Music
All hail DJ JNETT, Melbourne dance music royalty
An icon reflects on a legacy that spans generations.
DJ JNETT is a name synonymous with the extensive and deep history of Melbourne dance music. A driving force in the genre through the '90s, Janette Pitruzzello's untouchable musical knowledge and skills behind the decks elevated the DJ to the upper echelons of reverence within the industry, while her fanbase would only continue to intensify and diversify as her career entered the 2000s.
But now, in a musical climate driven by digital connections and a global community made smaller thanks to the advent of technology and the internet, how does a luminary such as DJ JNETT view the ever-changing dynamics within the Melbourne music community?
Over a cup of tea in the city’s inner-north, JNETT opens up about the difference in scene now, to when she first began her journey through the ranks.
“I stuck to it because I was completely passionate about it.” she reflects on the early days. “In Melbourne when I was coming up, the huge thing was the progressive house sound. For me, I was more into underground house, disco, whatever genre you’re talking about. The musicality, I struggled with. Like, ‘There is all this other amazing music, how come this is such a dominant sound?’ Personally, it didn’t rock me, but it is what it is. I don’t know what it is, but it’s almost like this other force that kept me going in it.”
As we talk, JNETT’s unbridled love for the art of music and its many sonic forms rings out beautifully. From working in music on a retail front, to spending years crate digging and building an envious collection of her own, and then bringing her own DJ technique to packed clubs and audiences of thousands, Pitruzzello has an intrinsic connection to the beats, the whirrs of production – the odd sense of euphoria that comes with the completion of each sweaty set.
“I feel that there’s this thing that is innate inside you,” she says. “That when you’re exposed to certain things and it triggers something, you don’t really know the answer as to where it’s come from. There are certain personal friends who have really influenced me in such a massive way, musically. Producer-wise, there were a lot of American house producers who now have become headliner names. It’s interesting how before, it would be a sideroom thing, whereas now, everyone seems to be aware of those artists, it’s so interesting!”
I’ve just approached music really honestly, not in a conscious way.
Cutting her teeth on stages in Melbourne clubs, eventually growing her style and presence internationally and then on TV as a presenter on ABC's Recovery, Pitruzzello has thrived on each challenge to be put her way. However, she admits the path to success for today’s generation doesn’t necessarily align with her own values.
“Your drive for it changes.” she admits. “For me, I’ve just approached music really honestly, not in a conscious way, which I see a lot of now. The art of planning, ‘I’ve got to go from this to this.’ I’m avoiding a lot of the shitty gigs which I have spent a lifetime doing, because if that allows you to express yourself and hone in on your craft, the more the merrier. The more hours you clock in doing it, it becomes second nature.”
DJ JNETT
© Supplied
A mother of two, Pitruzzello’s priorities have undergone examination and change over the years. Her role as a parent is one she proudly speaks, but just as fiercely, she is also proud of the dynamic she’s been able to strike as being both a parent and a creative force. Not one to be pigeonholed, or have her path determined for her, DJ JNETT’s creative growth stems from an innate desire to go her own way.
“What I struggle with is the idea that there’s this lane you’re supposed to run with, if you want to keep your profile alive.” she says. “If you really remain true, then there is no formula. I’m not a 25 year old who wants to be posting selfies. There’s elements of that I really struggle with, but then I think, ‘You haven’t had to do that so far, you don’t have to feel the pressure of it’. I want to move past that. We’re in a different time now, it’s a different thing to be aware of. Regardless though, you do what you love - if you’re going to focus that much time and energy on it, you’ve got to love it. I know that for me, I love it on a level that I can’t really explain.”
“To tick the boxes of the path you’re supposed to follow in order to get from A to B, that’s the thing for me personally, that I struggle with,” she continues. “With age, I am more honest about it, in the sense of when I see that, I go, ‘That doesn’t really interest me’. I don’t necessarily want to sit there and go, ‘I choose this record to open up a set and I choose this record at the peak time of my set’. Not to criticise it, but it really isn’t me and it isn’t what I’m about. It’s always about the community and what I’ve seen over time, the community has greatened. There are so many more people who are genuinely into it. I often reflect on the time I came up; you really felt a lot more isolated. Now I really feel a part of this dynamic.”
In more recent years, Pitruzzello has been devoting herself to the creation of new music, entertaining crowds on stage and continuing to chase the feeling that comes from being a slave to the rhythm. A lover of the sound wave with an everlasting curiosity for new textures and tones. Having had a hand in the development of a music legacy in Melbourne that has transformed into a strong and enduring fixture of the dance community since the '90s, Pitruzzello is excited when it comes to a new generation of vinyl lovers and DJs on the precipice of success themselves.
“My first residency was at The Lounge in Melbourne,” she remembers. “I used to come out of there at six in the morning. Melbourne was an actual CBD, there were no people around. I had spent a lot of time in London and a lot of time in New York, knowing essentially that the scene exists, but the dynamic just wasn’t here yet. One day, I really hoped to come out on the street and there’d just be people everywhere.”
“It’s weird, you often reflect and go, ‘Whoa I’m still doing it!’ and now it has happened. It’s as great thing to be doing, I’m lucky to still be able to just play music and DJ. It’s just grown in a really positive way and it’s always been about people and the music. That’s it.”
DJ JNETT performs a B2B set with Rambl at Red Bull Music's 1800-Doof, taking place at Melbourne's Yours & Mine on Friday April 19. Full lineup and details here.