Ahead of her huge TRNSMT Festival appearance in Glasgow alongside Illyus Barrientos, BETH opens up about club culture, authenticity and building a career with longevity in mind.
As one of Scotland’s fastest-rising electronic artists, BETH has spent the last few years steadily building her name through relentless graft, standout productions and increasingly high-profile DJ sets. But despite the recent surge in attention, she’s quick to point out that the journey has been years in the making.
“I have been grafting for years now,” she says. “So, I feel like the rise over the past year has been earned. I almost feel like ‘about time’.”
That patience and persistence have helped shape a much clearer sense of identity, both musically and personally. Looking back at her earlier years trying to establish herself as both a DJ and producer, BETH admits things feel very different now.
“I think the biggest difference is clarity,” she explains. “In earlier days I was very much in the phase of experimenting and trying to find where I fit, both as a DJ and producer. I feel more settled in my sound, my selections, even the way I approach a set or track.”
More importantly, she says, her confidence has shifted too. “Before I was proving to myself that I could do it,” she says. “Now I’m more focused on longevity and building something meaningful rather than reacting to opportunities as they come.”
That confidence is becoming increasingly evident in her productions. Recent releases like Keep It Movin’ and Hooked On You have gained strong support from BBC Radio 1 tastemakers including Arielle Free and Sarah Story, while major DJs across the electronic scene have also begun championing her music.
For BETH, though, finding her sound hasn’t meant standing still creatively. “I think I have found the core of my sound,” she says. “There’s a certain energy that runs through everything I’m doing and I think you can hear that in my productions. But at the same time music is always evolving and I’m always exposed to new influences, new sounds and just growing as an artist.”
That balance between consistency and evolution is something she also thinks about in the studio. While dancefloor energy remains central to her process, she’s become more aware of how records can connect emotionally too.
“The club energy is what draws people in,” she explains, “but it’s the emotional connection that makes a track stay with them. I try to sit somewhere in the middle where there’s a strong groove and energy but also something underneath that people can connect with.”
When it comes to writing records, her starting point is still rooted firmly in club culture. “Usually I would start with the dancefloor,” she says, “because the most important thing as a producer is to make tunes that you can play out or other DJs would play out.”
Still, she acknowledges some tracks naturally evolve into something broader. “There are some records, like Keep It Movin’, that was more of a radio record or streaming record,” she says. “I think there’s a balance that’s developed over time. I’m more aware of space, structure and how a track can work in different contexts.”
That growing confidence in the studio has also come with a change in mindset creatively. “I would say having an open mindset when going into the studio has genuinely changed the way I make records,” she explains. “You might have an idea in mind when you start and it goes in a completely different direction.”
She laughs while admitting she’s also learned an important lesson about overcomplicating tracks. “Trusting simplicity a bit more,” she says, “and not thinking I have to add a load of elements to a record for the sake of it.”
One of the defining moments of the last year came when Peggy Gou dropped one of her tracks during her Coachella set, something BETH still describes as surreal. “Yeah, it was a pretty big moment for sure,” she says. “I had a lot of record labels contacted me after they seen that. As a DJ, picking one of my tunes to play at one of the most well-known festivals in the world will always be a pinch me moment.”
More than anything, though, the experience gave her a renewed belief in herself. “It’s made me realise my music is good enough,” she says.
That momentum continues this summer with a forthcoming release on Incognito Records, which she describes as a more emotional and uplifting direction. “I wanted to create something for summer that people can connect with,” she says, “and that’s also just light-hearted and easy on the ear. Something more emotional but fun at the same time.”
Away from the studio, BETH’s reputation as a DJ continues to grow rapidly, with appearances everywhere from intimate club spaces to major festival stages. Yet despite playing to increasingly large crowds, she admits her heart still belongs to smaller venues. “In real honesty, I love my intimate settings,” she says. “Give me a 300-cap, low-ceiling sweatbox and I will be there in my element.”
At the same time, she recognises the scale and emotion that festivals can bring. “Bigger festival settings have a place in my heart because getting to play to thousands of people is a massive moment.”
This summer, one of those moments arrives at TRNSMT Festival in Glasgow, where she’ll play back-to-back with fellow Scottish favourite Illyus Barrientos. “Going B2B with Illyus Barrientos will be one for the books, that’s for sure,” she says. “Expect some big tunes, unreleased bits, hands in the air chaos and that raw back-and-forth flow you get with a real B2B.”
As her profile rises, BETH remains conscious of the pressures facing modern artists, particularly in an era driven by social media, trends and algorithms. “It’s definitely something you have to be conscious of because it’s so easy to get pulled into what’s working in the moment,” she says. “Trends move fast and if you are constantly reacting to them you can lose your identity pretty quickly.”
Instead, she tries to stay connected to her own instincts. “For me, staying grounded comes from having a clear sense of what I actually like and what I want my sound to be,” she says. “I spend a lot of time just making music without thinking about how it’s going to perform, no socials, no pressure, just focusing on what feels right.”
That same approach shapes how she handles online visibility too. “You’re not just a DJ or producer anymore,” she says. “You’re expected to exist online in a constant way.”
Still, authenticity remains non-negotiable. “If something feels too staged or disconnected from who I am, it usually comes across that way anyway,” she says. “I’d rather share moments that are genuine rather than trying to keep up with every trend.”
For an artist currently experiencing the biggest rise of her career so far, it’s that sense of self-awareness, alongside the music itself, that makes BETH feel like far more than just another fast-rising name.
Catch BETH playing back to back at TRNSMT Festival on Sunday 21st June.
More information HERE.