[INTERVIEW] Tasha Blank Celebrates 10-Year Anniversary of BODY LVNGUANGE, Discusses the Importance of a "Hands-Free" Party, & Inspiration

Tasha Blank, a force of uninhibited, unapologetic and beautifully unhinged self-expression holding the same space for everyone as an international DJ. Founder (and Mama) of New York City's wildest "hands-free" dance party BODY LVNGUANGE, formerly known as The Get Down invites EVERYONE to dance as much as they will breathe, sweat, and smile without phones or drinks on the dance floor. Not only making space on the dance floor for raw, non-judgmental, and a safe "ancient future party ritual", Tasha Blank is also the founder of Powerhouse DJ School, a 7-month leadership training program dedicated to teach DJ, artistry, and event production skills. Starting her BODY LVNGUAGE performances with a meditative, moment of silence with closed eyes, Tasha Blank released her silence to share with iEDM why it's important for everyone to create a safe "hands-free" party, her remedy for creative blocks, and what's next in store for her this year.  

Check out iEDM's exclusive interview with Tasha Blank below.

iEDM: What is a constant source of inspiration or motivator for your artistic expression?

Tasha Blank: What isn’t! Creation is how I make sense out of life, what I do with the things I don't have words for. I have moments of feeling bored or uninspired, but usually all it takes to flip the switch is to literally just sit down in front of my laptop or sketchbook or recording setup and start making stuff again. Then creation itself becomes the inspiration. 

iEDM: Can you explain the importance of creating a “hands-free” party without the use of phones and drinks? Can you describe the experience for those who have yet to experience BODY LVNGUAGE?

Tasha Blank: If you want people present, in the moment, connecting with themselves, each other, the music and what’s actually happening in the room…they need to put their phones away. 

I think we’re all desperate for a direct experience of ourselves, unmediated by screens and filters. BODY LVNGUAGE is where we come to get human, tap back into the well of real life, access the groove of play, pleasure and delight. It’s natural part of who we are, but we forget all of it when we’re just living in our heads and on our devices.

iEDM: BODY LVNGUANGE (formerly known as The Get Down) is celebrating its 10-year anniversary, what are some favorite party highlights?

Tasha Blank: It’s still the best party I’ve ever DJed. We've hosted so many incredible guest artists, DJs, poets and performers. My favorite part of all of it is the relationships. The ones we’ve watched evolve over the years, the collaborations I've had the privilege of participating in over the course of a decade. The way people have come up in the community and taken on leadership roles. There's nothing like sticking with something for this long, to make it through the challenging moments and come out the other side stronger and more together than ever. 

iEDM: This party is said to hold a lot of magical moments. What are the differences in your DJing process when creating a set for BODY LVNGUAGE compared to one of your yoga sets? 

Tasha Blank: When I'm DJing a yoga set, I'm listening for the arc of energy the teacher is cultivating and creating a sonic landscape that supports that experience, so folks can go even deeper. 

At BODY LVNGUAGE, I’m driving the ship. That’s what it feels like - we’re all on a big rocket adventure into something we’ve never seen. We go to lots of places, luxuriating in sensuality, diving into major peaks of intensity and ultimately arriving in the kind of bliss you just have to be there to believe. 

iEDM: How would you like to further develop or evolve BODY LANGUAGE?

Tasha Blank: We’re in the process of training 30 badass up and coming DJs in Powerhouse DJ School (PhDJ). It’s a professional level training, and I teach them everything i know, including how to hold an experience like BODY LVGNUAGE. Those who are ready will be launching it in their own cities over the next couple of years. My vision has always been for this to be a movement that goes way beyond me, into a powerful ritual of rhythm that happens all over the world.  

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iEDM: You're an international DJ, coach, co-founder of Powerhouse DJ School, founder of BODY LVNGUAGE and more. How are you able to balance your multitude of creative endeavors? What is some advice that helped you become a more successful artist?

Tasha Blank: I've always had a ton of interests and pursued different artistic mediums. For a while, it got in the way of fully pursuing any one thing. 12 years ago I decided to simplify and just get really good at DJing and creating incredible dance experiences for folks. 

Everything I do now has grown out of that commitment. When things get too hectic or overwhelming, I take it back to that original mission: dancing and creating incredible dance experiences. I look at what’s doing the most to support that mission and what's distracting from it.

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iEDM: With that, is there another hobby, art form, or profession you’d like to study/pursue?  

Tasha Blank: I've released a couple of singles and EPs. I love making music and singing — it’s something that’s been on the back burner as a hobby for a long time, and there’s still a lot more I want to do with it.

iEDM: Is there anything you’d like to let your fans and BODY LVNGUAGE community know about you? 

Tasha Blank: Just that I love them so much. Everything I do is for them. It’s been a wild few years, I left NYC, traveled a ton, did loads of virtual dance and music offerings, incubated, built and launched PhDJ, relocated to Las Vegas – it’s all looked very different from what I was doing prior to 2020, and it’s all been in service of the same big mission: to bring the magic of what we do at BODY LVNGUAGE to as many humans as possible. 

iEDM: What is your remedy to a creative block? How do you find the motivation or inspiration to create during a stagnant phase?  

Tasha Blank: It’s a two pronged approach. One piece is making sure I’m moving my energy with dance and sweat, shaking out all the stagnation so that when I sit down to create my vessel is alive and ready. And then it’s just about sitting the fuck down and doing it. It’s not sexy. It’s just flipping a switch and deciding to do it. 

Once I show up for my end of the work, creativity does its part. One of my teachers Gabrielle Roth always used to say “It takes discipline to be a free spirit.” 

iEDM: What do you have planned for 2023? What are some of your career or personal goals you’d like to accomplish in the upcoming year?

Tasha Blank: I’m putting much of my focus and energy into Powerhouse DJ School, getting all our PhDJs fully trained up as the best embodied leaders on the planet, and mentoring them to launch revolutionary dance floors later in the year. We expect to launch BODY LVNGUAGE in several more cities including Vegas, LA, a few other US cities and potentially London and Paris. And I’ll be DJing all over the place as usual. 

Personally, I’m re-committing to my personal dance practice this year and am starting to train again. I’m a huge movement nerd and love training in functional movement, floorwork, martial arts, a few street and club dance styles in addition to partner dancing. 

I definitely wish there were more hours in each day, but am learning to enjoy taking things one step at a time.

Photos Courtesy of Tasha Blank

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