Venus in Motion’s Angel Johnson is equal parts introspective songwriter and party-starting bon-viveur. Angel’s heart-on-sleeve storytelling is as direct as the beats she serves up as an internationally acclaimed DJ. She has been wowing rabid audiences since 1991 when she grew restless working behind the bar at Nottingham clubbing institution, Venus. Entirely self-taught, it is this driving ambition and absolute refusal to be an observer that has propelled Angel to the position she currently enjoys, as a well-respected artist, DJ and producer. Her unwavering lifelong passion for music, and the need to connect with an audience, compelled her to make the leap into music production early on in her DJ career. She honed her skills purely by watching and listening whilst hanging out in studios. As a woman who writes, produces, engineers and mixes all her music, she occupies a pretty unique position; certainly there are alarmingly few visible females within the industry, so she is nothing short of inspirational to others with similar aspirations. She’s a one-woman show who brings in singers and a variety of musicians to help interpret her stories. It’s been a long journey for the focussed, compassionate, self-professed eccentric. She’s sponge-like in the way she takes inspiration from all aspects of life and works them into the creative process, and with the new album, Liberation, ready to be unleashed, we’re sure to see and hear a lot more of the gifted Ms Johnson.