With great looks and dark techno sounds, DJ Brandon Le Fiu will make our summer all sorts of interesting. He’s co-producing a three floor party to kickoff Pride Month and spinning one of Pride Weekend’s hugest events to close it all out. [Cover photo c/o @badbui & @sodotgay]
Thotyssey: Hello DJ Le FIU, thanks for chatting! You’ve had a busy May with gigs at 3 Dollar Bill and VERS… how has your month been overall?
Le FIU: It’s been a great month. I’ve been working hard to keep things growing with my party VICE, and we locked in a new venue that we will be at on Saturday June 6th. It’s going to be our biggest event yet, so it’s definitely my biggest focus for this month. With three floors and two sound rooms to works with, it’s an exciting project to take on.
More on that in a bit! Can you tell us about your sound as a DJ?
Yeah, absolutely. My sweet spot is peak-hour energy. I live for that moment when the room is fully locked in where I can really push things forward. I primarily play tech house with a dark, femme-forward edge, often pulling in funky or cyber-inspired elements. I love building momentum and, when the energy is right, pushing the BPM up into that 145–155 range for a hyperdrive moment.
While I’ll weave in familiar vocals or recognizable moments, what excites me most is digging for tracks people may not know and using them to create something unexpected and memorable. Some producers I always come back to are CASSIMM and DONT BLINK, and lately I’ve been really into MCHALE, G-Pol, and Kelland. At the core, I want my sets to feel sexy, high-energy, and a little unexpected.
Can you tell us a bit about where your from, and the sort of music you grew up with?
I’m originally from the South, born in Alabama and mostly raised in central Virginia. Growing up, I was surrounded by a mix of country, Christian music, and whatever was on Top 40 radio–so electronic music definitely wasn’t the obvious path for me. But even early on, I was always drawn to artists that had more atmospheric or electronic elements, like Owl City and Hellogoodbye.
The biggest influence for me, though, was Imogen Heap / Frou Frou (same artist). She was probably my first real introduction to electronic production as emotional storytelling. What really captivated me was how intentional every sound felt. Every texture, effect, and detail served the feeling of the song. I think that’s what eventually pulled me toward house music and electronic music more broadly: this realization that sound design itself can tell a story and create emotion. She is still my favorite artist to this day.
How did you become a DJ, and a New Yorker?
I actually knew I was going to be a New Yorker long before I knew I’d become a DJ. I visited the city twice in high school, and from the first time walking its streets, I just knew. I didn’t have much else figured out yet.. who I was, what I wanted to do.. but I knew NYC was part of my story. So by senior year of college, I only applied for jobs here. I landed an entry-level role at Yelp, made the move, and I’ve been here ever since.
DJing came more gradually. What started as falling in love with New York’s music-driven nightlife turned into me becoming that friend who curated playlists for everything: road trips, beach days, birthdays, any moment that deserved the right energy.
Then in 2020, after a pretty formative breakup, I did some real reflection, and realized I hadn’t invested much in my own creativity. Music was already such a huge part of my life, so learning to DJ felt like the natural next step. I spent a couple years really honing it before finally playing my first public set as a gift to myself for my 30th birthday at The Skinny on the LES for all my friends.
What’s wild is that just a few years later, it’s grown into so much more; from playing places like House of Yes and Burning Man to building my own party, VICE. It’s been a really emotional and rewarding journey.
You’re in a personal and professional relationship with another DJ / producer, Edward Frame! I imagine it must be great to be with someone who you can relate to on such a strong level, but also keeping crazy nightlife hours must be challenging… not to mention other elements of the scene that can be invasive to a relationship. Can you speak to what a two-DJ relationship is like?
Yeah, it’s something I feel really lucky for and try not to take for granted. It’s incredibly special to share such a big creative passion with your partner. For us, that looks like practicing together, swapping music, occasionally playing B2Bs, and co-producing our party, VICE.
Of course, nightlife comes with its challenges. There are definitely weekends where our schedules don’t line up, or we’re booked in different places. But because this world is something that so often brings us together, we’ve learned to be really intentional about communication and supporting each other through those moments.
If anything, it’s made the whole experience more meaningful–getting to grow as individual artists while also building something together at the same time!
