Article by Winston Hsu
Photo credit Emily Cheng & Niko
DJ Noodles is the 2006 DMC Taiwan Champion, and the first female finalist in DMC history, ranked in the top 13 at the 2006 DMC World Final. With over ten years of experience, DJ Noodles has performed with numerous renowned legends, such as DJ Q-Bert, DJ Kentaro, DJ Jazzy Jeff, DJ Premier and Naughty by Nature. She has also shared the stage with Steve Aoki, Diplo and many other pioneers of the indie dance-music scene. DJ Noodles has been invited to perform in many countries around the world, including England, Switzerland, Japan, China, Australia, Indonesia, United States, South Korea and more. In 2005, DJ Noodles released her second album “Girls Dem Sugar” under EMI Taiwan, which reached top 10 on the Taiwan album music chart and successfully introduced dancehall music to Taiwan’s club scene. In 2012, DJ Noodles became the first Asian DJ invited to be a resident DJ on Radio FG USA, a division of Radio FG, which originated from France, and is now one of Europe’s largest radio and lifestyle networks dedicated to the electronic music genre.
AsianInNY had a chance to interview DJ noodles exclusively before her first performance at Webster Hall in New York during CMJ Marathon 2013 on October 18. She is one of three musical representatives, including Joanna Wang, Miss Ko & DJ Noodles, chosen to showcase the Taiwan music at CMJ festival.
AsianInNY: Many people are curious about your nickname, why “noodles?”
DJ Noodles: When I was a child, my hair looked like noodles, so I was given the lovely nickname “mien mien”(麵麵), which means noodles in Chinese. Growing up, I kept the nickname and even had my hair specifically designed to look like noodles. Hence the name, “DJ noodles.” But recently I wanted to let my hair take a rest for a while, so I changed my hair style to what you see right now.
AsianInNY: You are the first female that made it to the final list of DMC competition. What motivated you to choose DJ as profession?
DJ Noodles: Actually, I studied media in the broadcasting and television department while all my life, really loving music. At that time, I never thought that one day I would become a DJ. But I like to go to bars and clubbing during my leisure time, and I think by chance, I started working as a DJ. And I really enjoy the job as a DJ. One day when I was about to leave work at 4:00am, people were yelling, “Please don’t stop the music!” at the top of their lungs. Everyone was really enjoying the music, the moment, and the atmosphere, and they were crazy about keeping it going! And that’s why I chose to become a DJ, to make people happy!
AsianInNY: Would you ever consider collaborating with Miss Ko, the other musician, that was invited to perform at CMJ Taiwan showcase?
N: Yes, definitely. After this CMJ event, I will have a lot of things to discuss with Miss Ko. We have many things in common, and I am looking forward to working with her.
AsianInNY: This is your very first time visiting New York City, is it not? Is there any place you’d like to visit or any activity you want to do?
N: Yes, this is my first time to visit New York City, and I am really excited about this trip. I am not familiar with NYC, but I want to visit music colleges since I am in the educational business in Taiwan—I teach young people how to become a DJ, so I want to take this opportunity to learn something new and share the experience with my students.
We are very excited to meet DJ Noodles for the first time, the top female DJ from Taiwan. During this interview, we instantly became friends, and she also shared with us many of her future performance tours and music projects. DJ Noodles’ energy, enthusiasm, passion and her desire for New York audience to hear her music is unstoppable.
Below are photos we took during her performance at CMJ Taiwan Showcase. DJ noodles totally rocked the night!
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