In Japanese, Mirã Bõru means disco ball; and its human incarnation is Sydney’s Tess Nicolaou.

One of five participants in FBi’s Dance Class, Tess has spent the past two months learning the ins and outs of making dance music, from mixing vinyl to presenting live radio and developing relationships within the industry. The project, presented by V MoVement, has been developed as a platform for young women to get a head start in the world of dance music, where we currently see a significant gender imbalance.

After five weeks of workshops, it’s now time to get busy behind the decks – where Tess is already proving to be a gun. Check out one of her first mixes below, and tune in to Picnic with Kali and Andy Webb on Saturday to hear her debut on air!

She also wrote some really, really nice words about what she’s learned from FBi’s Dance Class that made our cheeks pink. Read ’em below while you listen.

Keep an eye out for Mirã Bõru and the rest of the Dance Class crew – over the summer, you’re going to be hearing a whole lot more from these five. As well as their month-long mentorships with FBi Radio shows, each DJ will be set up with their debut gig as a Dance Class graduate.

“FBi’s Dance Class 2015 has been an absolute wonder and an experience I’ll be forever grateful for. I often find myself still getting excited knowing that I’ve been selected to be a part of something so great. We’ve just finished our tutorial segment which ran over five weeks and are about to embark on the one-on-one programs with a chosen mentor. (I’ve been paired up with Kali [Picnic] and couldn’t be happier!)

The tutorials have been so informative and were really something I looked forward to every Thursday evening after uni. We’ve covered a vast variety of skills in relation to the ins and outs of becoming a DJ.

My mixtape is the outcome of these tutorials. It’s a cluster of my favourite tracks and things I’d ideally want to be playing to people on a dance floor.

In our spare time, we’ve been able to book sessions in the studio at FBi and utilise the decks to practise. Mixtapes have been a great way for me to learn and master my mixing skills. Being able to listen back to yourself over and over is a great way to hear what works and what doesn’t. Not to mention, they’re such a fun thing to piece together!

Learning how to mix on turntables was a real highlight. It’s so interesting going from a piece of equipment (CDJs) where the sound waves and every little technological detail you need to know about the song is instantly placed on a screen for you, to something that you just need to feel and hear for yourself. It’s challenging, but in all the right kinds of ways.

I was also feeling extremely blessed to have Anna Burns in from Future Classic to discuss the business management side to becoming a DJ. Having someone from the industry sit down with you to lay it all out step by step was such a great opportunity. She taught us about the roles of people in the industry and how we would benefit from attaining an artist manager or booking agent, and gave us a vast amount of tips on the kinds of skills we need to be focussing on as individuals starting out in the DJ realm.

Learning the skills to produce and present our very own radio shows was also damn exciting. To be given the opportunity to share music on a platform like FBi is an absolute dream. I remember feeling invisible after that tutorial (probably because I never thought I could present and produce a segment on radio in my whole entire life)!

This entire experience has been so awe-inspiring. I’ve only been DJing since September, and to have all these opportunities handed to you on a silver platter is something I will be forever grateful for. FBi Radio, V MoVement and every individual that has been involved in this entire process really have no idea how valuable this has been for the five of us. Dance Class is the reason I can turn something I’ve been so passionate about for so long, into a real life career.”

FBi’s Dance Class is presented by V MoVement.