Tell us about the beginnings of VICE, which was originally at VERS in Hell’s Kitchen! What inspired the party’s creation, and how might you describe what makes it special?
VICE started from noticing a gap in queer nightlife, especially in Manhattan. Too often the music felt like background to the party, instead of the reason for showing up. I wanted to create something different; a night where house music was truly at the center, while still keeping the energy, connection, and queer magic that make nightlife special.
Before VICE, I produced a smaller monthly event called Kiki in the LES. It was my first experience building something from the ground up, and it showed me how much I love intentionally bringing people together. I learned quickly that people can feel the difference between a night built from genuine excitement, and one that’s just filling a calendar slot.
Later, after DJing at VERS, I saw an opportunity to build on that idea. By then, I’d built relationships with an incredible circle of DJs, and I wanted VICE to be a space where we could play the music we actually love.
What started as a monthly experiment became proof that people were hungry for a Manhattan party that truly puts music first. Fifteen runs later, it’s built enough momentum to move into a bigger home for our next chapter on June 6. What makes VICE special is that it’s led by DJs who deeply care about house music and built for people who come to genuinely dance.
You’re moving to all three floors of Boxers HK on June 6! Tell us more!
June 6 is a huge milestone for us because it marks the biggest evolution of VICE yet. We’re calling it VICE XL because for the first time, we’re taking over all three floors of Boxers HK and turning it into a full-scale club experience. That means two dedicated sound rooms, four incredible DJs, and multiple distinct energies all under one roof, while still keeping that signature VICE identity at the center of it all.
What excites me most is that this feels like a real proof point for what we’ve been building. Fifteen events in, this is the natural next step and a chance to show what VICE can become at a larger scale. It’s still going to be the same music-first, high-energy, intentionally curated experience people know us for, just bigger, bolder, and more immersive.
Tier 1 is already sold out, capacity is limited, and there will only be a small number of door tickets. So if people want to be part of this next chapter, now’s definitely the time to lock it in.
This just in: before VICE, you’re gonna be spinning Luis Fernando’s new Fire Island Pines daytime party “Cabana Boys” at the Tryst Pool Club on Saturday, May 30th!
And looking ahead to Pride Weekend, you and Edward will be on the massive DJ and entertainment lineup for Planet Pride at newly branded Brooklyn megaclub Pacha NYC on June 27! It must be so thrilling to be part of one of that weekend’s largest and most anticipated Pride events, and to see what the not-quite-opened as of this writing Pacha NYC is gonna be like.
Absolutely! This is easily one of the most exciting opportunities we’ve ever been invited to be part of. To play a weekend and stage of this scale, alongside artists like Don Diablo, Loud Luxury, and ACRAZE, is an incredible honor and definitely one of those surreal full-circle moments as DJs.
But honestly, what makes it even more meaningful is getting to share it with Edward. We’ve both put so much time into growing as artists, and to step onto a stage like that together during Pride weekend feels really special. The cherry on top: it will be our five year anniversary that day.
We’re already deep in prep mode curating exactly the right sound for that moment, and we’re planning to make the absolute most of the opportunity. And beyond our own set, I think there’s just so much excitement around seeing what Pacha NYC is going to bring to the city. It feels like a really exciting moment for New York nightlife.
Is there something musical you’re looking forward to this year or next: an upcoming remix or release, a tour, a festival, etc.?
I really love supporting people in my community so I’ll be at Ponyboy’s show at SILO this Saturday. Generally, my favorite festival to go to is definitely EDCO, because I go with a huge group of friends and it’s a really special experience that I go to every year.
What else is coming up for you?
Yeah, I guess I would say that I’m fully leaning into both DJing and event production at this time… and I’m really excited about the opportunity to fully focus on my passions. I discover time and time again that when you put something out there, the universe responds to it. And what I mean by that is, although it can be scary to pursue things that feel the most aligned to you, if you operate out of a certain identity then the world around you responds to that shift. It’s an empowering thing to connect to that truth.
That’s feels like a great place to end… thanks, Brandon!
Check Thotyssey’s calendar for DJ Le FIU’s upcoming appearances, and follow him on Instagram, SoundCloud and his website.
Thotyssey 