
Born in East London 32-year-old star Kietzn grew up dancing including ballet, modern and contemporary dance at the Cape Academy of Performing Arts, trained by Debbie Turner and Jacqui Pells where she took part in many productions at the Artscape Theatre. Growing up as a classically trained dancer exposed her to many genres of music at a young age, specifically classical. Being heavily influenced by Beethoven, Tchaikovsky and Chopin.

While living in SA, Kietzn worked as an actress and model and appeared in various magazines and catalogues. She appeared in various editions of FHM, which brought her success and recognition as a model.
On television, she is best known for her role as Tamara Blaine, the girlfriend of Jonathan Grant (played by Charlie Keegan) in the M-Net soccer drama series League of Glory, in 2010. (It was her first major screen acting role).

She made her debut on television in 2008 with a cameo role in the M-Net mini-series Innocent Times and appeared in the April 2010 issue of FHM. Jeanne also played a supporting role in the eight-episode BBC science fiction series Outcasts, which began filming in South Africa in April 2010. The series was directed by Bharat Nalluri (Tsunami, Spooks, Hustle, Life On Mars).

Over the years this aided in developing her music knowledge, which later grew her curiosity for the music industry. Recently becoming known through her DJ sets at Burning Man.

Kietzn is consistently delivering a deep tech set that gets the entire dance floor moving. Her music selection enthralls her audience into a hypnotic state of dance culture while embracing the true underground essence that is the core of her love for music. Her music style can be described as deep minimal tech house with a lot of Afro-House influences.

“Being from South Africa, I have always loved African percussion instruments and I try bring a lot of these traditional sounds into my sets. I’m very detailed oriented in my personal life and carry the same outlook when producing music and performing. I want my audience to feel like they have been taken on a musical journey.”

RUAN: You’re currently DJing across the USA and you are fast becoming one of the most sought-after female DJ’s in LA. What would you say has been your secret recipe to your success?
KIETZN: It is an ongoing journey, and more often than not, a really tough one. What has really enabled me has been a lot of dedication and never giving up. Having a goal and working on it every single day. Learning from my failures and taking them in my stride and just being focused on getting better with every gig.
There is such a technicality to DJing as you are performing live so nothing is ever seamless. Many times I have woken up crying from messing up at a gig the night before and so desperately wanting to give up, but it is those challenging moments you work through and become better at what you do.
RUAN: How have you managed to pursue your life-long dream of making it globally by moving to Hollywood?
KIETZN: I think moving to Hollywood has been better from an acting perspective but not necessarily a DJing one as I do have more of a European style when it comes to music selection. Not to mention how I gravitate more towards African sounding house music than anything else.
The underground tech house scene isn’t necessarily bigger here in comparison to South Africa so being in Hollywood hasn’t essentially helped me in that aspect. From a production outlook, it has been great to take courses and collaborate with other producers so I am constantly learning and meeting people in the industry.
RUAN: You started off your DJ and music career in Hollywood, how do you plan on bringing your experiences back to SA to empower other woman to set their mark in the music industry?
KIETZN: other women in South Africa, I would love to come back and collaborate somewhere down the line with organizations such as Bridges for Music in Cape Town with a focus of women in the music industry. Another dream would be to give motivational speeches at all girl schools in the hope that it would inspire young, aspiring artists to dream big and not feel at a disadvantage for being female.
RUAN: It comes as no surprise that you are also an actress and model. Where would you say your passion or dream started to become an actress, model and DJ?
KIETZN: I started off modelling at a young age when a production company was casting for a German Coffee commercial. They approached my ballet school and I was cast as one of the ballerinas. It was years later in my early teens when I really got into it and became more serious about it. The older I got, I didn’t get any taller (I’m tiny…5ft 4 J) and I was at a stage where I was shooting predominately commercials.
I worked on an Underage Drinking campaign and a Fanta commercial with one of my favorite female directors, Amanda Evans, who later asked me to audition for a short film she was doing for the States titled Ambrose Fountain. It was really her vision, directing style and words of encouragement that inspired my acting career. At this stage I had already been performing in productions at the Artscape Theatre so it felt as if I was on the right path. I have always loved telling stories through various characters in performance and years later discovered I can tell the same stories but through music.
RUAN: We can listen to your mixtapes on Soundcloud that you put out every month. Tell us more about your latest on “Melodic Attitude” and what the inspiration for the mix was?
KIETZN: I’m always inclined to do something different with my mix-tapes and I spend a lot of time finding the right pieces of music to marry together. This specific mix-tape encompasses a lot of classically influenced tracks, which really ties in with my love for piano music. Having been a ballet dancer for so many years, I grew up being affected and moved by Bach, Tchaikovsky and Chopin. My inspiration really came from still wanting to keep to my South African roots therefore incorporated a beautiful collaboration between African percussion sounds and piano pieces.
RUAN: You have performed at some of the best venues in Los Angeles. What are some of your highlights performing at all these venues? And have you bumped into a few Hollywood stars?
KIETZN: Definitely Burning Man last year, there was something so special about being in the desert and given the creative freedom to play whatever my heart desired. In moments like that you really do become one with the music and the people you are playing for. Another highlight was probably this past weekend; I performed at a pop up party at Soho House in West Hollywood called ‘Haus Musik’.
I had all my friends in LA come out to it and at one stage it felt as if it was just a private party for all of us. The room had such a great energy and it was so amazing to share that experience with the people I love. Every gig has a certain magic to it, which makes them all significantly so different. I love taking people on a musical voyage when I play so its tough to always make a comparison or single out specific performances.
RUAN: You are releasing your very first single this month – which is yet to be titled. Can you give us some insight of what we can expect from it?
KIETZN: I like to describe this track as if you were running through a forest at night and you may spot aliens. It’s a little more techno than I usually play but encircles some really lovely harmonics. I’m still new to producing so I’m trying to play around with different sounds and ideas, while still finding my way in the producing world.
RUAN: What other projects can we expect from you in 2019?
KIETZN: Lots of fun mixtapes and an EP or possibly an album. I am really focused on producing music that moves people that I am inspired by and can take listeners on an audible journey.
Connect with Kietzn via the following social media platforms:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kietzn_/
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/kietzn
Residint Advisor: https://www.residentadvisor.net/dj/kietzn
Spotify: Kietzn
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDIT: JASON EUGENE, JUSTIN MUNITZ & STEFANIE MARIE