Last week we wrote about how women DJs are moving from the booth to the front row, with Peggy Gou and Amelie Lens showing that a DJ can be a fashion figure in her own right. The question we left you with was simple: which DJane gets the next cover?
The answer was closer than you might think. Miss Rich plays clubs, events and brand moments across the UAE, and her style is as much a part of her identity as her sets. We sat down with her to talk about her look, the industry’s reaction to it, and what it means to play for a runway instead of a dancefloor.
Dressed by her mum, raised by Madonna
For Miss Rich, fashion was never a costume for the gig. It came first. “Fashion and music have been part of my life since I was a baby,” she says. “My mum used to dress me in the best outfits, and I think that stayed with me.”
Today she enjoys it more than ever, and for a reason that has nothing to do with an audience. “I have always loved experimenting with fashion, and today I enjoy it more than ever. Not to impress anyone, but because it is a way of expressing who I am.” Music followed the same path. “Being able to make a living from both of these passions is really a gift from the universe.”
Don’t expect a signature uniform, though. Asked if she plans her look the way she plans a set, she laughs it off. “There is not really a fixed process. It depends on my mood that day. I do not have just one style; one day I might feel like wearing something completely different from the next. I like to keep it spontaneous and let my look reflect how I feel.”
And when it comes to the women who shaped that freedom, there is only one name. “I say this in every interview, and I will never get tired of saying it: the queen, my teacher and my muse, Madonna. She does not know it, but she raised me.”
“She does not know it, but she raised me.”
Booked for the look, rebooked for the sound
Peggy Gou has spent years asking interviewers to just call her a DJ. Miss Rich knows that tension well, and she has made peace with it in her own way.
Has her style ever changed how the industry treats her? “Absolutely, and it has two sides. Some people love my image and book me before they have even heard me play. Others assume I am a DJ only because of fashion, until they hear one of my sets live and their perspective changes.”
Her verdict on the doubters is the best line of the interview:
“Honestly, I find that quite entertaining.”
Soundtracking Dubai Fashion Week
Dubai’s place in fashion has changed fast. In February 2023, Dubai Design District and the Arab Fashion Council launched the official Dubai Fashion Week, built to follow the global fashion calendar. “Where there was Paris, Milan, London and New York, there is now Dubai,” said Khadija Al Bastaki, Senior Vice President of d3, at the launch. The SS27 season is listed for 22 to 26 October.
Miss Rich has been part of that story from both sides of the runway. She has walked in the shows, and during one edition she was also the DJ for the selected brands. “I worked closely with incredible designers to select the music for each show, then performed it live during the runway presentations,” she says. “I loved the experience and learned so much from talented people who are now achieving great things globally with their brands.”
She is clear that a runway is a completely different job from a club. “In a club, I can read the crowd and adapt the energy in real time. For a runway, every track has to support the designer’s vision, the pace of the models and the atmosphere of the collection. It is about creating one precise musical story.”
Being recognised in both worlds still means a lot to her. “It always feels special to be recognised in both worlds: music and fashion. I feel nothing but gratitude for being able to live through both of my passions and to be part of Dubai’s creative growth.”
Her regional obsession
Ask her which designer from the region she is watching and the answer comes straight away. “I am completely obsessed with Mrs Keepa. I feel there is no one quite like her, especially in this region. It is definitely my favourite regional brand.”
Mrs Keepa is the Dubai based fashion house founded by Mariam Yehia, whose SS25 collection La Boite was built around the idea of breaking free. The brand has also shown at Dubai Fashion Week, where Grazia Middle East went backstage for its SS24 collection, Inhale.
So why do fashion and electronic music keep getting closer? Miss Rich puts it in one sentence: “Both fashion and electronic music are about identity, energy and creating a feeling. They naturally go together because they both give people a space to express themselves freely.”
Peggy and Amelie showed what that looks like on the global stage. Miss Rich is proof it is already happening here. Now it is your turn: who is the best dressed DJane in the UAE right now? Tell us on our Instagram, @djanemaguae.