Planet Pink: Inside the World of Sarah Sommers

Sarah Sommers didn’t create a “persona” — she cracked open her chest and built a universe around what was already glowing inside. A British-Australian hardware romantic living in Berlin, she performs with pink modular rigs, princess gowns, and enough glitter to reboot the rave timeline. But behind the sparkle is an artist who’s deadly serious about sound: a producer whose sets are 100% live, 100% unpredictable, and 100% hers.

In this conversation, Sarah invites us onto Planet Pink — a world where colour is courage, mistakes become applause, and techno feels like a living creature you feed with emotion.

Planet Pink: Inside the World of Sarah Sommers

When did you decide “pink” wasn’t just a colour but almost armor for your performance identity?

The trick is that it's not a performance identity. I just one day had the courage to live out completely on the outside, what I love and feel on the inside. I used to only get dressed up as a pink princess for special occasions like Halloween or Carnival. Then I moved to Berlin and started to go clubbing in pink princess outfits, even though most people were in black. This is just how I love to be.

I used to only get dressed up as a pink princess for like Halloween. Then I moved to Berlin and started to go clubbing in pink princess outfits

Then one day I thought I could combine this aesthetic with my music. And I did, and I had a lot of fun doing that. It just grew as I explored my self-expression, just being yourself without compromise. So now I just feel like it's a more complete expression of self, through the music and the aesthetic. And it can be an interesting contrast; I hope that comes across in the music too. People are complex and have multiple sides, not everything is how it seems on the surface. I hope it encourages people to express themselves fully and live authentically and to judge others less for not conforming.

I hope to encourage people to express themselves fully and to judge others less for not conforming

Planet Pink: Inside the World of Sarah Sommers

What’s the most intense moment when your gear misbehaved live — and how did you recover?

Funnily enough one that sticks out as being particularly bad was when I played live at Berghain. I couldn't hear myself clearly on stage and then my mixer froze so I had to pull the power and stop everything, then shortly afterwards one of my machines drifted out of time and I had to restart everything again! Internally I was fighting a lot of fires and to be honest I wanted to tip the table over! haha! But I held it together.

What I discovered is that when that kind of thing happens and the music stops for a second it gives people a chance to cheer and I think people then also hear and appreciate that it's live, I'm not just pressing play, there's a lot going on. So now I love it when people scream out if I have to stop and start.

What are two records from your childhood or teenage years that still haunt your productions?

I think the ghost of "The Prodigy - Experience" and "Music for the Jilted Generation" both definitely haunt me and my art. The energy, rave atmospheres, futuristic sound, incredible collages of sound. I still don't understand how it's possible to create something that sounds so effortlessly intricate, deceptively raw, straightforward but seamless. To me they're masterpieces and still a source of inspiration decades later.

Everyone who is part of BPitch has been going to extra lengths to make the release

What is it like working with Ellen and the whole Alien team at BPitch?

There is no place I would have rather released VIVID, my latest album at than there. It might sound corny but I felt like I found a home that fit me and my music. Everyone who is part of BPitch has been incredibly supportive, going to extra lengths to make the release, which is also coming out on vinyl soon, the best it can be and give it the best chance it can. I felt through Ellen and the label this strong female, rebellious, cheeky and non-conformist attitude which really connected with me, being a Bitch at the Pitch Control! I can't thank them enough for everything they've done.

Planet Pink: Inside the World of Sarah Sommers

You bring exuberance, colour, showmanship, joy to the techno scene. Do you ever feel tension between being “seen” for your looks/visuals vs being respected purely for your sound?

This is a very interesting one. Firstly, I want to say the music is the most important thing to me, but my expression through my aesthetic is not far behind. The whole thing is a unification of me expressing myself as a person and an artist in an uncompromising way.

As humans we can sometimes be too quick to judge someone by how they look on the surface

I do think I'm occasionally misunderstood. I think as humans we can sometimes be too quick to judge someone by how they look on the surface. I also think that people that are really into music for the music's sake can hear how much passion and work goes into what I do, and even if they're not into my aesthetic they can see past that and it doesn't bother them — they're here for the vibe on the dancefloor!

I do think I'm occasionally misunderstood

To me techno and rave culture has always been, and is, a counterculture to the mainstream. I remember for a long time people would say that electronic music is not "real music". I feel like dance music has provided a safe haven and a community to people who do not conform to mainstream ways. I felt like it was a kind of punk movement. Some people might be surprised to learn that that is also how I see myself — as a kind of punk, a punk princess haha.

