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On International Women’s Day, 3 forward-thinking collectives—Kyiv-born, Berlin-based VESELKA and DRIFT Kyiv, alongside Copenhagen’s Den Anden Side and are coming together at Kreuzwerk club in Berlin for a night dedicated to queerness, diversity, femininity and resistance.
MSF was invited by DRIFT Kyiv to collaborate and shoot an editorial at our Berlin studio with RUI HO, MILO MAKUA, VANI VACHI, and OLHA, who will be performing at their International Women’s Day 2025 clubnight on March 8, at Kreuzwerk, Berlin.
The shoot is co-produced by moveslowfast and DRIFT Kyiv, styled with pieces from our marketplace, wearing designers V4K, Marfa Studios, Laoma Atelier and Rain and Rivers.
Love
is a radical force in our spaces.
In a world long dominated and abused by patriarchal structures, the need for spaces and opportunities that prioritize inclusivity, liberty and sustainability has never been more pressing.
This collaboration is not ‘just’ about music; it’s a statement, a celebration of freedom, and a call to action for a more equitable future in nightlife: a future long overdue.
I had the joy of interviewing four DJs performing at the event—RUI HO, Milo Makua, VANI VACHI, and OLHA—through the article, we dive into what it means
to reclaim space, embrace one's femininity, and the use of music as a tool for liberation.
They share their inspirations, battles with sustainability both in a cultural and personal sense, and why queer spaces remain vital to the resistance against oppression.
From Wu Zetian to the transformative power of a dancefloor, from techno as a form of protest to rethinking nightlife through sustainability.
This collaboration is not ‘just’ about music; it’s a statement, a celebration of freedom, and a call to action for a more equitable future
We are starting off the interviews with Olha Korovina, a Ukrainian DJ and performance artist based in Berlin. She is a co-founder of community platform DRIFT Kyiv.
L: Why is DRIFT Kyiv’s mission of unity as important as ever in 2025?
OLHA: We are only strong if we are united. In times when there is so much separation, war and extreme violence, we must come together. DRIFT Kyiv’s mission is to provide a space where diversity is celebrated, where we embrace our unique roots and origins, where compassion is the driving force to making this world a better place.
We believe that we can still rave with a purpose, surrounded by kind, caring people that like to explore sound. Our mission of unity is a form of resistance, it’s a reflection of our beautiful birthplace Ukraine and its unbreakable, free spirit.
L: How did this crossover episode and club night collaboration between DRIFT Kyiv, Veselka, Den Anden Side and moveslowfast come to fruition?
OLHA: It came very naturally, out of pure passion and dedication to community, music and culture. Uniting VESELKA - Ukraine’s first queer rave, DRIFT Kyiv - Berlin based transcultural community and event born in Kyiv, together with Copenhagen’s cutting-edge queer club and bringing it together with sustainable fashion platform MSF - this is a testament to collaboration, friendship and care.
We wanted to do something very new and refreshing in the nightlife and fashion scene.
This collaboration has a strong political message as well, taking place on Women’s Day, it celebrates queerness, diversity, womanhood, freedom, and love. We wanted to transmit this message beyond the event.
L: What do you hope people will take away from the event?
OLHA: Inspiration to be free, be themselves, embracing diversity; energy to keep resisting, fighting for justice; compassion for others and some hot memories.
L: If someone had to describe this event in just three words the next morning, after the last track has played, what do you hope they’d be?
OLHA: Intense, emotional, free.
L: When do you feel most connected to the community - when you are the dancer or the DJ? Or something else entirely?
OLHA: I feel most connected to the community when I am dancing and when I see people dance and smile at our events. Bringing all the pieces together, from the idea to the closing track moment on the dancefloor - it is a love making process, that gives me so much inspiration and energy to give back to this community.
L: Why is sustainability important in the context of nightlife and DJ culture?
OLHA: Sustainability is the future, environment is political. As well as the fashion industry, it is absolutely essential to approach the nightlife and DJing culture through the lens of sustainability. From booking more local lineups and opting in for sustainable transportation when touring, going to community events instead of massive festivals, to creating upcycled limited merch collections, instead of mass produced black/white T-shirts with the brand logo. DJs and nightlife communities shape attitudes and fashion trends.
Wearing and celebrating designers from the nightlife community, supporting sustainable brands can drive meaningful change.
Music is also a powerful tool which can inspire conversations about nature and spread environmental awareness. One such project was the artists residency Echoes of the Earth by Kyiv’s iconic club K41, where artists created music projects addressing the ecocide in Ukraine caused by the Russian war.
Promoting sustainability through music, fashion, events, clubs and social media can inspire the scene to be more conscious, fostering a more responsible, healthy and sustainable nightlife culture.
Fair pay, equal opportunities and fostering spaces that are free from discrimination and exploitation should not be a dream but a reality.
