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Woman Power Wednesday: Tara Stewart
This week for Woman Power Wednesday we chatted to the impossibly cool Tara Stewart. Tara is an Australian gal, now based in Dublin, and is your go-to girl for anything to do with music. Tara bounces between working as a music journalist, a radio presenter and a DJ. We caught up with Tara to chat all things music, enjoy!
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-You have a really varied career; radio presenter, DJ and music journalist, how did you get started?
That's a very long one to answer! I've been playing music since I was 8 or 9 years old, I played the saxophone, flute and guitar and studied music throughout high school. When I finished school I wanted to make it in the lights as a musician and I moved to Ireland from a small town in Australia to pursue that. After a few years of highs and lows I kind of fell out of love doing that side of music. My early twenties were really hard because I was in a new country, trying to build a life and a career while working in hospitality full time, needing to afford rent, bills etc and also put money into music. So a few years ago I decided to put that side of me on the shelf and get into radio. I love to talk and love music so I thought it would be the perfect job lol. I sent in a really bad demo to a small training radio station, but they gave me a shot to work on my craft. Then after a few months I sent a demo into RTE and Adam Fogarty the station editor of the RTE digital stations 2XM and Pulse gave me a shot and I got my first show on a Thursday night. From there, he kept pushing me and helping me work on becoming a better presenter. Then I got another shot on Tracy Clifford's show on 2FM as a new music contributor. I would come in to RTE any spare time I had and would come in before and after my cafe job just so I can learn more, get more experience and meet people. I never went to college to so I had to learn from the ground up. While working my way into 2FM I was also working full-time in hospitality. A year and a few months ago I stopped working in that job and it was a really hard time. I didn't have a stable job to support me while trying to graft my way up the radio ladder. But at the same time it was the best thing for me, because I was more flexible and available so I started to get more work in radio. Now I can afford to pay my rent, bills and a few wines on what I earn so that feels good tbh. In regards to DJing, last year I was doing a good few club gigs here and there to get my name out there more and earn a bit more cash moneyz. I basically wrote to bookers I knew and said yo gimme a shot, I play deadly tunes. Then this year I've been lucky enough to have been booked for pretty much every Irish festival.
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-Has music always been your passion in life?
100% I love music so much. I was brought up on so many musical styles from Elvis Presley on my dad's side and Joni Mitchell on my mum's side. Even though I don't really write music anymore, I still am able to release my passion for music when I'm DJing. I really love playing songs people love and can dance to.
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-Do you think there's a strong female presence in the Irish music industry?
I think there is now yes. There are a lot of female women killing it in radio right now and in the music world as singers and musicians.
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-What would you say has been the highlight of your career so far?
That's a hard one because I don't even feel like I've achieved a quarter of what I want to in my career yet. But, in saying that, my radio highlight would have to be interviewing TLC, Shania Twain, Faith Evans, Jojo and En Vogue. They're legends I grew up listening to. DJ wise, my highlight would have to be playing Forbidden Fruit and Longitude Festival, those two gigs were so much fun.
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-What women inspire you?
My mam firstly. She's an amazing woman and although I probably still wreck her head at 27 she's the best. Missy Elliott, she's just a legend. Emma Fraser, I've seen her grow two amazing business over the years and I'm a very proud friend. Tracy Clifford, she's been my mentor in radio since I started and she's helped me so much along the way. Shania Twain, that bish has been through some mental shit in her career and personal life, from her husband cheating with her best mate to having lyme's disease and losing her voice, and she's still killing it.
Follow Tara on Instagram here
Ciara x
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-You have a really varied career; radio presenter, DJ and music journalist, how did you get started?
That's a very long one to answer! I've been playing music since I was 8 or 9 years old, I played the saxophone, flute and guitar and studied music throughout high school. When I finished school I wanted to make it in the lights as a musician and I moved to Ireland from a small town in Australia to pursue that. After a few years of highs and lows I kind of fell out of love doing that side of music. My early twenties were really hard because I was in a new country, trying to build a life and a career while working in hospitality full time, needing to afford rent, bills etc and also put money into music. So a few years ago I decided to put that side of me on the shelf and get into radio. I love to talk and love music so I thought it would be the perfect job lol. I sent in a really bad demo to a small training radio station, but they gave me a shot to work on my craft. Then after a few months I sent a demo into RTE and Adam Fogarty the station editor of the RTE digital stations 2XM and Pulse gave me a shot and I got my first show on a Thursday night. From there, he kept pushing me and helping me work on becoming a better presenter. Then I got another shot on Tracy Clifford's show on 2FM as a new music contributor. I would come in to RTE any spare time I had and would come in before and after my cafe job just so I can learn more, get more experience and meet people. I never went to college to so I had to learn from the ground up. While working my way into 2FM I was also working full-time in hospitality. A year and a few months ago I stopped working in that job and it was a really hard time. I didn't have a stable job to support me while trying to graft my way up the radio ladder. But at the same time it was the best thing for me, because I was more flexible and available so I started to get more work in radio. Now I can afford to pay my rent, bills and a few wines on what I earn so that feels good tbh. In regards to DJing, last year I was doing a good few club gigs here and there to get my name out there more and earn a bit more cash moneyz. I basically wrote to bookers I knew and said yo gimme a shot, I play deadly tunes. Then this year I've been lucky enough to have been booked for pretty much every Irish festival.
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-Has music always been your passion in life?
100% I love music so much. I was brought up on so many musical styles from Elvis Presley on my dad's side and Joni Mitchell on my mum's side. Even though I don't really write music anymore, I still am able to release my passion for music when I'm DJing. I really love playing songs people love and can dance to.
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-Do you think there's a strong female presence in the Irish music industry?
I think there is now yes. There are a lot of female women killing it in radio right now and in the music world as singers and musicians.
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-What would you say has been the highlight of your career so far?
That's a hard one because I don't even feel like I've achieved a quarter of what I want to in my career yet. But, in saying that, my radio highlight would have to be interviewing TLC, Shania Twain, Faith Evans, Jojo and En Vogue. They're legends I grew up listening to. DJ wise, my highlight would have to be playing Forbidden Fruit and Longitude Festival, those two gigs were so much fun.
Photo from instagram.com/tarastewartdj
-What women inspire you?
My mam firstly. She's an amazing woman and although I probably still wreck her head at 27 she's the best. Missy Elliott, she's just a legend. Emma Fraser, I've seen her grow two amazing business over the years and I'm a very proud friend. Tracy Clifford, she's been my mentor in radio since I started and she's helped me so much along the way. Shania Twain, that bish has been through some mental shit in her career and personal life, from her husband cheating with her best mate to having lyme's disease and losing her voice, and she's still killing it.
Follow Tara on Instagram here
Ciara x
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