The Rise of Stream Informer
The Rise of Stream Informer
May 18, 2022
Amelia Helland
Amelia uncovers the intriguing story behind the mysterious Stream Informer. The anonymous Brooklyn-based pair has cultivated an online DJ community during the pandemic, providing a platform “to help DJs gain much needed / deserved support while helping ravers ‘find their friends again’ via a virtual listening community.” Two years into this pandemic, virtual music communities are ever more significant to defining and experiencing the club scene, in-person or from afar. Read on for the full story!
Image courtesy of Stream Informer
Back in March, I had the opportunity to interview the quasi-anonymous DJs behind Stream Informer, an Instagram page dedicated to supporting DJs and ravers all around the world. Over the past two years, the Brooklyn-based duo has built a tightly-knit online community by posting international stream schedules every weekday. In doing so, they have helped thousands of DJs promote themselves while making it easier for their followers to figure out what upcoming streams they’d like to tune in to.
Flyer image courtesy of Stream Informer
When I asked why they created this page, they said they saw a significant shift coming for the club scene as soon as the initial pandemic shutdowns hit the U.S. – with venues closed for the foreseeable future, an abundance of new streaming platforms started popping up impressively quickly, but there was no centralized place to track who was playing when and “where.” That said, Stream Informer was created so people could have the option of checking a single source of truth for the timing of disparate streaming performances. Ultimately, they wanted to do this to help DJs gain much needed / deserved support while helping ravers “find their friends again” via a virtual listening community.
Through their earnest captions and intermittently posted streaming memes, the duo behind Stream Informer has created a virtual space intended “for people (who don’t feel like they have a place in the broader scope of club-land) to come and feel like they belong.” They hope their posts connect with anyone who shares their love for geeking out over a wide range of raw, powerful, and emotional music.
Of course, they do their best to feature the most exciting performances in their daily stream schedules. According to the curators, “every day on Stream Informer is like the best festival ever” because the lineup is always stacked with a balanced variety of DJs. Typically, the schedules highlight DJs playing on major channels like Rinse FM, HÖR Berlin, and Lot Radio, but they also make a point to feature DIY performers. It’s not always possible to get a slot on a famous streaming platform, so they have a stream submission page linked in their bio, and their posts sometimes include these performances.
Flyer courtesy of Stream Informer
While Stream Informer features are genre-vast, and often include house or pummeling techno music, there might also be some disco, Prince, or the occasional R&B love mix. Because the curators populate their schedules with artists that don’t conform to specific styles, the page essentially caters to the “weird clubber.” It’s perfect for people who gravitate to the wonky rhythms of underground dance music.
Image from one of SI’s parties, Image Courtesy of Stream Informer
Now that clubs have mostly reopened, they say they find it important to bring their online community to real life. Although their event-planning efforts have been centered around New York City thus far (because they have solid connections there from the past 12 years of them DJing), they say they’d love to collaborate with stations like Fault Radio to host events that highlight local talent in other places.
As they embark on these real-world aspirations, they will continue posting stream schedules, so be sure to follow the Stream Informer page to stay in-the-loop.
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Amelia is a nonbinary fashionista and multidisciplinary artist known for her loving spirit, prescient wisdom, and dry epigrammatic humor. When she isn't working as a data scientist or bonding with cats/community, she enjoys dancing, singing, drumming, drawing, writing, enjoying nature, doing yoga, playing piano, and listening to records.