Interviews Anna Maria X [Interview] By Release Promo Posted on 10th May 2025 0 second read 0 0 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Reddit Share on Linkedin Anna Maria Harokopou aka Anna Maria X (more known as AMX) Born in Athens Greece, studied sociology. Started her radio career in 1996 on groundbreaking radio station Klik Fm. Moved onto Best Radio in 2001 with the show Best Weekend Mix catering to dance music lovers all over the world. Hosted the dance music show on Mad TV for 4 years. Has lent her voice to countless TV and radio commercial ads and from 2010 till the present is the official "voice" of the Onassis Cultural Foundation. She was resident dj of legendary greek club +Soda at its peak. She has released 6 mixed compilations (Believer 1&2, Sleepless Drive 1&2 and Back2Back Sessions 1&2 with G.Pal) The song "Ocean Of Blue" featuring her vocals was characterized a dance classic in greek electronica and received international acclaim. Has djed around the globe ( Canada,France, Germany, Romania, Poland, Albania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Turkey. Egypt, Dubai, Argentina and Lithuania where she returns to at least twice a year) and in some of the best clubs in the world like Stereo Montreal, Pacha Argentina, Exit Kaunas, Cavo Paradiso Mykonos,+ Soda Athens. In 2011 she finished her singing studies at the Greek National Conservatory of Music, and wrote a song for greek feature film Paradise, as well as for the act Lovechild. Has also collaborated with greek producer Stelios Vassiloudis on 2 songs of his debut album, out November 2011 on Bedrock. In 2012 she hosted Best Dj Zone on Best 92.6 (www.bestradio.gr) every Saturday midnight-1am(GR) In 2013 she produced and hosted the show Sleepless Drive every Saturday midnight-2am(GMT+2) on Athens fm station www.enlefko.fm... and later she hosted and produced the prime time midday slot on 88.6 Radio, as well as a live dj set for the web child of legendary Best Radio team, www.joinradio.gr every Thursday at 10pm to midnight. In 2014 Anna Maria received her certificates from Berklee School Of Music in Songwriting, Music Technology and Musicianship. She then went on to create www.homebaseradio.gr a webradio to air her countless mix sets and soon after she launched HomeBase Athens through which she produced 2 mega events in Athens to celebrate the 20th anniversary of legendary Athenian club +Soda. The return of Best Radio 92.6 marked Anna Maria’s celebration of 20 years of radio shows. You can listen to her daily from 8-9pm as well as every Friday from midnight to 1am on www.best926.gr This week finds Anna making her debut on Polyptych Limited White with 'Blind'. Progressive Astronaut caught up with Anna to learn more about the release of 'Blind', growing up in Greece, DJing and much more. Enjoy! Hi Anna, thanks for talking to us today. How has the start of the year been for you? Hello Progressive Astronaut, nice to meet you!! The year has been good so far. We did a series of events in Athens (Groove Heaven Events) focusing on the “old guard” of greek djs which brought a lot of over 35 clubbers together. That’s always a very warm feeling! Let’s look back on the first three months of the year, what gig of yours stood out the most and why? After the last Groove Heaven party in January I took a break from spinning. Focusing on my new release and getting ready for Greek summer madness! Now let’s look at tracks, what is a track or tracks which came out in 2025 that have impressed you the most and why? I love a good vocal, so I have to say “Make Me Feel” by Bedouin and Iveta Mukuchyan (maybe it’s a late 2024 release) and for a more house vibe “I Feel” by Tal Fussman What is a song/track you’ve never stopped listening to since childhood? And why has it stuck with you this long? Everything from The Doors and Pink Floyd brings back memories of my mother and record shopping with her in London as a child. How did growing up in Greece affect your music taste and direction into becoming a DJ and producer? The sea , the sun, the amazing greek nature overall always trigger a positive feeling. I try to convey that through my sets which I aim to keep lighthearted. Who from Greece inspired you the most early on and why were they inspirational for you? That has to be greek electronic band Stereo Nova. I remember distinctly hearing their track New Life 705 in 1994. I had no idea who the artist was, I had to go hum it at the record store. Talk to us about your residency at the legendary Greek club Soda, what are some of your fondest memories from your time there? Mid 90s to early 00s. As my generation says we partied through the golden era. So many fond memories. Spending hours shopping vinyl, collecting label stickers for the record boxes, no phones on the dancefloor! I was extra happy back then as other than my weekly residency at +Soda I was hosting The Weekend Mix on Best 92.6 radio as well as the dance music zone on Mad TV and all the guest djs stopped by my shows before their sets. You’ve accomplished a lot across your nearly 30 years in the industry, when you look back on everything, what were some pivotal moments which helped propel your career forward? That would have to be “Ocean of Blue” When it was released in 2002 I got to travel the world (carrying boxes of vinyl!) I got to do the first ever mixed compilation in Greece which topped the greek charts. Blessed to have a track that is considered a classic and still being played worldwide 23 years later. Anna Maria X · Ocean of Blue (Original Mix) What goals do you have going forward? Or a better question might be do you think about the future? I tend to focus more on the now! It’s a life lesson. