DJ OF THE WEEK 1.17.11: CASSY

At 1200Dreams, we love when digging into the history of the DJs we feature, we find out they were classically trained on “real” instruments or some other art form all together only to choose to become a professional DJ instead. It’s not that we don’t love and appreciate these other instruments or arts, we do, greatly, it’s just that we picture the look on their parents faces when told their “prodigy” wants to spin records at smoke filled clubs instead, and we can’t help but smile. We don’t know what her parents response was, but Catherine Britton aka Cassy not only studied music and was singing from an early age, but she was also pursing an acting career, when she made the switch.

Born in England to a Caribbean father and an Austrian mother, Cassy was studying and working as an actress in London when she decided to pack it up and go back to Austria. It was there that she met Alexander Müller aka Elin who featured her as a vocalist on ‘Music Takes Me Higher’ under the name Autorepeat. With her love of Electronic music fed nightly by the Austrian nitelife scene and with a little nudging from Susanne Kirchmayr aka Electric Indigo, Cassy decided to expand her horizons and step behind the turntables. The rest is history.

For over a decade, Cassy, who prefers spinning vinyl, has been lighting up the nitelife scenery of Austria, Germany, and many hotspots throughout Europe with her mix of Deep House, Techno, and more. Many who have heard her play speak of the atmosphere she creates; one full of hypnotizing grooves and mesmerizing rhythms, all made more profound by the obvious passion she has for the music and the people included. Her skills and passion have taken her far from home as well, from Miami to Montreal and beyond, and always bringing that sultry atmosphere with her.

Cassy is also a bonafide producer with a discography consisting of an impressionable and growing list of some of the biggest names in the game such as Luciano, Steve Bug, Ricardo Villalobos, A Guy Called Gerald, and Dave the Hustler. She has also launched her own self-titled label, Cassy, which so far, has released three 12”, all her own productions and all on vinyl. It’s her plan to release music from artists and producers she feels can bring something special to the dance floor and due to popular demand, future productions will also be available in the digital format as well.

Whatever Cassy’s parents reaction was to their daughters decision to become a DJ, whether it was one of shock or unquestioned support, one thing is for certain, she followed through and is a success. And that’s something to be proud of either way.