It’s not often that Greek DJs get a look-in as far as the international music scene is concerned. DJ Lia Taouktsi is the exception, managing to capture the attention of djanemag.com, an international online networking service with profiles of the top female DJs. Her nomination as one of the top 100 women deejays came as a total surprise to the young Greek music mixer due to the fact that the reputable site sets extremely high music standards.

Chuffed by the recognition, DJ Lia says that it’s the result of hard work beginning in 2003 when she stumbled into the profession after a good friend gave offered her a job at Thessaloniki’s Radio Deejay. There  was no looking back with dj sets in Athens and Thessaloniki, a dj bootlet remix in May as well as playing the lead in Monsier Minimal’s “Call Girl”.

Drop-dead gorgeous and charismatic, DJ Lia believes that much of her success lies in her eagerness to please listeners. “A deejay doesn’t just mix music. Above all, you’re an ‘entertainer’. And that’s something many deejays overlook, choosing instead to remain restricted within their own music choices,” says the deejay who has pondered all music styles, from the dance scene to the Nineties decade of house, trance, techno, funky, hip-hop and even studies in ecclesiastic music.

“Ultimately people want to have a good time, either enjoying themselves and dancing or by traveling through the music,” she says.” A deejay’s first concern should be to take a look around and adapt themselves to what the specific audience wants, without of course losing their own personal style. In their own way, they can change the mood of the crowd. Hence, you need the gift of perception and constant reflection.”

With studies in theology from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, DJ Lia knows all about enlightenment. Theology had initially not been her first choice, but she states that if she were to turn back time it probably would have been. “I was able to learn and collect information about all religions, other nations and civilizations,” she says. “Theology hasn’t just helped me in my work, but also in my life in general so that I can have faith and make clear choices.” She cites staying true to herself as one of the greatest challenges she has to deal with as a person and professional.

“To be a deejay in Greece is really very easy, but to be a professional and meticulous in your job is really quite hard,” she says. “At the start of my career this was especially difficult because, in Greece, it was a purely male profession.” Having overcome the matter of gender, she managed to carve out a niche for herself and is now taking the world by storm.

Her dream? London! Now that the Kiku group she works with is expanding to include Athens-Mykonos-London it seems that her deejay dream is set to come true. But beyond visiting deejay hotspots and playing sets around the world, her real dream is to take people on meaningful musical journeys of the soul.