DJ/Producer Chloé Caillet has been taking her SMIILE party out on the road, celebrating queer joy in cities around the world. Chloé also recently dropped the celebratory Here to Make You Smiile EP via her own label, SMIILE records.

Jossy Jaycoff is visual artist and trans activitst who has made waves in their adoptive city of Barcelona by fighting for Queer rights and through their powerful projects such as Street Harassment.

To take a moment and acknowledge all this Queer energy coming together, Chloé and Jossy sat down to discuss what makes them happy, how to celebrate the ultimate Queermas and the story of how they met.

Jossy: Chloé, hello! You have just released your Here to Make You Smile EP. How’s that feeling?
Chloé: Hola, yeah I gave birth to another child, my second EP. It’s good but it’s definitely been like a process. Now it’s out there and it’s time to let go, you know?

I love that, now the family is bigger!
It is bigger, another EP, another conversation, I love it.

So I would like to get a glimpse into your personal life. I would like to know, for example,  who makes you smile?
Uh, probably my brother, Theo. He makes me smile everytime I see him. I love him.

That is so sweet. Hi Theo! What song makes you smile?
My God, the first that came to mind is such a cheesy 80s record. It’s not a song I listen to at all but ‘Wake me up before you gogo’ by Wham. Haha…

You’re smiling, so that must be true. What about a city?
Oof, I think Los Angeles, or actually no. You know what? Sao Paulo makes me smile. It’s a super vibrant city. There’s always so much going on, the colors are amazing. The people are just very energetic. When I’m there I always feel so good.

And I know it’s a tough one, ‘cause you’re literally touring the world. But what about a club that makes you smile?
Ahh, I think Nitsa! When I play there, it’s such a fun place to play. That’s where we met actually.

Yeah! Nice! OK. Now, in a world of ‘model-look face tutorials’ where a poker face is ‘cool’, you have started this movement that embraces a smile. There’s so much power there. Why Smiile?
That’s a great question. I guess when I was looking to start a concept, I always thought ‘What is it that represents me? What is my DNA that I care to share with the world?’ and I think something that came through with everything was always my ability to stay positive, to look at hard situations in a positive way, and to always bring people together for a good time. That’s something I’ve done unconsciously kinda my whole life. So, I was talking with friends, thinking ‘What would be something cool?’ And I was like SMILE!
Everytime I’m partying I like to see people, not necessarily smiling, but giving that energy you know? It’s also a big reference to the 90s acid house movement and rave scene. Just to kinda bring positivity, love, joy. Some light, you know?!
Plus if you go back to the roots of electronic music like The Paradise Garage, The Loft, The Warehouse, they were fun. It was where people came together to celebrate because outside their lives weren’t easy. So for me it’s kinda like ‘How do we bring that element of where our culture comes from to a modern place?’ Today we’re also experiencing a lot of difficulties so I think it’s time for people to come together and not stand alone.

You were talking about taking that joy from the past, so I would like to know a couple of happy memories you have as a kid and an adult that relate to music.
Wow, when I was a kid my Dad and my Mom divorced and I would see my Dad on the weekends. I have this memory where every time I would go see him, it was music time you know? We would listen to a lot of Rock & Roll. He would take me in his arms, play some of these tracks and I remember just dancing with him. That was one of my first memories of music. I was only four or five but I remember music was always a big part of our interactions. That’s one of my early childhood memories.

That’s a beautiful one. And what about as an adult? A memory that links to music and makes you smile?
When I was nineteen at a party in Brooklyn. I remember stepping into what looked like an abandoned building. We knocked at the door, someone opened and we walked into this place that was actually The Marcy Hotel, where Wolf & Lamb used to do the legendary parties. I walked in and suddenly I felt this hedonistic energy from everyone. The music was slower than what we hear today. It was a beautiful moment to witness; the music, the people, the location. That was one of my first early experiences when I moved back to New York.

You described it as kinda dreamy, like oneiric, from another realm.
It was! I just remember there being no barriers. It didn’t matter your gender, your background, your heritage, your skin color. You were who you were. It was all about sharing a moment together and a space that was safe for everyone to just let go. I feel we’re missing a little bit of that today.

What would you say to a queer kid somewhere in a remote location, seeking this space like Smiile, to celebrate?
Reach out to people. All of us here are wanting to bring people that need a place. A lot of times when you come out as a queer kid it’s very hard to find a community. Everything can feel extremely new and scary. So don’t be afraid to go online, to reach out through social media, to send messages because we’re here, we’re listening. l’m constantly in my DMs making sure people who are reaching out are getting responses.

That advice in itself is pure gold ‘cause I believe so many queer kids just don’t know where to reach out and if they’ll be accepted. There’s this shame. And if you break that barrier and say, ‘I’m here’, there are people who’ll listen.
Big time! People are scared to go out alone because it can be seen as not having friends or a negative thing which is completely the opposite. This is why we do parties, so that you can meet other people on the dancefloor. I’ve met some of my best friends in the club. That’s where I’ve met most of my partners. So don’t be afraid, there are people out there that wanna be with you, support you, be your friend and go on this journey together. That’s the biggest thing I missed when I was coming out.

Do you think there’s anything we can do to instill more joy in the queer community given the current climate?
Wow. It’s important because right now we’re in a phase where queer communities haven’t been fully accepted and we’re constantly trying to stand our ground everywhere in the world. I think it’s now time to come together as communities, to make time for the people you love, to create things and to not be afraid to speak out. When Trump got elected I went online and everyone seemed so sad, upset and scared. But then I read a really positive post that said, ‘Well, now it’s time for action. Now it’s time to go and show them who we are.’ I remember reading that and being like ‘I’m in power now. Let’s go! Positive change!’ So I think to instill joy is about coming together, knowing you have each other’s backs within these moments.

