I went to a party called Lo*kee (which no longer exists) that had teamed up with a Berlin based night club (which is also closing down this year) called Wilde Renate (it’s a sad time for live events in music at the moment).

It was on the dance floor at Lo*kee that I met my husband (we are pre-dating apps), and we’ve gone on to share our mutual love for dance music together for the last 13 years. We’re both very nostalgic of the period where it all began. It was such an exciting time to be a part of, and it’s been amazing to see the DJs we were dancing to in these small dingy venues go on to have huge careers.

On your sophomore album ‘Fluō State 002,’ your mission is to help people find their flow with the power of music, by bridging the gap between electronic music and wellness. Would you mind elaborating how you got into yoga and DJing in the first place?

I first discovered yoga in 2010 on a surf trip in Bali, without sounding totally cliché, it was such a life changing moment and it’s been an incredible tool for my own physical and mental health that I’m able to share with others. I started DJing professionally in 2012, and that same year I took the leap quitting my 9-5 job to pursue becoming a yoga teacher full time after practicing yoga nearly everyday since returning from Bali in 2010.

I always wanted music to be a part of my yoga experiences, so I’d record and release a new yoga mixtape every month and that would be the soundtrack to my classes, and I’d tailor the flows around the music (and vice-versa). I’d even hold yoga events in the main rooms of London nightclubs like Ministry of Sound. So it feels really amazing to now be able to produce and create my own tunes for my yoga flows, and of course, play out on the dance floor. Combing the two worlds of music and wellness has given me the opportunity to meet and work with some incredible people. It’s brought me all the way from London to Los Angeles, where I’ve been living for the last four years, teaching yoga and meditation on Apple’s fitness streaming platform, Fitness+.

What do you want people to take away from your new album ‘Fluō State 002’?

Both Fluō State 001 and Fluō State 002 have a combination of ambient soundscapes, and downtempo tunes which you’ll hear in my yoga flows as well as melodic house tracks that I play out. The tracks in both bodies of work are arranged to reflect the arc of energy you’d find in one of my yoga flows, so I’d hope as a listener, you can use the music to suit how you’re feeling, or how you want to feel. For instance, if you’re feeling a little stressed and want to relax, or maybe you’re trying to focus on work? Tune into the ambient tracks like Somnus City which has live soothing sound bowls in it. Or if you’re wanting to kick back and relax, tunes like Nimbus have a really chill vibe, or if you’re wanting to turn it up, Enter Nyx.

As a yoga teacher, do you include some practices in your DJing career, let’s say, during a show prep?

Teaching yoga and meditation can definitely give you the tools to stay calm. If I can feel nerves setting in or even just feeling stressed or overwhelmed, they’ll be my first point of call. I’d recommend it anytime you need to take a moment of pause. But I have to say, the thing that helps me the most, is set preparation. For me, it’s the key to feeling calm and present in the moment. When you’re able to maintain that state, everything else will flow and you can pivot in any direction as you read the room.

How do you think being a yoga teacher has benefited your music career and vice versa?

There are so many parallels between the two worlds of teaching yoga and DJing. you’re literally holding a space for people to relax, you’re reading the room, responding to the vibes you’re picking up, and at the same time, you’re also leading the way. It’s a really interesting paradigm and awesome feeling when you’re in the flow of it, the energy in the room can be electric.

Both scenarios also indulge my love for constantly finding new tunes, and I really enjoy allowing my sets, mixtapes and yoga flows to be a source of music discovery for others on Fitness+ and Apple Music.

Do you often come across fans who go to your classes and your shows?

I’ve definitely had a few instances of people double-taking me when I’m behind the decks, and I can see them trying to figuring out how they know me, and they’ll say out loud “Wait!!! Aren’t you my yoga teacher?!”

What do you have planned for the rest of the year?

I’m currently working on an ambient reprise of the six lead tracks from Fluō State 001 and 002, which were released as singles before both albums dropped. I’m a huge fan and avid listener of ambient and downtempo music, it’s what I love listening to at the start and end my day, it’s also what I have on in the background when I’m focusing on administrative work. So I’m super excited to get it wrapped, and hoping to release it with Platoon this Fall.