Moving with intention, grounded in lineage: a conversation with BRIDGE
BRIDGE
There’s a certain kind of artist whose rise feels sudden, and then there’s the kind where, when you look closer, the throughline has always been there. Years of listening. Years of studying. Years of intention taking shape long before the wider world catches on.
BRIDGE’s breakout year — consisting of viral moments, major bookings alongside legendary artists, and a defining sets the likes of Book Club Radio and Soul Summit — is in reality the result of a life shaped by music, performance, and a deep commitment to the roots of house and disco. Born in Italy to Ghanaian parents and raised between gospel, funk, soul, and early 2000s R&B, her approach to DJing is both studied and instinctive, grounded in history while fully alive in the present.
Whether behind the decks or on screen, her work is driven by storytelling: connecting people not just to the music, but to where it comes from, and why it matters. Ahead of her upcoming set at UltraMaroon, Sainte Francis caught up with BRIDGE to talk about her journey — from practicing DJ transitions in her living room to playing major stages, navigating a rapidly growing platform, and building a career rooted in intention, community, and joy.
Sainte Francis
BRIDGE, this is such a pleasure to get to speak with you! I was thinking back — I feel like we’ve been digital friends for a while. I started following you about a year ago, and it’s been such an immense pleasure watching your career, especially over the past year, and really the past six months. For me, there’s this overarching sense of, like, “Yes — the right ones are winning!” You’re somebody who is really carrying forward and stewarding house music and dance music culture and its roots and history. It’s just so refreshing, from my perspective, to see. So, I just wanted to start off by saying that.
BRIDGE
Thank you! It’s really fascinating that a lot of people have also been sharing that. When I started doing this, that was not my intention. I didn’t really have a goal when I started — I just wanted to play music. So, the fact that people have been so receptive to my curation, my energy, and my love of history with this music, it’s just humbling. I’m very grateful.
Sainte Francis
I’ve been watching a lot of your content, and it’s been fascinating hearing you talk about your history with music — especially knowing you only started DJing a couple years ago. But your love and passion for music clearly started way before then. You have a background of being born in Italy, then coming to the United States and having to learn US culture and customs. Can we start there and talk a little bit about how that influenced your early love of music?
BRIDGE
Yeah. I was born in Italy to two Ghanaian parents. My father was raised loving soul music, funk, disco — The Whispers, Earth, Wind & Fire, Michael Jackson. And my mom was raised in more traditional Ghanaian gospel music, called Highlife. So, you had two very deeply musically inclined people who were also really spiritual. I was raised in a Catholic church, so music and spirituality have always been a part of my life.
I lived in Italy for seven years, and then my family decided to move to the U.S., specifically California, because the racism and the opportunities in Italy for a Ghanaian family were very slim to none. We came to California in 2002. And like I said, I only knew a few words, “Yes, no, and hamburger.” But I was just so excited to be here and to learn something new.
Part of learning American culture meant watching TV and listening to music. I connected with early 2000s R&B and hip-hop, but I deeply loved disco and funk and soul because that was what my dad was playing. Music was always in our house. I was obsessed with it. I was always singing. And I learned early on that I loved performing. I did theater for 14 years from elementary school through college. Even then, I was writing music blogs and doing whatever I could to maintain that connection. And I started DJing about four and a half years ago because my now-husband bought me a controller and said, “You always talked about this — why not try now?”
Sainte Francis
I was looking back on your Instagram recently and saw a video from 2022 where you’re in your living room working on a transition on a tiny controller. So, I want to ask — how does it feel going from practicing that at home to playing some of these massive stages with world-renowned artists in just a few short years? And I know the past six months has been especially impactful. I don’t want to speak for you, but Soul Summit last summer felt like a real milestone moment that really upleveled your visibility?
BRIDGE
It’s a fascinating question because I don’t always spend enough time thinking about how much work I’ve put in. People tend to associate mastery with time — but there are people who’ve been doing this for two, three, even six years who put so much thought and intention into their craft that it compresses that timeline. I think that’s part of what people are responding to.
