FEATURE: Spotlight: Anfisa Letyago — Music Musings & Such

FEATURE:

Spotlight

Anfisa Letyago

__________

THERE are some other interviews…

that I want to get to. I will start out with Schön! and their interview from last October with Anifsa Letyago. This is an amazing D.J. that I wanted to highlight, as she released the E.P., Bubbledance, in June of last year. TUNELS, an album with Unfinished Portraits, came out last year. Last September, at BEONIX Festival, Schön! Spoke with the Russian-Italian D.J. had played a set. “Hypnotic yet propulsive, her sound was like a siren call that echoed through the brutalist shell of the Hangar. Before she bent the space to her will with technical prowess and charisma, Schön! caught up with Letyago backstage”:

“You’ve played on such a wide range of stages around the world. In what way did this one distinguish itself for you?

It’s never about the stage itself, it’s all about the crowd. As DJs our role is to establish a connection with the people in front of us and take them on a journey through our music selection and mixing techniques [and] make them have fun.

With that context, how did you shape the flow of your show?

I love to read the crowd and feel the vibe of the night. It’s a spontaneous process and it works like a conversation between me and the people on the dance floor. I’ll play a track, see their reaction and that tells me what to do next. It’s about being in the moment and creating a unique experience for that specific night.

Your sound spans from hypnotic depths to powerful intensity, how do you decide which side to reveal more?

I don’t like to limit myself to just one style. I always keep a techno identity, but I love to travel between genres. The decision depends entirely on the atmosphere of the night and how the crowd responds. Sometimes the energy calls for a more intense sound and other times it’s more about a deep hypnotic vibe. The goal is to take people on a journey, and that journey needs different moments of both light and shade.

How does the process of creating music in the studio compare to bringing your sound to life on stage?

In the studio, it’s a very personal and intimate process. I’m alone and I can be very focused on the small details. I can explore different ideas and sounds without any pressure. It’s where I build the foundation of my sound and where I can live in my “fantasy world,” as I like to say. When I’m on stage it’s a different kind of energy. It’s about sharing that sound and that energy with a crowd. It’s a very physical and interactive experience. The crowd becomes part of the creative process. In the studio, I am the creator. On stage, I am the conductor. They are both essential parts of what I do”.

I will come to an interview from this year. However, sticking in 2025, Beatportal named Anfisa Letyago their Artist of the Month in June. She talked about her “clubland beginnings, and the sonic vision behind her bold new EP and audiovisual show”. I do love highlighting D.J.s for my Spotlight feature, as they tend not to get as much focus as artists:

“Anfisa has since travelled the world as a DJ, and her sound has evolved too. Present-day Anfisa Letyago productions traverse groovy and trippy techno, flecked with spacious soundscapes, hypnotic motifs, and aquatic basslines. “I think I’m still working on my sound,” she says. “It's a never-ending story. And recently, I noticed that I’m very obsessed with the details. Because the more time you spend in the studio, and the more time you spend producing, the more your focus goes to the details.”

It’s for this reason that Anfisa spent two years producing the EP Bubbledance. The result is “something unconventional” but it’s certainly suitable for the dance floor, with pacey BPMs, playful melodies and bouncy atmospherics. But it’s Anfisa’s enchanting vocals that add a quirky touch to the EP. “It’s not going to be viral,” she says. “I didn’t make the EP for that kind of promotion, but this is what I really feel when I work and write in the studio. Maybe it’s very conceptual, or a little bit conceptual, but at the same time, it satisfied what I feel and what I really want as an artist at this moment.”

The single “In My Arms” is an extension of Anfisa’s unconventional world. It’s due for release on 11th July via her own imprint, NDSA, which she named after the smallest island on the Gulf of Naples called Nisida. The single hits that sweet spot where classic trance and club-cut techno collide, laced with emotional pads, a bouncy lead melody and more of Anfisa’s whispery vocals, adding an introspective flare.

