Interview with Japanese Ballet Dancer turned DJ: Senna Ohtsu

Interview with Japanese Ballet Dancer Turned DJ: Senna Ohtsu

8/17/2018

Tell us what inspired you to become a DJ two and a half years ago.
Well before music, I studied classical ballet for fifteen years starting when I was just three years old. When I turned fifteen, I spent a year in Canada followed by a year in America and ending with a year in Germany when I was seventeen years old. In German, I was enrolled in the National Music School and skipped two grades while I was there. Unfortunately, I had to return to Japan after suffering from an injury. I wanted to get exposed to other types of music besides the classical stuff that I had been exposed to all of my life. I turned to modeling to try something different but then a friend introduced me to electronic music and DJing and I instantly knew that I wanted to do that instead.

How did you decide which genres you were going to play?
I first learned about club music when I saw DJ BL3ND on YouTube. I loved the fast tempo and powerful tracks he played but I quickly found that I also enjoyed bounce, big room, and some of the harder sub-genres within EDM like dubstep and hardstyle.

How did you get booked for the first time?
My DJ friend introduced me to an organizer who gave me a spot in an event he sponsored at WOMB, Tokyo which is one of the biggest clubs in the country.

What makes you different from other DJs from Tokyo and around the world? Why should people come to a DJ Senna show?
When I am performing as a DJ, I use my skills that I have accumulated in ballet. I put my entire body into the performance using my arms and legs to do some acrobatics along with the music. I feel like I have so much energy when I’m on stage. I take advantage of all of the tools that I have in front of my and knowledge I have accumulated throughout the years to give every performance as much energy as I can.

Tell us about some of your craziest memories on stage!
During my debut event, I remember that there was a mechanical failure where the CDJ stalled before I could play anything. This happened at midnight just as everyone was getting excited. I tried everything but the device just wouldn’t start! I eventually just had to reboot the thing so that I could get the show going again. While all of this was going on, there was this drunk person standing front and center in the crowd, staring at me. All of a sudden, he came into the booth, plugged in his USB, tried to stop the music and steal the mic from me! Nobody knew what was going on and the staff came to force him out of the booth. Later, I found out that the drunk person was the DJ performing after me and he just didn’t have his timeslot right.

A post shared by Senna Ohtsu (@sennaohtsu) on Aug 4, 2018 at 4:03am PDT

What else do you do you like to do? What other jobs or hobbies do you have?
Even though I spend a lot of my time DJing and practicing, I also work as a ballet and fashion model. I spend my free time and weekends listening to a hard rock band called The Pretty Reckless who I really like. I often sing their songs or watch their videos to just take a break and unwind. Also, I love animals and I have a pet cat, Yuki-Chan, who never fails to lift my spirits. Watching animal videos on Instagram is another thing I love to do to decompress after a long day.

Where do you hope to go with your career?
To be invited and perform at a big overseas festivals! I want to show the world how great music can be by sharing my sets and original music. I’d love to see my music hit the charts all over the world and see some of the DJs I look up to play my songs! There are going to be some very exciting things coming up so be sure to follow me on social media!