Sashha Shares Why Playing Let It Roll Puerto Rico Was A Dream Come True

Sashha sat down with us at Let It Roll Puerto Rico to chat about how vital QVLQV is to her career, what it’s like to be a woman in a male-dominated genre, and the hardships she’s faced.

Let It Roll Puerto Rico brought an unbelievable type of magic to the Isla del Encanto. The festival did a great job of uniting big-name acts and local artists, showcasing both throughout three stages. Still riding high on the event’s beauty is Sashha, a respected Puerto Rican artist who’s making her presence known in Puerto Rico and beyond.

Sashha, born Sasha Santiago, has been DJing for the last seven years. Getting her start as a fan of all music and an event promoter, she slowly evolved into the influential artist she is today, earning residencies, opening for global acts, and playing all over Puerto Rico along the way. She’s also participated in three DJ competitions, hosted by Infinity Tournaments, even winning two, making her the first woman to win back-to-back.

Though she gravitates to liquid drum and bass and to the darker side of the genre, Sashha also dabbles in house music, showcasing her versatility and love of electronic music. She works hard in her craft and is constantly looking to improve, as evidenced by her pivot into music engineering education. Now she has the technical prowess to accompany her already masterful DJing.

We got the chance to chat with Sashha after she got The Lab stage jumping with her blend of liquid and neurofunk drum and bass. She spoke about how vital QVLQV is to her career, what it’s like to be a woman in a male-dominated genre, and the hardships she’s faced as a DJ. Read on for the whole conversation!

Hey Sashha, thanks for chatting with us today. Can you tell us a little about your start as a DJ and which style of drum and bass speaks to you the most?

I’ve been DJing since 2018, when I played my first event. Liquid drum and bass or neuro [are my preferred styles]. Dark, metal drum bass. It’s very heavy and very dark. Those genres actually represent what I feel. And I know it controls my heartbeat. If the music and the frequency touch me in such a way, I bet they do the same for other people, so I try to mix them with my feelings.

How did you get involved with Let It Roll?

I’ve been with Que Venga Los Que Venga (QVLQV) for basically my entire career. They’ve supported me a lot, and actually, without Raul, the event producer, I wouldn’t be here. And obviously, the family that supports me. I’m actually here because of Raul.

You played The Lab stage. What are your thoughts on the local representation, and who are you most excited to catch this weekend?

The locals are all scattered around. There is a little of everything at each stage, which is cool. I’m actually interested in seeing AC13, Buunshin, and Justin Hawkes. They’re my style. ENEI also.

Are you hoping to expand farther than Puerto Rico, maybe play Let It Roll in Prague one day?

Ok, actually, when I was a big fan, if I wasn’t going to be a DJ, my bucket list was Let It Roll. I want to go to Let It Roll, not to play in it, but to go. Then, out of nowhere, the festival was coming to Puerto Rico, and I was told I would be playing it. I flipped out. My dream came true. Even better, actually. I wanted to enjoy the event, and instead, I’m playing in it. That blew my mind.

You brought up Raul and Que Venga Los Que Venga and how supportive they’ve been. Can you expand on that? Did you start as a promoter and then move into music? What role does Raul play in all that?

About Raul Rodriguez, yes! He’s the papa, the boss, the father, the lord in all this; he’s the CEO, owner, creator, and founder of QVLQV. Which is the DNB movement here in Puerto Rico; without him, honestly, drum and bass is nothing here. And obviously, the crew and all the support from the fans. [Laughs] But production and movement-wise, his love and investment in the drum and bass scene in Puerto Rico is everything. He has done so much to keep the community alive here.

He’s the money, he’s the security, he’s the stage, he’s the production, he’s the support, connection, you name it! He has supported me and each DJ equally. Obviously, you have to demonstrate it to earn it, like everyone else, which is understandable, of course. But besides that, he’s supported me since I started in 2017. He hasn’t stopped even though I disappeared for almost three years to study music, and here I am! He’s the one who placed me in Let It Roll. Here I was thinking my career was done, but nope!

Honestly, the Let It Roll announcement took me by surprise, and I have him to thank. He took me out of a loophole and depression that I was in, and thanks to him and this booking, I feel a little like myself again, and I’m not going to stop.

DJing in general is a male-dominated arena. What hardships have you faced as a woman, trying to break through this all?

It’s kinda male-dominated, and it’s very competitive! It isn’t very easy, actually, career-wise and personally. I’ve gone through many battles to get where I’m at, a lot of depression from rejections, feeling left behind because of not having the proper knowledge, or because I still don’t produce.

So in 2023, I searched for a solution and decided to study sound engineering and music production, which I completed. I got certified to solidify my music career. Another common hardship would be discrimination against women and limited access to well-known events or a strong lineup. If I’m not pretty enough, if I don’t show much skin, if I don’t “cooperate,” and if you don’t comply or are not good enough, you’re not in! And this is apart from the DnB scene.

Sometimes I play house, and that’s another world. Different interaction, vibe, energy, everything. This type of discrimination in Puerto Rico, in the DnB scene, thankfully has not happened to me because I was respected here. Thanks to Raul and the rest of the DnB crew, who have known me for years and are family.

Another sad story for me with this career would be love, and that takes a lot of emotion in the depression process. Not everyone is fit to have a girlfriend who’s also a DJ. In my last relationship, I was left because of music, incredible as it sounds, they made me choose between them and my passion. How is that possible? But here we are, seven months later, still standing and playing in one of the most significant, most incredible events brought to Puerto Rico! Let It Roll.

Now that I have the knowledge and I’m back, it’s my time to prove to those others wrong and to show what I’m really made of. It took years of connections, interactions, mentoring, and consistency to get somewhere, at least here in Puerto Rico.

Finally, is there anything you can tell us that no one else knows?

A lot of the locals will know that I disappeared from the scene for a while while I studied music engineering, sound engineering, and music production. Now I’m coming back, and Let It Roll is a great start. Now that I can link more with other local DJs and producers and share my knowledge with them. I’ll be able to produce my own material and mix my feelings with it. I will let the music speak for me.