And yeah, those older videos — I’m glad I kept them up. When I first started DJing, I had no expectation of playing big stages. I just wanted to DJ locally in New York. It felt like a hobby, but it also felt like the first time I could take everything I loved about music and actually express it through my hands.
I would practice transitions for hours, record myself, post it. And once I played my first set in person, I realized it felt just like theater. It felt aligned — like I was bridging performance, music, and storytelling in a way that made sense for me. From there, I worked really hard. I reached out to anyone who would give me a chance. Even with Soul Summit, I had been working toward that since 2021. So, when it finally happened, it felt like a culmination of a lot of persistence.
Sainte Francis
I was the same way. I thought I was going to be a bedroom DJ forever. My first gig was for about 15 of my friends, and I treated it like the most serious thing I had ever done. I went to bed early the night before — I was like, I need to be fresh for this bar set. (laughs)
BRIDGE
That just means you care. That’s the throughline.
Sainte Francis
Post-college, you also moved to New York and built a career in marketing. Can you take us back to that period of your life and talk about how that mindset and skillset have influenced your DJing and your broader creative work?
BRIDGE
I moved to New York in 2017 with $5,000, signed a one-year lease, and no job. I just believed I would figure it out. I started in advertising and didn’t love it, but it taught me how to work like a New Yorker. Then I moved into marketing — Spotify, Tumblr, Twitch — focusing on highlighting Black creators, women creators, LGBTQIA creators across music and media.
What marketing taught me is that everything is a story, and storytelling is the most effective way to bring people in, especially when you’re talking about topics like race or gender that can feel uncomfortable. When I was younger, I approached those conversations more directly, but over time I realized that art is a more effective entry point. So, what you see now in my content is storytelling. It might feel entertaining, but it’s also meant to teach people something.
Sainte Francis
And sometimes people don’t get it, and you’ve got to call in your friends to handle the people in the comments.
BRIDGE
Yeah! When I first started posting that kind of content, I was in the comments going back and forth with people constantly. But now that my platform has grown, my community steps in. I made a video about house music being Black music, muted it, came back later, and saw people already explaining it. That was a really powerful moment — seeing that shift.
Sainte Francis
Your platform is growing; your bookings are growing — it’s been a huge six months for you. What has that actually felt like, especially making the transition into your artistic career full-time?
BRIDGE
I don’t think I’ve fully processed it. About six months ago, I was laid off from my marketing job. But at the time I was putting so much energy into my creative work. After some time, I realized that everything that brought me joy and alignment was music, performing, and creating content.
So, I made the decision to go all-in on my business. And then the Book Club Radio set happened, which was something I had been working toward for about two years. That moment felt like a shift — not just in visibility, but in how people understood me as an artist.
Sainte Francis
I was just about to ask about that. Did you go into your Book Club Radio set that knowing it could be a major turning point for you?
BRIDGE
Yeah, I did. I knew I couldn’t take that opportunity for granted. I knew what that platform meant, and I knew that if I approached it with intention — musically, visually, energetically — it could shift things for me.
I wanted the set to reflect everything I love: classic house, disco, performance, confidence. I wanted to feel good, look good, and create something that people could connect to. I didn’t know exactly what would come from it, but I knew it had the potential to change things.
And then it did, in ways I didn’t fully expect — more visibility. But at the core of it, I just wanted people to feel joy.
Sainte Francis
That really came through in your set, I’d encourage everyone reading this to give it a listen! It felt like a full expression of who you are as an artist. So, in curious, who are some of your biggest inspirations, whether musically, visually, fashion-wise?
BRIDGE
Beyoncé is a huge one for me. Her intentionality, the way she approaches performance, fashion, storytelling — all of it. I think about her a lot when I’m making decisions creatively.