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? Growing up I always gravitated towards whoever brought the goods, music wise. At parties even as a kid before I started clubbing I would always be close to the music source whether that was a tape player or later the dj. I would observe everything and only after feeling comfortable enough I ventured out. When I became totally satisfied with my mixing skills, I stopped referencing other djs mixes altogether wanting to keep my very personal style. As for learning that is something that never stops. I am now in the phase of learning to play the congas. You’ve been a regular in the sets of many of the world’s biggest DJs, so please tell us a bit about your approach to producing music and how would you describe the music you make? It’s always about the vocal for me. I scribble words, or hum them on my phone. I keep notebooks from ages ago and always go back to check if a theme speaks to me. For quite some time nothing resonated and I thought I was done with making music. You have a single ‘Blind’ out now via Polyptych Limited White, tell us a bit about the release and what sort of vibe you were going for on the track. Blind is based on the words by an English youtuber GeoffBuysCars. In the midst of the recent dark times, he went on a bridge and recited the words and invited artists to do what they pleased with them. His words finally resonated with me and got me moving again. “Blind” is a cautionary call for a future that can easily turn dystopian. I needed to make that statement in order to get back to the lighter, more positive mood which I talked about earlier Let our readers inside your studio for a moment, what is your current setup and what studio tools are featured heavily in your recent productions and more specifically on ‘Blind’? My studio setup is quite basic. A couple of Mac computers, Yamaha monitors and sub. There are various microphones and live instruments (piano, guitars, drums, congas, hand pan) and a dj booth with a Pioneer xdj-xz console and 2 Technics SL-1200MK2, KRK speakers and sub. I recorded the vocal part of Blind on a Rode NT1-A mic, through an Avalon pre amp VT-737SP and a UA Apollo Silver card on Logic and processed through Waves CLA-2A (Scheps Omni Channel, C6 multiband compressor, F6 floating band Dynamic EQ, H delay and IR-Live convoluted reverb.) The music part was arranged and mastered on Ableton. Basslines mainly by Serum (Xfer Records) and Nexus5 (reFX) plus various plugins. For melodies and synths, Roland SRX Orchestra, SRX Piano 1 and 2 and SRX Strings for the pads. The drum rack was entirely set up on the Algonaut Atlas2 sequence sampler. How much play has the track gotten in your sets and where do you generally program them? I record a new set every week for my radio show. I typically record on Traktor. All 3 versions of Blind were played on my sets at least once in the last 3 months Please tell us why the Polyptych Limited White was a good home for ‘Blind’. Polyptych has been putting out the kind of sound I felt agreed with the mood I went for with Blind. I am very happy we found common ground! Anna Maria X · After The Rain Best Radio 92.6 Beach Party @ Bolivar Shifting back to DJing for a moment, what is it about the craft, compared to producing your own music, that makes it interesting for you? Djing is a direct interaction of thoughts, emotions, energy and vibration. When dj and dancing people connect nothing can surpass the feeling. Can you tell me a bit about how your work as a DJ has influenced your view of music, your way of listening to tracks and perhaps also, your work as a producer? After almost 30 years of listening I am quicker in my decision as to which tracks work for me either for the club or the radio. And that’s a useful skill considering the amount of music that comes out daily. How important is it for you to have gigs to be able to test your own unreleased music? It’s important to view it first hand, but I equally appreciate the feedback I get from dj friends who get first dibs ;-) Suprematic Sounds · PREMIERE: Anna Maria X — Blind [Polyptych Limited White] Current Top five tracks in your sets? Iveta Mukucyan, Bedouin – Make Me Feel Khen – My Pure Soul Ezequiel Arias – Perfect Dream Anna Maria X – Blind (Sigma Pr remix) Amine K (Moroko Loko), WAHM(FR) – Kill The Anger If you are not DJing, producing or socializing at clubs, where do we find you? And doing what? At home. Enjoying watching my daughter follow her artistic dreams. Caring for my pets and if time allows trying to grow traditional seed vegetables. Or on the road driving long distances which is something I will always enjoy. If you could set up an event with a line-up of five artists of your choice, who would you book and what set times would you ascribe to the artists? 9pm Paul Kalkbrenner 11pm Danny Tenaglia 3am Nicole Moudaber 6am Deep Dish 9am Laurent Garnier If you were not a DJ/Producer what do you think you’d be doing with your life? (Something not music related) Driving. What’s something people do not know about you? When I start reading a book everything shuts down around me and for 2 days until I finish it I am unreachable. What TV series have you been enjoying recently and what are some of your all time favourites? I started watching Yellowstone this year which led to 1883 and 1924.My all time favorite is everything Law and Order SVU as well as Suits And Breaking Bad What can we look forward to from you across the rest of 2025? Any releases or gigs you are looking forward to? I am looking forward to all my gigs around Greece in the summer. I enjoy island hoping in the summer and playing by the sea. I am also currently working on two new tracks and considering whether to use greek lyrics. A couple of collaborations with other greek producers are in the works. As well as plans for the new season of Groove Heaven Events after the summer. 'Blind' is available now via Polyptych Limited White: https://tinyurl.com/2886kakb