I think a lot of people need to listen to this, because there’s this feeling of burnout. I believe hearing ‘Hey this is the time. We gotta step together more than ever,’ is the biggest reminder we can get at the moment.
Yeah, it is burnout because I’m tired of constantly having to remind people why we are part of the world.

A beautiful part of the world.
And actually probably some of the most fun parts of the world. We bring joy, love, presence, acceptance and there is no party without a queer community you know? We make the room come alive. I’m so tired of having to state that over and over, but you know what? You gotta be strong, because they beat you down time after time. We’re not doing this for us, we’re doing this for everyone who’s coming after us. Like the people who did it before us. We’re here to bring change I think.

You know what brings me joy? Your video for ‘B Good’ featured two London sisters, trans icons if you ask me, Kaiden & Theo. Shout out to them, my gosh. Seeing two people platformed in such a way, being so exquisitely sexy, hot and present. That was a moment I treasure. Everything they put together is a vision that serves as a reminder of what we can create, of these spaces, of this sisterhood. I think this word “SISTERHOOD” is as important as it has always been.
Big time! And sisterhood is everything. When we came up with the idea, my partner Carla thought, ‘How do we represent this song in a way where we give back the energy that we feel when playing the song? About coming together and feeling positive.’ We spoke to the super talented director from London, Joseph Wilson, who said ‘Kaiden and Theo represent those roles and are going to come together because they’re also such good friends.’

Yeah, a genuine loving sisterhood.
And you can tell it’s two best friends running around the city from day to night, kinda showcasing how they’re having fun to a song that is about positivity ‘B Good’ is about saying ‘Okay, tough times are here but let’s be good.’ And both of them embodied that so much. It was a really special full circle moment for me making a song and then seeing a visual that fully represented it. I’ve seen Kaiden a few times since and I’m always like, ‘You don’t understand, you made this song come alive! Just through your magic.’ Super super amazing to work with them.

I think magic is a good word to describe this feeling and the connection between queer people.
It is magic! Because you understand each other without even having to talk! It’s crazy, there’s an interlinkage between all of us that I think is a silent bond, which you don’t find in a lot of other places.

Now we’re gonna close this with some rapid questions from Loverboy, for both of us actually. Is Xmas a happy time for you?
Yes, actually. It feels controversial to say that because I have a lot of friends for whom it’s not. So I’m always thinking about my friends who are having a hard time over Xmas. But I’m very grateful to have a family that comes together, even though my family is not perfect. It’s a time for me to be with them and reconnect. It is a happy time.

Okay, I hate it! Haha…joking. It’s not that I hate it, I mean my Xmas is my Halloween. I think you can tell, I’m a fucking vampire. What can I say?! The thing about Xmas is that it’s this emotionally-loaded time. Of course I take it now as this opportunity to gather with my chosen family and also the family that are still here. But it’s a complex one. When I saw this question I was a bit like ‘Uh-oh, Xmas, okay.’ But we love Queermas!
We love Queermas! I mean we all feel we have to perform during Xmas but I think the best thing to remember is, ‘You don’t need to put pressure on yourself around the holidays.’ If you don’t wanna see your family, don’t see your family. Go spend it with your friends! Take care of yourself!

I support that 100%. Get the fuck away, wherever YOU want. And again, if it’s about having to put on a show, if you’re in a safe environment, put on a show! Dress up, it’s fucking Queermas.
Yesss, it’s Queermas. I’ll go with that. Haha…

Now, Loverboy want to know, how do we know each other?
We met at Nitsa, at Apolo, and you came to the dinner.

Yeah. So you were doing the dinner prior to Smiile. It was my first time. I had no idea what I was stepping into. Lexa, Alex Nikolov & Moli said ‘You gotta come to this dinner, there’s going to be really cool people.’ I had just left a photoshoot and went straight there.
You came in looking amazing. I was like, ‘Wow.’ You looked fab fab fab.

Oh my, that’s sweet, thank you! It was my first introduction to your world and it was so special. There’s this idea of, ‘You are here to share food with other people, to talk with other people, to learn other stories and to connect before the party.’ I think that is so precious. We don’t really get that before clubs. There’s something so exquisite about being able to connect with people on a deeper level and then just go party.
And then go enjoy the conversation in the club. I was discussing Smiile with my best friend Jessamine who has a supper club in London and she said, ‘Why don’t we do something like pre-dinner?’ We’d been looking for something to do together because I’ve known her since I was eleven. We really ally on core values and how we see change. So a big part of this was bringing our communities together before the party. To connect people.

It’s a cozy hug before the party.
It is! And a reminder that ‘Hey we’re all awkward people. All of us get insecure or have a bit of pre-social anxiety.’ But when you lean into it, that’s when the magic happens.

I remember there being a Ballroom performance too…
Yeah, we always try to incorporate a local artist who moves and shakes the local communities.

That is so thoughtful. Really it is, I’m not just saying that! It creates a bigger network that is needed at the moment.
Yeah, it’s kinda like what you were saying, about making a change, essentially by bringing people together.

Love that. And then the last one, and let me take this one. It says: Have we worked together before? No we haven’t. This is the first time that we are doing a collaboration, and I have to say it is an honor, to get to know you better, to see behind the whole craziness that goes with Smiile. I see that there’s so much success in the line, I can see it coming, thank you so much, this was so sweet.
Thank you Jossy, no seriously this means a lot. It’s so nice to have honest conversations today.

We need them, my gosh.
We do, and I hope we can work together in the future.