Plus, the single comes with a video that examines the fluidity of perception and identity. Anfisa teamed with AI artist duo Supernova (AKA Jacopo Gennari), fashion specialist director with years of experience and collaborations with major brands, and Matteo Masali, a video artist and editor. Together, and with Anfisa’s creative direction, they crafted an Anfisa-shaped character in the video, inspired by action sci-fi movies like The Matrix and The Fifth Element. “I don’t want to be an old school girl,” she laughs, referring to the age of both films, which were released in the '90s. “But it’s a very cool video. It’s a kind of a like dream where I move my character through an urban scene, a cosmic scene and an underwater scene. So it changes all the time. I really want to show you this video, but we’re still finalising it. We’ve been working on it for months.”

Working with AI and collaborating with digital artists excites Anfisa. Last year, she debuted her audiovisual show 'Partenope' and showcased it in Barcelona, Napoli, and London. Prior to this, Anfisa spent about a year and a half putting it together with the digital artist and creative technologist Giusy Amoroso, AKA Marigoldff, who built the character of Partenope (based on 3D scans of real-life Anfisa) and her sidekick (based on Anfisa’s cat Leo). “The resonance [with the crowd] was very big and people really loved it,” she says. “So it makes sense to continue to work on it. It’s not easy and it takes a lot of time to organise everything and to set up, but it’s worth it. It works.”

Next up, Anfisa will take 'Partenope' on the road again in November, but before that, she’s got a summer packed with gigs in Ibiza, the Netherlands, Croatia, the U.S., Cyprus, Mumbai and more. In the meantime, she’ll continue working on new music, working on the 'Partenope' A/V show and running her label NSDA. She uses the imprint to promote and collaborate with emerging artists like Keira Meier, Sole Dosi, Hoymans, and many more. She’s also planning NSDA workshops in Italy, France, and the UK.

Taking stock of her journey so far, Anfisa says she’s still evolving as an artist, but she’s staying true to herself and loves taking risks. “And it’s very cool, because everything comes with experience… when I see myself 15 years ago and when I see myself nowadays, I was always improving. It’s very nice growing through music. I would say that music has improved me as a person and as a woman. I’ve become more mature. Now I’m really sure about what I’m doing. And it’s so cool that everything has happened through music”.

Let’s finish off with a recent feature regarding comments Anfisa Letyango made on Twitter. He words about the state of Electronic music sparked debate. Whether, beyond posts and the algorithms, the music was still moving people and engaging. It is an interesting topic. One that I don’t think we are done discussing:

“Anfisa Letyago has set off a wider debate about the state of electronic music. The Russian-born techno DJ and producer took to X this week to share an unfiltered take: “The current situation in the electronic music world, 100% hype, 0% music.”

Crucially, the post has landed as one of the most discussed industry conversations of the week. As a result, fans, DJs and label heads have all weighed in across socials.

Notably, Anfisa has built her career on the opposite end of that spectrum. The Naples-based artist runs her own label N:S:DA and is known for relentlessly heavy, melodic techno productions. Furthermore, she has headlined major rooms from Awakenings to Coachella while remaining vocal about craft over clout.

Meanwhile, her comment touches a raw nerve. The wider electronic music economy increasingly rewards short-form content, viral edits, influencer touring, brand partnerships and TikTok algorithm chasing. Indeed, plenty of artists have voiced frustration that production quality and dancefloor craft now feel secondary to social-first thinking.

Equally, the debate isn’t new but the framing is sharper. From Bob Sinclar recently calling Ibiza too focused on VIPs to Deborah De Luca calling out gendered scene criticism, artists with long careers are increasingly vocal about what the industry has prioritised. In short, the hype-vs-music conversation has become its own loop.

Still, Anfisa‘s words cut through because she has the catalogue to back them up. Crucially, her post asks something simple: what is the music actually doing right now? Beyond the engagement numbers, the playlist placements, the algorithm reach, the question is whether the tracks themselves are still moving people.

Furthermore, the dance music economy in 2026 lives across radio, festivals, TikTok edits, brand deals and editorial cycles. Equally, that fragmentation is what enables hype to outpace music. In short, Anfisa Letyago just put the most viral framing on it yet”.

I do think that Anfisa Letyago is a pure talent and artist whose music is moving people. As a D.J., her sets are bringing people together. She is someone who very much gets to people and delivers these incredible sets. Her own music so engaging. It goes beyond hype. Go and make sure that this incredible women is…