International DJ and broadcaster Sam Hall (Goldierocks) is today sharing some facts that she wants you to know about her! From her favourite food to the best party in the world, she delivers some cracking opinions straight from the heart.
Read on to find out which animal she thinks she was in a past life, her further ambitions and much more.
1) First album you bought...
The first album i bought was probably a Motown greatest hit's compilation on cassette tape. As a very young child I loved the full sound of Motown bands- the brass and the warmth of the drums. It felt like an all encompassing sound. I remember lying in the grass staring up at the sky, listening to Jimmy Ruffin and Isley Brothers, imagining being in a black and white 50's music video.
2) Favourite cocktail...
My favourite cocktail has to be a Hemmingway Daiquiri from the Floridita bar in Havana, Cuba.. it was Hemmingway's favourtie drinking spot and has such a classic 1950s feel to it, salsa singers performing in the corner, the air heavy with cigar smoke. However when I'm not in Havana I can recreate the mood at home with Funkin' Cocktails special Daiquiri mix. It's so easy, simple and my friends think I'm a total cocktail connoisseur as a result!
3) I didn't always want to be a DJ...
When I was really little I actually wanted to be an archaeologist! I imagined exploring ancient tombs in Egypt, discovering mummies and holy relics. I think i'd most probably watched a lot of Indiana Jones as a kid and loved the hat (and whip). When I realized the life of an archaeologist would realistically be digging up bits of broken pottery in a muddy field in Wales I soon changed career paths. Now I spend my time trudging round muddy, wet festival fields instead!
4) I love mornings but I'm often up too late to enjoy them these days...
I love morning, especially during the early Spring. The light is perfect at that time of day and i'm lucky enough to have quite a big garden for a London house. One of my favourite things to do is to sit outside with a cup of coffee early, smell the dew, look at the cherry blossom and listen to the birds. I have a family of squirrels that live in the vine and watching them hurtle themselves from one tree to another makes me chuckle. I always try and take 10 minutes first thing in the morning just to reflect, on "radio days". When I wake up in my own bed (not a hotel) and go into the studio to record my global show The Selector.
5) Favourite party in the world...
There's no festivity on earth like Rio Carnival. I love Brazil! The music, the people, the food, the culture.. the drinks! Especially Caiparinhas and Funkin' Cocktails 'Brazilian mix' is perfect for re-living memories of my holiday there last year. Dancing on Copacabana beach to Latin rhythms on squelchy sound-systems. Trekking through the Amazon rainforest, spotting leopard trails and feasting on Brazilian BBQ in Salvador in the pretty pastel streets.
6) I'd rather a night in entertaining than a night out being entertained! Why would you want to go back to work to relax?
Don't get me wrong.. I love festivals. As long as I have good friends, a heavy bassline and some glitter I could party till I'm an elderly lady. But that does make cosying up at home all the sweeter. Feasting at home with loved ones, having a little dance under the disco ball in my garden- playfulness, love and laughter is what makes the world go round.
7) Food...
I have an insatiable appetite for really good buffalo chicken wings.. I mean relentless! I reckon I could eat maybe 100 in one sitting.. I'm not joking. I think i must have got addicted hanging out in Brooklyn. Hard work days, break ups, moving house.. good old hot wings are always there.
8) Cat in a past life...
I genuinely believe I was a cat in a past life. I yawn, snuzzle, stretch and curl up like a cat.. I'm drawn to felines wherever I go- street cats in Cairo, lionesses in Zambia. I think they're the slinkiest, smartest and most charismatic of creatures.
9) Other ambitions...
I'd love to write a book, commission my own documentary series and one day do a PHD.. you've got to keep your mind sparky.
10) Tim bonding...
My best friend Tim and I met at Glastonbury at 6 in the morning around a camp fire. We've had so many weird and wonderful adventures together- partying on super yachts in Monaco, feasting on reindeer high up in the Swiss mountains, skinny dipping in Ibiza and partying at Burning Man in the middle of the Nevada Desert. But one of my fondest memories of cementing our friendship was when we first lived together and had no money. We'd spend our Fridays getting tipsy and trying to squeeze into the smallest cardboard boxes we could find and push each other down the stairs (don't try that at home).
Goldierocks is the Party Hub ambassador for Funkin Cocktails - more info available at www.fuckincocktails.co.uk