DJ Scotia on Jupiter Rising, OH141 and Risin' Up
As Glasgow collective OH141 bring their late night stage back to Jupiter Rising, we meet one of the DJs on the bill, DJ Scotia
Working under multiple guises is commonplace in the music industry, often used as a means to release different projects. For Edinburgh-based DJ, producer and rapper Shaheeda Sinckler, aka DJ Scotia/aka Nova Scotia/aka Nova, operating under several monikers allows her to explore various different musical ventures.
“There's kind of three elements to it, and Nova Scotia the Truth is the blanket term,” says Sinckler. “And also the way it distinguishes it from the actual place, Nova Scotia.” In Sinckler’s musical world, she produces under the alias Nova Scotia, raps under the name Nova and DJs as DJ Scotia – the latter of which is the project she will be bringing to this year’s Jupiter Rising festival.
Taking place at Edinburgh’s Jupiter Artland from 23-25 August, Sinckler will be DJing on the festival’s late night stage curated by OH141. Sinckler has strong ties with OH141, as a close friend of the collective’s founder Sarra Wild, with whom she has collaborated on numerous projects, and as a regular DJ at OH141’s club nights.
Most recently, Sinckler was included on the same OH141 bill as rapidly rising grime MC Flohio, who she cites as a “massive inspiration”, and the club nights have proved extremely influential on her musical career. They have provided her with a space to hone her craft and pick up tips from fellow DJs and performers along the way as well. “The last [OH141] I went to was kind of a turning point for me because I saw this DJ called Manara,” says Sinckler.
“She was doing so many blends and her mixes were really quick, so she was playing countless songs in one DJ set because she was mixing it so quickly... Ever since then it's just pushed me to do better in my DJing.” She continues: “Every time I go to an event really I'm there to soak in and grow in myself as well; get ideas, see how other people do things and see how it can be applied to my own stuff.”
Sinckler moved back to Edinburgh, following a stint in Glasgow, last year in order to focus more time on her music, and in January this year she released her debut mixtape as Nova, Risin’ Up. Most of the mixtape is produced with sampled material which Sinckler raps over, with just one of its tracks, Respect Nova Interlude, produced by Sinckler herself. But the mixtape is also a collaborative affair, with six of its nine tracks featuring guest vocals from Theta – Sinckler’s oldest friend – and two tracks produced by local producers Demonize and Mumbla.
“For me, releasing the mixtape definitely changed straight up for me,” says Sinckler. “I definitely started getting gigs and more interest in my work and stuff, so it was definitely worth the time that it took but now it's about trying to keep things going and keep some level of consistency or progress.”
She’s certainly not slowing down either, with her next project already in the works, and it seems to be shaping up to be another heavily collaborative offering. Just a few of the producers Sinckler mentions having already recorded tracks with for the upcoming project include some of Glasgow’s finest DJs and producers, many of whom are also affiliated with OH141, such as K4CIE, $1000 Wallet and Inkke. If Risin’ Up was Nova’s introduction to the rap world, then her latest project is sure to see her rise even further.
DJ Scotia plays Jupiter Rising, Jupiter Artland, Edinburgh, 23-25 Aug