The youngest child of six in a musical family, DJ Chantal was heavily influenced by the myriad of different musical tastes surrounding her, though initially found an outlet for her interest in the sonic arts through dance. Her initial unusual music explorations were accompanied by physical movement and immediate expression, all the while developing a strict adherence to rhythm and form.

Chantal’s passion for dance would continue through her adolescence, interrupted only briefly by more studious inspection of the music surrounding her, at this stage only a sideline dalliance in the downtime between rigorous rehearsals and performances.

It was not long before Chantal was crossing the country, and then the globe in pursuit of a professional dancing career, punctuated only by a telling introduction to the 1200 turntable, before setting off again, this time to one of the most regarded dance halls on the planet, Moulin Rouge. Although renowned for its respect of traditional dance forms and more austere musical performance, the experience unintentionally placed her amongst the bountiful neighbourhood fairs and boutique record stores of Paris, slowly turning the young dancer onto more edgy modern sounds. It wasn’t long before a full blown vinyl habit had engulfed her, and spare moments were spent seeking new tunes, at times skipping the retail operations altogether and heading straight for the source, in the offices of local record labels.

Talents of  DJ Chantal

During this time, Chantal found herself stretching to appreciate both passions for music and dance, enduring strenuous training during the day, whilst sneaking out in the evenings to dip her toe in the sordid spin cycle of the city’s nightspots, laying out inspired DJ sets in the surrounding bars of the nocturnal quarter, before reluctantly acquiescing to Moulin Rouge’s demanding performance schedule. Upon her return to Australia. Chantal wasted little time in establishing herself in Brisbane’s local house scene. Bringing funky disco vibes to the bars and the afterparties, and deep bumpy jackin house to the clubs, Chantal quickly set about becoming a regarded local fixture, showing herself to be an accomplished club controller in the process, taking care of the floor with a dancer’s perspective.

Now, in an age of blogs, downloads and fashions, and almost a decade after first laying fingers to delicate grooves,  Chantal has proven there is no better source of musical inspiration than the simple primal interaction of dancer and DJ.
Written By Adrian Matyear.