How long have you been DJing?
“I started DJing two years ago. After two months of practising at home, I took a DJ course at Uilenkatten, an event organisation founded by students at Uilenstede. Since then, I’ve asked everyone I know if I could DJ at their house parties. A year long, I went from house party to house party. Sometimes I would DJ for five hours straight.”
Lirios Invites
The Lirios Invites parties take place at De Landing, the former Griffioen building at the Uilenstede campus. Tickets cost €6, including service charges. The next and – for the time being – last edition of Lirios Invites will take place on Friday 23 January. Follow @liriosinvites on Instagram to stay updated.
That sounds like a great way to learn.
“Absolutely. You can practise in your room, but house parties are the perfect place to learn how to DJ. You find out who you are as a DJ and you learn how the audience reacts to your music. I often started the evening with hit songs and then ended with music I prefer to play, such as techno. Whatever I do, I think it’s important to surprise both the audience and myself, that keeps it fresh and interesting.”
What made you start Lirios Invites?
“There are so many talented DJs at Uilenstede who work incredibly hard but can’t get gigs. Because they either don’t have enough followers on social media for example, or they lack content to share, or they don’t fit the standard marketing image. I think every DJ deserves a fair chance to start somewhere. That’s why I offer emerging DJs a stage at my event, with a great line-up, professional equipment, a live audience and a killer light show. The event is recorded so that the DJs have content to share on their social media afterwards.”
Lirios Sanchez y Olid (23)
2025 – now
Lirios Invites
2024 – now
Master’s Communication Science: Media and Democracy, VU Amsterdam
2023
DJ course Uilenkatten
2023 – now
DJ Lirios
2020 – 2024
Bachelor’s Political Science, VU Amsterdam
Are the parties a success?
“There have been two editions so far, and the last one attracted a hundred visitors. I’m very happy with that. Many visitors said they had a great time, which is really important to me. And the parties are accessible: because I receive funding from the municipality of Amstelveen, tickets only cost 6 euros. For that amount, you can dance all night, but there are also games for people who want to hang out and have a chat.”
It seems tough to organise everything on your own.
“It has certainly been difficult, as I had no experience in organising events. But I do like to throw myself in at the deep end. I’ve learned that unexpected things can happen that you have to solve last minute. At the last edition, a security guard called in sick just before the start, which could have caused problems with admitting visitors. The people from De Landing [the former Griffioen building at the Uilenstede campus, Ed.] helped out and together we arranged for another security guard. That was quite stressful.”
Is your event something that Uilenstede has been missing?
“I think so: people often describe Uilenstede as a little grim, while there are so many creative and talented people here. With this event, I want to put Uilenstede on the map. You don’t have to go all the way into the city centre and spend a lot of money to have a great party. I want to show that Uilenstede is more than just house parties and drinking beer.”
What would you advise aspiring DJs?
“Take initiative and don’t give up! Nine times out of ten you won’t get a response, but sometimes it works. And try to DJ at as many house parties as possible to gain experience.”