UTOPIA Talks is a music podcast that offers an insight into the mysterious world of dance music, fearlessly discussing the good (and the bad) of life as a DJ.
After hearing a pilot episode of UTOPIA Talks on Soundcloud in 2021, Katie approached BBC Radio 1’s Jaguar to develop the concept into a podcast. Despite being predominantly an entertainment show, UTOPIA Talks has not been shy to confront issues including racism, sexism, addiction and LGBTQ+ rights, through the lens of dance music.
The show has hosted DJs from the very top of the industry, including Annie Mac, who opened up about her experiences with sexism in the industry; Sama' Abdulhadi, a Palestinian DJ who was arrested in 2021; and Fat Tony, who spoke about his drug and sex addictions.
As well as some of the most famous DJs in the world, the show has also provided support and a voice for emerging artists, such as Avtomat; a DJ fighting for LGBTQ+ rights in Poland, Piri; a musician who supported her early career by creating OnlyFans content and G33 from Girls Don’t Sync, who shared her story of being sexually assaulted whilst DJing.
Alongside producing, writing and co-hosting UTOPIA Talks, Katie has worked alongside Carver PR on the promotion of the show, securing press from outlets including The Guardian, Mixmag and DJ Mag and successfully pitching the show to appear on the front page of the Apple Podcasts Carousel.
In March 2023, UTOPIA Talks released a two part documentary exploring gender disparity in UK dance music. You can read more about that here.
In 2023 and 2024, UTOPIA Talks partnered with the International Music Summit to release exclusive interviews with artists including Grimes, TSHA, DJ Paulette and Smokin’ Jo, recorded in front of live audiences.
UTOPIA Talks was nominated for Best Music Podcast in the PodBible Awards in 2021.
A clip from ‘Is Peggy Gou stealing music and our thoughts on the new Disclosure album!’
“I feel honoured to work alongside Katie, the producer of our podcast UTOPIA Talks. I have the most fun in the studio with her, and her work ethic and talent is unmatched.
She is patient, passionate and an extremely skilled editor and sound designer.
One of our proudest moments was creating Under The Lights - our documentary about women and non binary people in dance music. It was an ambitions undertaking but we created a unique audio insight that hasn’t been done before in such detail.
I love working with Katie and I feel like very lucky to call her my friend and colleague.”
— Jaguar • DJ at BBC Radio 1 and host of UTOPIA Talks.
'Under the Lights' was released in March 2023. It is a two part documentary focusing on gender disparity and sexism in dance music. It features the voices of Annie Mac, The Blessed Madonna, TAAHLIAH and more.
UTOPIA Talks partnered with the International Music Summit in 2023 for a unique interview with Grimes, recorded in front of a live audience.
Producing and cohosting UTOPIA Talks on location at the International Music Summit 2024 in Ibiza.