Max HeyraudPrincess Glitoris – Belfast’s latest techno powerhouse has stormed into the underground since her debut in late 2023, and has quickly become one of Belfast’s most dynamic rising stars.
Known for her raw, percussive sets that fuse hypnotic techno, bounce-driven grooves, and tribal rhythms, she delivers high‑impact energy that’s tailor‑made for bodies that enjoy moving.
The 25‑year‑old has already shared stages with heavyweights like Skin On Skin and X CLUB, cementing her presence across Belfast’s fiercest club rooms. Born and bred in Belfast, Princess Glitoris embodies the city’s underground’s gritty elegance, fast‑rising, uncompromising, and rhythm‑forward. Whether spinning tribal techno or trance‑adjacent bounce, she throws the unexpected at the dancefloor, and it sticks.
You began DJing in late 2023 and quickly made a name for yourself in Belfast’s underground. What was your journey like leading up to your debut?
I’ve always loved music and digging for tracks, regardless of the genre. My taste has always been super broad – from funk & soul, rock, rap, to pretty much every corner of electronic music. I’ve never liked to limit myself by genres. If I found a new artist that I liked, I’d have to go through practically their entire discography to make sure there were no undiscovered gems that I’d missed. After about 6 years of attending raves & events, I finally bought a controller when I lived in Leeds about a year before my first gig out, and became pretty obsessed with it.
I’ve always listened to music actively rather than passively, always thinking about what songs sounded similar and would make a good match, which made starting DJing a lot easier as I already knew my tunes inside & out. I taught myself from scratch, just figuring out what sounded good to me, and consistently practising every other day to improve my techniques. I found recording sets and listening to them back helped me a lot, so I could analyse the set as a whole journey rather than just one tune to the next.
Based in Belfast, you’ve played at venues like The Telegraph Building, Ulster Sports Club, and Palm House. How does the Belfast scene differ from elsewhere in Ireland?
The Belfast scene is really special because you see the same faces constantly across every dance floor; it’s a real community here. All of the DJs in the Belfast scene are incredibly supportive of one another, and I feel that we all genuinely help each other thrive through vouching for each other & attending nights as often as possible. The crowds show up every time & give it their all, whether it’s a local lineup or a huge headliner. And you can guarantee they’ll all be shouting “yeoooo” all night long.
What drew you to play at Belfast‑based events like EMERGE BELFAST, and what has kept you rooted in the local community?
Getting the opportunity to play at EMERGE Belfast & AVA Festival was a massive milestone for me, as they’re the two biggest festivals in Belfast. It was really good to see that they were giving the stage for local selectors who maybe hadn’t had these opportunities before, and really showing off the talent that makes the Belfast scene what it is.
When you plan a set, do you think about energy arcs, genre shifts, or specific tracks?
When planning a set, I would always check out the night first and who the headliner is so I can gauge the vibe & what the crowd attending is going to want, and I’ll fit my style and preference of genres in with this. I love doing this because it gives me opportunities to play genres I wouldn’t usually delve into, while remaining true to myself. I feel this has also helped me to find the type of music I certainly prefer to play. It never gets boring as I don’t define myself to one or two genres. I have a massive focus on energy arcs also, giving a set a start, middle and end and gradually heightening the energy with higher bpm & heavier drums towards the end of the set. My go-to peak song at the moment is Ned Bennett – Carnival Revival.
Which DJs or producers have influenced you most so far?
DJ Yarak has to be one of my favourites, his sets are so energetic & bouncy and have you dancing the whole time, whilst also not taking themselves too seriously – which is the vibe I want to give. I recently saw Kink & Raredub at Stone Techno, and it was such a standout set in terms of energy arcs and building excitement. Producer-wise wise I would have to say Bours?, M.I.T.A, and Regal86 take the cake for me, they each have huge catalogues with hints of hardgroove, techno, heavy techno, and dembow – I think every set I’ve played has had at least one song by them.
You’ve played lineups across Belfast and Dublin, including at festivals and afterparties alongside names like Mika Heggemann and SWIM. Any standout gigs or sets that defined your journey?
My favourite gig to date has to be Wigwam Dublin supporting Mika Heggemann for Lost/Soap (Circuit Festival Afterparty). The venue and booth are just incredible, and the energy the crowd brought that night was insane. Dublin had always been a goal for me, so getting to play at Wigwam as my first one was such a great experience.
Closing Room 2 of The Telegraph Building on Skin On Skins tour was a standout moment for me; it was a really important gig to me and was also probably the biggest crowd I’d ever played to at the time. It was definitely the first time I’d been able to fully play what I wanted and not have to worry about set times or boundaries in a gig.
How do you discover new tracks, such as spotting trends, digging in promo pools, or leaning into spontaneity?
I love digging on record labels on Soundcloud, such as Grab The Groove, Bipolar Disorder Rec. and Transition. Typically, if I find an artist I’ve never heard of before on one of these channels, I’ll just dig through their entire discography and find the gems. I don’t really follow trends to be honest, as they change so often and typically they stray too far from what made it popular initially, and I’d rather my sound be consistent with me rather than based on a fad.
What milestones are you proud of so far, and where do you see your sound going next?
My biggest milestones to date would be getting to play at both AVA Festival and Teletech, having the opportunity to play in Dublin, and now looking forward to my first international gig in Amsterdam with NRG Raves. I really want to keep refining my sound and playing outside of Belfast more. I think it’s really important to see other scenes and network with different communities.
What do you think the Irish underground needs more of right now?
I think one of the Irish music scene’s biggest downfalls is the lack of venues suited to events, particularly in Belfast. We need more dark gritty venues that transport people with the music. And we need more people willing to see a lineup that they don’t recognise. I feel like grassroots promoters can’t take a chance on more underground artists because it’s not a guaranteed sell-out. Due to the costs of running events, if it’s not a sell-out out it’s usually a loss of profit – this cycle stunts the growth of smaller, talented artists & crowds finding new artists to enjoy. Some of the best sets I’ve been to have been by artists I accidentally stumbled upon because I went to the wrong stage at a festival, etc. Your favourite DJ could be someone you’ve not even heard of yet!
What message would you love to send to people who come to your sets or discover your mixes for the first time?
To anyone coming to my gigs or listening to my sets – dance with your mates, have fun, don’t take yourself too seriously and just enjoy it!! All I want to do is help people have a good time & shake it out on the dance floor <3