In terms of DJs, Natasha Diggs, she blends fashion, music, and presence really well. DJ Paulette, especially for how outspoken she’s been about race and gender since the ’90s and the barriers that she has broken, and Larry Levan, the way he made people feel at the Paradise Garage and almost 40 years ago, people still talk about how he made them feel. I aspire to that.
Producer-wise, I’m always pulling from people like Louie Vega, Masters at Work, David Morales, Maurice Joshua, Dimitri from Paris, Dave Lee, Tommy Musto. That lineage is really important to me.
And I’m also inspired by myself — by continuing to evolve, try new things, and not feel like I have to stay in one lane.
Sainte Francis
You’re stepping up to the decks at UltraMaroon in a couple weeks, which is very much a community-driven, queer-centered space. What does it mean to you to play in an environment like that?
BRIDGE
Those are the spaces where I feel most aligned. House music comes from Black queer communities, and those spaces are about freedom and expression.
Being invited to play UltraMaroon, I feel both at home and responsible. I want to honor that lineage, but I also want to contribute to the energy of the space — to create something where people feel safe, seen, and able to fully be themselves.
For me, DJing in those environments is about connection. It’s about creating a moment where people can let go, even if it’s just for a couple of hours. And I hope that when they leave, they feel a little lighter.
And I love when people dance. I know sometimes people want to watch the DJ, but for me, I’m dancing because I love the music. I want people to feel like they can step into that with me.
Sainte Francis
I feel that. People are sometimes surprised when I dance while DJing.
BRIDGE
If people think that’s performative, that’s their perspective. For me, it’s just how I experience the music.
Sainte Francis
As your audience continues to grow and more people are coming into your world, what do you want them to understand about you?
BRIDGE
I am someone who really loves life and wants to experience it fully. But I also feel a responsibility to talk about the history of this music and to make sure people understand where it comes from. I think maybe it’s because I’m a Black woman, I feel that weight sometimes, that responsibility to keep speaking on it and carrying it forward in some way.
I want people to know that I’m not just a DJ. I’m a storyteller, a curator, a historian. DJing is one way I express that, but it’s not the only way.
And long term, I hope that the work I’m doing contributes to a broader understanding of house music — that it’s not something that needs to be re-explained decades from now.
Sainte Francis
Alright. I have some rapid-fire questions for you if you’re down?
BRIDGE
Let’s do it!
Sainte Francis
Top three most memorable DJ sets you’ve seen?
BRIDGE
Ron Trent at Knockdown Center in 2021 when he opened for Roy Ayers — that completely changed how I understood DJing live.
Sainte Francis
I was there! Can confirm it was life-changing.
BRIDGE
Absolutely!
Next, is Soul Summit in Fort Greene, July 2018 — that was my first time seeing them and a sea of Black and Brown people dancing to house music.
And Stacey “Hotwaxx” Hale at Parkside Lounge last year — she actually personally invited me, and it was incredible to see her command the room like that.
Sainte Francis
Three tracks that are heavy in your rotation right now?
BRIDGE
“Love’s Here (At Last)” by Judy Albanese — Kupper’s Vocalicious Dub.
“Dreamin’” by Loleatta Holloway — Satoshi Tomiie Shellshock Reconstruction Mix.
“Shout” by Vernessa Mitchell — David Morales Remix.
Sainte Francis
And last one — one track you can rely on, no matter the room, the crowd, or the time of night?
BRIDGE
I have two.
“War Cry” by DJ Spen, Inaya Day, and Shout — every time, it hits.
“How He Works feat. Nico Vega (N-You-Up Remix) by Louie Vega — that one always lands too.
Sainte Francis
Yes! I remember you actually DM’d me that ID after your Soul Summit set.
BRIDGE, it’s honestly an honor to be opening the room for you in a couple weeks. I’ll make sure to tee you up right!
BRIDGE
I love that. I’m really excited. We’re going to have fun.
Sainte Francis
We’re going to have a good night.
BRIDGE
A very good night. I can’t wait – see you then!
Catch BRIDGE with DJ Holographic at UltraMaroon on Friday, May 8 at Eden NYC.