For a long time people would say that electronic music is not "real music"

The easy thing for me would have been to wear all black and go the fetish look route. I have no issue with that, I even like a lot of those things, and I didn't deliberately go against that or do what I do to make a point. I just wear what I really love and is beautiful to me. But I find myself occasionally having to justify my self-expression in a scene that is supposed to be founded on being true to yourself. It sometimes feels hypocritical. And the ones complaining that things shouldn't be about aesthetics are the ones who seem to care about them the most.

Live and let live, I think. I think everyone has an aesthetic and that even no aesthetic is still an aesthetic haha. I have always loved colour, glitter and shiny things and in some ways I'm just doing what I would have loved to see myself. The early days of the scene, even in Berlin, were colourful and free and I loved that. I sometimes feel like I'm the punk in a punk scene. I sometimes think, it's just a fucking colour, what's the big deal haha. I don't expect or even care if everyone likes it. I do it like I do my music — purely for myself.

I can find myself having to justify my self-expression in a scene that is supposed to be founded on being true to yourself.

Having said all this, I do actually feel like most people celebrate me being myself and pick up on my authenticity and courage to uncompromisingly be myself, and I hope it inspires others to be themselves and express themselves freely as well — we only live once.

The ones complaining that things shouldn't be about aesthetics are the ones who seem to care about them the most

“Lost In Berlin” captures atmosphere in a unique way — what does it mean for you to be “lost” in your city? Is it about exploration, disorientation, love, or something else?

To be honest I don't quite remember now. I suspect it was probably the period after the honeymoon was over after I moved to Berlin seven years ago. I was euphoric for the first six months as it had long been my dream to live and do music in Berlin. But visiting somewhere is very different to living somewhere.

Once the day-to-day grind kicked in, and the loneliness of a big city when you don't know anyone and being a foreigner in a culture which is not your own, it can wear you down. That time was hard, and then the pandemic happened. I actually wanted to leave. But the pandemic caused me to rethink my life, and I found a new freedom and courage to be myself more completely and do the things I had always dreamt of. And that pushed me and my music into areas I had only dreamt of for so long. I had not even released music before that, even though I had been making it and dreaming of doing it for many, many years.

Your discography has tracks like Sunrise that end warm, almost hopeful, after more intense moments. Do you think every set should have a sunrise moment (literal or emotional)? What does that moment feel like to you?

I don't think sets need to ever be a specific way. I think artistic freedom is sacred, but I also think artists should take risks. Risks to do what they truly feel. I feel like otherwise things end up sounding all the same and that's boring. Personally I like to take people on a journey — there will be highs and lows, dark and light, I think contrast keeps things interesting.

Ultimately I just want to be moved by it physically, mentally and emotionally, and if it moves others at the same time that's a beautiful thing. It fills me with joy when I hear that my music or live performance touched someone else.

What’s your most unusual source of inspiration lately — a movie, a scent, a place, maybe a toy, or an idea that pulled you into a new production mood?

I'm thinking, do I really have anything that unusual or interesting!? I am hanging to make some breakbeat lately as I was trying to write a new techno track recently and, as often happens, I got sidetracked and started making this kind of '90s breakbeat, which I love. I posted a short clip of the jam to my story on Instagram and surprisingly to me I got a very positive reaction from lots of people, so I've been thinking about developing that one further into a full track.

I also have a beautiful voice note of a raver that I heard online talking about how the raves helped her discover she was enough, and I'm thinking of taking samples of that and putting them in something.

I have a voice note of a raver saying raves helped her feeling she's enough – I'm thinking of adding samples of it in my music

If you had to throw a party themed Exit Planet Pink, what would it look like — decor, lineup, surprises, maybe “planet destroyers” or something cosmic?

It's actually something I've been thinking about for a while. Expect way too much pink, exploding glitter, lights, lasers and installations, an optional but celebrated pink dress code. I do love space themes, so some recreations of my homeworld and maybe even a rocketship you can chill in.

I want to bring chill-out-rooms back

Speaking of chill, there would be a chill-out room — I want to bring that back. Cushions, rugs, chill vibes but also live acts performing there, sitting down. Those are some of my earliest memories from the Melbourne rave scene which I loved.

Also there would be a bunch of live acts on the main floor across a spectrum of dance music, not just techno. I miss multigenre parties.

Many techno artists talk about transcendence on the dancefloor. What’s a moment in one of your own shows when you felt you transcended — the crowd, the stage, the pink gear — and gravity fell away?

I don't want to sound arrogant but I feel that happens regularly for me. I don't know if it's all the Club Mate I'm drinking going to my head, but I often get into an intense state of pure flow.

