It’s Giving… Back to the Community: Inside Bass n Babes, LA's Queer, Femme Collective

Bass n Babes founder Abby Cooper talks about launching in new cities, their new label, gender diversity in bass music, and a 12-hour Twitch LA fire relief fundraiser.

Bass n Babes continues to show up and show out for the queer and femme dance community in a big way. I recently caught up with Abby Cooper aka Baby Kush, the founder of the collective, and she gave me the scoop on everything new in Bass n Babes.

In case you missed it, Bass n Babes announced on their Instagram Stories that they will be launching a brand new party in the Bay area. In our conversation, they also shared their plans to launch events in NYC and San Diego.

Abby shared the vision for 2025: “We really want to bring Bass n Babes to other cities. It is a very niche space, but I think there is a demand for it in different places. Our main goal this year is to reach other markets.”

Wake Up Babe, Bass n Babes is Making Moves

Not only that, but Bass n Babes is launching a record label. “What we’re also really excited about this year — it’s something we’ve talked about for a while and we’re finally getting it going — we’re going to be releasing our first compilation album,” Abby said. “A kind of genesis for Bass n Babes as a record label.”

This is exciting news for many reasons, especially because Bass n Babes walks the walk of gender representation. 100% of their show lineups consist of women, queer, gender-fluid or nonbinary artists. The formation of an LA-based record label whose purpose is to support underrepresented genders in bass music is an important industry milestone.

Bass n Babes audience members at a show 2024 — Photo Credit: Kat Seibert

Inclusivity is Hot

Giving back can take many forms, including, in the case of Bass n Babes, Instagram Reels. Nowadays, social media is pivotal to social movement. Being loud online has become a viable way to accrue widespread visibility on issues that matter.

When Abby majored in women and gender studies, she may not quite have known that she would be spreading awareness about gender representation in music via an underground bass music collective’s Instagram page. Cooper noted, however, that ever since her college days, “something that’s been on the forefront of my mind is looking at spaces, looking at inclusion.”

As I scroll down the Bass n Babes instagram page, Baby Kush pops up in front of several festival lineups via Instagram’s green screen effect. Bass n Babes shows up with data-driven research on the percentages of femme, enby, and genderfluid artists in each lineup.

They even busted out an impressive spreadsheet to close out 2024. Bass n Babes surveyed gender representation percentages at 38 festival lineups throughout the year. The caption was complete with findable hashtags like #BookMoreWomen, #RaversUnite, and #FemaleRepresentation.

Abby described to me the void she sought to fill with the Reels: “There’s pages like Book More Women that do this too, but they focused on all sorts of festivals, all genres, a lot more mainstream festivals. So I really wanted to look specifically at bass music festivals and smaller festivals in the EDM world.”

She went on to share that not all the feedback she receives on the Reels agrees with the message “book more women.” “Sometimes those Reels find people who are supportive, and sometimes they find people who don’t really understand the purpose, say ‘it’s not about gender, it’s about talent’ or, other things where they’re not really understanding the full picture,” she said.

But she’s okay with that. The aim, she said, is to allow conversation. Abby hopes that her data-driven Reels might spark awareness and new ways of thinking about gender representation in dance music.

So Sus DJing at a Bass n Babes rave — Photo Credit: Kat Seibert

Abby then alluded to a Threads post by VNSSA on the topic, and I just had to dig into it. The DJ posted: “Festivals play a huge role in breaking the cycle. They’re tastemakers who shape the industry, not just reflect it. Booking more women isn’t about numbers, it’s about amplifying talent that’s already out there and giving them the visibility to inspire change.”

“Talent isn’t the issue, access is.” VNSSA comments later, also on Threads.

As the industry continues to morph and take shape, “It’s really important for festivals to make a statement in this way,” Abby said. “Just as there’s progression for inclusion of women in STEM fields, it’s a similar thing in music. Production and DJing are seen as a more male or masculine profession. There does have to be proactive action to make women feel more included.”

Abby believes that creating a more holistically inclusive environment will, in turn, allow more women artists to thrive. “Behind the scenes is really important,” she said. “Not only booking women and queer and non-binary people on stage, but thinking about how you can make your behind the scenes more inclusive. It’s really hard to find folks who work in stage production, sound production, or lighting production. That’s a super male-dominated field as well, but when you have women working behind the scenes, the women on stage feel more safe and secure.”

The Lore

I was curious: How was Bass n Babes born? Abby graciously offered up a chunk of backstory from before its inception at the end of 2022.

“I was going to a lot of parties and I worked with a queer events producer who threw these parties called Hawt Mess,” she said. “They were late-night after-hour raves, typically house music an queer pop stuff … I got a lot of inspiration from [Morgan of Hawt Mess],” she told me.

Although at the time, Abby wasn’t going to bass-specific warehouse parties, she had her finger on the pulse for underground events in LA. “I did two huge parties with her and some other queer folks for Halloween and New Year’s in 2022 going into 2023. That was around when the first Bass n Babes was as well. So that really influenced a lot of the decoration you see at Bass n Babes,” she said.

“After that, I got connected with B-Side LA and Good Society as well as other drum and bass events like Timeless. So then seeing how they operated helped influence some of the things that I do, too,” she continued.

I asked if Abby had any advice for someone hoping to grow within the party business. She smiled and answered in an earnest tone.

“Yeah, I guess my advice would just be to keep it professional and network. You know, working at parties, there can be a line between partying and being professional. And there’s a way to be professional and still have fun. It’s definitely important to show why you’re there,” she said.

Bass n Babes Artists Pose with audience at their 4/20/24 event — Photo credit: BEMM

Dance like Nobody’s Watching for Fire Relief

Bass n Babes is hosting a 12-hour marathon Twitch stream this weekend on Sunday, January 26th via CouchFam. It will run from noon to midnight, raising funds for LA fire victims and first responders.

The fundraiser will support affected individuals, families, and the South LA Community Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that has already supported 7,500 individuals affected by the disaster. Bass n Babes is also taking recommendations via Instagram for donation recipients.

Baby Kush shared her take on the importance of uniting to raise fire relief funds: “It’s a really great opportunity to continue building the community,” she said. “It’s easy to feel unempowered, but it’s helped people feel more empowered when they’re part of a community that’s able to give back and do something. So we’re hopeful that can be the case for both the DJs playing and then for people who join the stream. And you know, even just participating in the stream and like hyping the chat if folks don’t have that much money to donate still helps.”

You can tune into the live stream on CouchFam’s Twitch channel. When you donate during the stream, you will be entered to win an iHeartRaves gift card.