For women and marginalized voices, sustainability in a social sense means building communities that are resilient—and NOT temporary or tokenizing.
When clubs and nightlife spaces prioritize sustainability, they create platforms that amplify diverse voices, making sure that the culture doesn’t exclude but instead nurtures those who have historically been sidelined. Get with it or get out!
RUI HO
L: Who is your ultimate feminine inspiration?
RUI: Wu Zetian, the first and only female empress in Chinese history.
L: Do you have any advice (or dare I say REQUESTS) to club spaces, promoters and event organizers on how to actually build safe spaces that centre femme, queer and POC voices?
RUI: I think the most important thing is actually to involve the femme, queer and POC voices into the process of organizing. I like the organic vibe of good safe spaces. It can be very subtle, without rigid rules or strict policies. However, having a mechanism such as an awareness team is super important to a party.
RUI HO wearing V4K sweater and mini skirt, Marfa Studios bra top and algae skirt, and own socks and shoes
L: What do you expect from the event? And what are you going to serve us?
RUI: I am expecting a super cute community, a mixture of femme, queer and non-femme people celebrating femininity and liberation.
I am going to serve cute and mysterious high energy cunty dance euphoria.
VANI VACHI
L: Where do you feel most liberated? Where do you feel like your truest self - does such a space even exist? And would it be a physical place, a state of mind, a moment….?
VANI: I think it’s definitely a mental space for me — a moment in time. It can happen in spaces that inspire me — in nature, around people that I love, or on the dance floor.
I definitely feel my full creative self when I am performing too — perhaps it’s the anticipation that leads to that moment, or the energy of sharing your art with others.
L: When was the last time you experienced a transformative set of another artist, or a live performance? When was the last time something hit hard, and left you feeling inspired, fulfilled and jittery?
VANI: I’m really into concerts these days, last time I got inspired by seeing Caroline Polachek in Berlin. I love how concerts are a full experience in terms of production, with visuals and aesthetics matching music.
Also, I really love seeing something unexpected — some time ago I was at this experimental live show in a super small club, I think the guys were from Indonesia. And at some point they pulled out some native instruments and started to mix it with modular synths. I love a good DJ set too, my recent one that made me dance my shoes off was Yanamaste at SAULE.
L: What role does love play in your approach to music?
M: First and foremost, my whole practice is centered around love for the electronic music community – a space that throughout my life has allowed me to create a solid base to my quirky persona.
Love is a radical force in our spaces. In a scene that can still be exclusive and gatekept, leading with love – for marginalized artists, queer communities and people who don’t fit the mold, is a way for me to push back and create room for the ones in need.
L:How do you recover and protect your energy and overall mental/physical health after being in high-intensity nightlife spaces?
M: This has been a huge theme for me the past year. My mental and physical health has been on edge, to a point where I was considering ending my practice, in fear of burning out for good. I had to make some radical changes in my lifestyle, to allow myself to keep following the path I’m on.
Sobriety has been the most important way to protect myself. Today I have been sober for 3 months, and that decision has brought a way more balanced ‘after-glow’ for recovering nights with high intensity. My everyday routines are more strict - I get 8 hours of sleep every day, meditate, work out and go to weekly therapy.
I’ve learned the importance of asking for help, which has fostered a supportive network around me. Vulnerability has been a strength in my journey, and sharing my struggles with others has helped me feel less isolated in the club scene.
L: What does it mean to you to be part of this collaboration between two Ukrainian collectives, Copenhagen's club, and a Berlin venue?
M: For me, techno has always been a form of resistance to the normative society, standing against oppression, borders, and systems that exclude marginalized people.
Each scene has its own struggles with inclusivity and diversity, and coming together lets us learn from and about each other.
In Copenhagen, Den Anden Side has been actively supporting the resistance and voices of Ukraine after the invasion, and I feel proud to stand in solidarity with my Ukrainian family on this day – creating a safer space, amplifying minoritized voices and creating a night where everyone feels empowered and welcome!
FINAL THOUGHTS
Some would say the future has never been more uncertain or scary. But hey, how many times have people said that over the course of history?
The only way to deal with the complexities of today’s state of the world is to go right through it. To cut straight through the BS, with kindness and integrity.
To help one another, to talk to each other. To organize, to unify. To advocate. To resist.
To keep having parties. To keep checking in on your grandparents. To keep holding doors for others behind you.
To breathe and to walk. To let yourself feel sad, and get up stronger the next day. To celebrate all parts of your life. All sides of yourself and others around you. To sideline shame. And tap into grace, softness, power and determination.
And I will leave you with the wise words of the late and great Donna Summer: Love is the healer.
See you on the dancefloor at Kreuzwerk, Berlin, on March 8th.
Love is a radical force in our spaces. In a scene that can still be exclusive and gatekept, leading with love – for marginalized artists, queer communities and people who don’t fit the mold, is a way for me to push back and create room for the ones in need.
