RS: It is amazing how much the looks of a DJ affect how he or she is perceived. I am surprised about how you feel more comfortable playing for guys than girls, which is kind of counterintuitive.
Kimberly S: Yes, lesbians tend to make me feel uncomfortable in the booth. They come up and say “when are you going to play more hihop?” or “do you have a girlfriend?” I’m so much more open to guys because they don’t talk to me that way. If you're talking to a guy DJ, he may say the guys come up and try to pick him up and do the same thing, I don’t know. I think that girls are scared to death of me because, I’m not as open, and I think I’m wide open for the boys and I think that that’s what’s made me more acceptable as a DJ. Also, I’m really low maintenance and don’t require a lot. If things don’t go right in the booth with the equipment and stuff, I work with whatever it is. I try to make it as easy as I can on the promoter and that kind of thing, which I think helps. I don’t play diva.
RS: That puts you probably thirty-five steps ahead of Sandra Collins…
Kimberly S: I don’t play diva, that’s just not my style. I’m not always super confident and every single time I play I find something I could have done different and I should have done different even when other people who are honest with me say that I was off the hook. I can say this mix was this way and I’m always going to be critical on certain areas and I think that that’s what keeps me going. That’s what made me succeed in the martial arts and become my master’s protégé, I looked at things that I did and thought how I could do them better. Being a woman in a male dominated field such as DJing, we are sexist in certain ways and I know that we all feel it. It’s hard to explain exactly what it is because it happens on different levels and I think a lot of it is just having to get out there and prove myself. Yes, I’m the queen of the tea dances, but I can fucking play my ass off and play harder but I just won’t play dark. I love it, DJing is fun and the boys are great!
RS: So tell me about what it was like being on the TV show Charmed.
Kimberly S: They’ve run that episode a thousand times and I’ve only seen it once on video tape, it’s funny. I would never want to be an actress, I’m not an actor type. I spent thirteen hours on that set and it was a great experience. It was really great PR and Charmed is a huge gay show and the producers and directors of Charmed didn’t even know it. A fan of mine actually works in the special effects department and when he heard they wanted a female DJ, he said that I would be perfect. I auditioned and that’s how I got the gig. Alyssa Milano is really super sweet and down to earth. They play that episode a lot and I am recognized from it everywhere.
RS: Talking about being everywhere, your website’s pretty hot? How much input do you have with your website? Do you design and update it yourself?
Kimberly S: I designed the site with a graphic artist who did the templates. The photos are from a John-Paul Mitchell photo shoot that I did as a DJ celebrity spokesperson with a couple of other DJs, Kio Kio and Collette. I worked with the webmaster choosing the pages and throwing ideas back and forth. He updates and I tell what I want. I’m going to add a spoken word and poetry page soon. I want people who visit the site to see what my world’s about and that’s why I include personal pictures like my animals as well.