Rebecca Manzi The “Forever Fresh” project is a workshop for women between 70 and 89 years old who want to learn the basics of mixing, how to use technical equipment and how to manage a DJ set.
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In Germany, an innovative initiative is giving electronic music a new perspective and shattering age stereotypes. Cologne’s c/o pop Festival in partnership with the NRW State Music Council started “Forever Fresh,” a workshop for women over 70 years old on how to DJ.
The love for music is ageless
It comes out of the need to battle discrimination that, most times, finds its mark in the older woman, particularly in the world of creativity and technology. It is through this course that the festival wishes to prove that having love for music and a craving for learning doesn’t have to have an end age.
The workshop takes place at the halls of c/o pop festival in Cologne-Ehrenfeld and consists of eleven women between the ages of 70-89, all eager to discover the secrets of DJing. Two professional DJs, Anna Cainelli and DJ Sedaction, lead the program and share participants with the fundamental skills in mixing, technical equipment handling, and DJ set management. In addition to the technical aspects, the women also learn self-grooming, stage presence, and self-promotion using social media.
They will be going live in late April
The program has been received with high-demand uptake from the start, with more applications received than positions on offer. A number of wannabe DJs have found themselves on a waiting list for later rounds of the program, highlighting strong interest in the art form by even the older generations.
At the opening ceremony of the workshop, Elke Kuhlen, c/o pop program director, and Robert V. Zahn, North Rhine-Westphalia State Music Council representative, respectively addressed the guests welcoming them with open arms. Both stressed how pop music and DJ culture can be an intergenerational experience, unifying people regardless of age and overcoming social differences.
The project will reach its peak with a special event in late April, where the newly educated DJs can already perform live during the festival. Admission to the workshops is free of charge through the Ministry of Culture and Science of North Rhine-Westphalia. Not only does the initiative celebrate love for music but also prove that a change of life has no deadline.
Source: Landesmusikrat und c/o pop starten Projekt „Forever Fresh”
