Deaf Rave Virtual International Festival 2020: The first of it’s kind!

Back in September, Deaf Rave hosted their first ever virtual festival with performances by deaf artists from across the world. The online event, which lasted around 4 hours and featured artists of 16 different nationalities, has made history as being the first online festival of its kind.

I spoke to Deaf Rave founder – Troi Lee – to find out more about the significance of this event and the inspirations behind it.

Hi Troi! Can you tell our readers a bit about you?

My name is Troi aka DJ Chinaman Lee, I’m the CEO of Deaf Rave. I was born in the heart of London, diagnosed deaf at birth. I grew up in and work in Hackney, East London. I will tell you one thing for sure – Hackney made me who I am today!

As my upbringing was in a multi cultural environment, I was very lucky to experience lots of different cultures and this is especially true from the music side of things. Hackney is famous for music and parties!

Deaf Rave was established back in 2003. At the time we were fed up of the stigma Deaf people faced back then when going out to nightclubs.  The bouncers (hearing security guards) would say “you lot ain’t coming in.” That’s when I came up with an idea to stop this discrimination. That’s when I decided to set up our own events.

Our very first  party was absolutely amazing when I think about it. Deaf people from all over UK and world would come down and then Deaf Rave became history.

Where did your love for music start?   

My passion for music started way back when I was a young kid age 12!  I can remember this especially because it was on my birthday I received a Sony walkman cassette player.  I clearly remember the very first song I bought, called Public Enemy.  I used to play this over and over again. The beats and sounds came out of it on to my loop settings (known as T-setting on our hearing aids). That’s when I fell in love with music.

When I was 18 in the early 90s, I went raving and that blew my mind!  All walks of life and every colour were dancing throughout the night. It was a magical time for me as it was an eye opener partying at these Raves across the country.

Also I come from a musical background family.  My twin brother (twin and hearing) was a drummer for his band and also my cousins were professional DJ’s. Watching those guys in action, I knew instantly this would be one of my main passions; DJing as a hobby.

What sort of obstacles against music have you personally experienced? 

I really do miss out the lyrics and singing when musicians perform.  I’m more into beats and sounds, if it’s good and groovy, then I let my mind, body and soul groove!  Nowadays going to concerts and festival they now have interpreters and signers.  So this helps a lot!

How do you overcome challenges in regards to your deafness? 

I’m Deaf, I’m Proud and I’m Loud!  I am not shy about my deafness, that is because I accepted who I am a very, very long time ago. I have my barriers and situations at times due to my deafness, I’m not perfect.  We have to learn, adapt and overcome the barriers.  Never limit yourself.  Because if you do, then you simply won’t get to where you want to.  Try and be positive and overcome the obstacles.

So, the Deaf Rave international virtual fest – why did you decide to set this up?

One simple reason we went international is because there is a lack of Deaf performers in the UK.  Luckily the world is a big place.  There are many others Deaf performers in other countries that can perform.  So we decided we wanted to work with them and give them opportunities to show their talents.

Some of the Deaf performers you would never have even seen or heard before.  So for me that’s a ground breaking moment, giving other artists a platform to be shown around the world. Personally, it’s very inspiring.  We are proud of these ideas and I always wanted to work with all different people  in different countries and on different levels as well.

How hard/easy was it to secure funding for this?

The Deaf Rave Collective and I worked very hard together to acquire the funding. Local Councils are very supportive.  But please bear in mind, we had 5 events and festival cancelled this year due to the Coronavirus.

What was the planning process like for this event?

The planning process took time.  The whole idea was to produce a festival online and showcase our UK talents.  Then as time went on by, the festival plan blossomed in some ways and then extra creativity came into play. That’s the exciting part, we never knew how this whole idea would become.

This was my first time going virtual as it was a new big challenge in our lives.  Nothing is easy, we learnt how to adapt and try different things out. As I’d never worked virtually before I needed to get out of my comfort zone to create and inspire.  I’m so happy at the end result and how smooth the festival went on the day.

How did you decide which acts you wanted to invite for the festival?

I am always happy to find and work with new artists. I aim to provide a platform for them to showcase their talents. I love to see the Artists and performers grow and grow, getting better and better at what they do. That’s what excites me!  We want more Deaf performers to come through! To inspire the future Deaf generations to come.

How did the live streaming go?

The live streaming went well.  We had over 12,000 viewers throughout the festival including leading up to it.  The feedback was very positive as everyone enjoyed the variety of different performances and again many people wanted the show to carry on!

I never expected in my wildest dreams that we would do anything like this.  We broke down the barriers and  the impossible to become possible.

What have you learnt from the virtual event, if anything?

I would definitely do this again and make it better!  Everyone wants to improve and try and make it better than the last one!

It’s been said that Deaf Rave have made history – is this the first time anything like this has taken place? 

I would say so!  I not seen or heard at that time, especially during the Coronavirus situation.  We officially set up the bench mark!  Definitely on a musical level.  We are well known for our love of music and sign songs, Dj-ing or dance or anything thats visual and captivating.  We have kind of gone into music as well as live performance nowadays.

We cater for all different types of performances such as comedy, VV, Mime, Juggling, Magic and so on.  From day 1 on our first ever party/event we ever did back in 2003,  we had live performances.  So I’m really glad and happy that I still kept the same concept and let it build and flourish to this very day.

What do you think deaf artists need going forwards to develop in their career?

I  definitely recommend them to work with Deaf and Hearing mentors or professionals for wisdom and advice. Practicing and developing is very vital as well.  Never stop and keep believing in your talents. Let them grow with your creativity and inspire for the next future generations of young Deaf people.

What’s next for you/Deaf Rave?

Another Festival of course! Everything is virtual nowadays! Enjoy our next one!!

 

You can find out more about Deaf Rave at www.deafrave.com