My best shows are when I feel like I'm inside the music, everything feels intuitive and nothing else matters and I feel in complete control of the sound, sometimes I surprise myself with what happens. I feel like it's a stream of consciousness but with music. I usually can't stop talking after my set because I'm locked in this state for a while, so I'm very sorry to those who get stuck with me in those moments after a show haha.

One absolutely lovely show where I felt this — as well as feeling everyone on the dancefloor enjoying the music and feeling like we were all connected — was at my last show at Tresor during Pride Week this summer. It was such a beautiful vibe on the dancefloor, lots of people screaming out, and the kinship with the other DJs and the lovely team at Tresor, and my friends and family who came — it just came together in such a beautiful and special way. I won't forget it.

Planet Pink: Inside the World of Sarah Sommers

What’s your most beloved piece of equipment right now, and what’s one you desperately want but think “nah, too much”?

You're asking a gear addict a very hard question. I adore my Erica Synths Perkons, but I also love the Elektron Syntakt, Digitone 2 and Rytm. I'd love Roland to sponsor me a TR1000 haha! It looks like it has potential, and I've only been waiting most of my life for them to bring out something with analog sound engines again haha.

Another one I'd love but which is way out of my budget is the new Korg PS3300 synthesiser. I played it at Superbooth a couple of years ago and fell in love. fml.

How did the remix/compilation We Are Not Alone Pt. 9 shape your path? Did hearing your track among others with Ellen Allien & co push you to take new creative risks or change what you want people to expect?

The track itself was part of my overall journey through exploring different sides of techno. At the time I felt like it had a slightly industrial edge that I hadn't explored before, but now I see it more like an evolution into other things. I don't think it particularly changed a huge amount for me because I feel like I've always taken risks with my music.

I feel like taking risks is one of my core principles since very early on. I remember the first time I played HeartCore live on Mensch Meier's main floor in Berlin — there's this one bit where the bass synth goes higher and higher, and before the show during soundcheck, with my friend, I was saying "can I do this? is this ok? is it too much?" I'm glad I did it, people loved it, and I've been happy that those risks have landed well and others have enjoyed the results with me.

Planet Pink: Inside the World of Sarah Sommers

What’s Berlin given you that maybe no other city could — in sound, in freedom, in fan energy? And conversely, what about Berlin challenges you as an artist?

I think obviously the main thing is electronic music. It's the reason I dreamt of living here for so long. I think it's fascinating to live in a city where the dominant, mainstream form of music that's available is what is considered an underground genre in other cities around the world — that being techno. It's kind of like living in The Upside Down, but in a good way.

The city draws in artists from all over the world and brings people together for many different musical projects because of its reputation, and even though it's maybe not quite as free as it once was I think this spirit still lives on through everyone that is still active here. I have made many friends through the Berlin scene, both new and old Berliners. I'm very grateful to have found a place in the community here.

The live performance scene here has been absolutely key to allowing me to grow as an artist — all the people I've met and countless shows I've been to and performed at. Also the many things I've heard from other artists which have shaped and inspired my sound, from across the scene, whether it was at a Berghain night or an intimate modular live show at an underground venue.

Some of the ways it challenges me — well, there is the bureaucracy?! Haha. But in terms of more interesting challenges, maybe in part my aesthetic. I guess I do dress fairly flamboyantly with a fair bit of pink, especially for Berlin, so I do stick out like a pink gobstopper sometimes, and that can sometimes be weird because, as counterintuitive as it might sound, I'm not looking for attention — I just love the style and it makes me happy. Sometimes people stare at me, but Berlin has its fair share of different-looking people so I think most people are pretty used to seeing oddballs like me.

Keep being who you are no matter what others might think of you

But it was nice when I was in New York recently and random people on the street would stop me daily to give me compliments on my outfit. That's pretty rare in Berlin haha. But I think it keeps the punk in me alive — keep being who you are no matter what others might think of you!

If you could produce a track using only non-musical sounds found in Berlin (like U-Bahn doors, currywurst sizzle, the graffiti-spray hiss), would you do it — which sound would you sample first?

Yes for sure, I like this concept. The U-Bahn doors closing warning is a cool tone — "Einsteigen bitte, zurück bleiben bitte brrrrrrrr." Maybe also samples of people mispronouncing clubs like Berg-aine or Renat-ay, that always makes me smile. Then some Berlinerisch: "Currywurscht, rischtig geil!"

Finally: What’s something 2026 has in store for you that people would not guess looking at your pink hardware and rave garb? Something quiet, something unseen, something inside you that glows just for you.

There is something coming. Think bio-implant and light ray. But I'm not going to spoil it. It is going to be unexpected. (Evil laugh trails off). New record coming soon.

By Amanda Sandström Beijer