TDJ is “constantly on a mission.” A leading force in the trance music revival, the Montréal-based producer is riding the wave of popularity she’s built over the past few years to shine a light on a horde of international artists – something she’s totally committed to on her eponynmous debut album.
“I want to create a movement around trance music. A lot of people connect with it, but don’t necessarily have a platform to come together,” explains TDJ, a.k.a. Geneviève Ryan-Martel – known in the 2010s under the alias Ryan Playground, when she was making atmospheric pop with a much slower pulse.
That “platform” has taken on many forms since the launch of her current artistic incarnation, five years ago: compilations, EPs, and a mixtape. Released last fall, the massive project SPF INFINI: GENESIS featured 36 tracks, and spotlighted no less than 40 artists.
That ratio holds steady on her official debut album, released on June 27, 2025: 11 tracks, including 10 collaborations, one of which is with acclaimed British producer and composer Danny L Harle, known for his work with Caroline Polachek and Charli XCX. “I used to think that doing everything myself would allow me to define myself 100% as an artist, but I eventually realized it’s also kind of boring!” says TDJ with a laugh. “You end up falling into the same patterns pretty quickly. I came to understand that I need other people to inspire me, and to feel more complete in what I want to offer. I don’t want this project to be limited to just me. It’s bigger than that.”
What’s unique about TDJ is that, outside of music, she’s not very social. “I’m very independent,” she says. “I don’t need other people. It’s really through music that I express my ‘unifier’ side. Music helps me find balance. it keeps me from feeling isolated.”
Paradoxically, this collaboration-heavy album was born from a deep need for solitude – right in the middle of an exhausting world tour. “I was touring so much, I just needed to slow down, take my time, and relax,” says the artist, who performed more than 70 times in 2024 alone, with stops in London, Berlin, Sydney, Ibiza, Los Angeles, and Lisbon.
The result is a trance album, but not only that. TDJ also taps into rock, pop, trip-hop, and downtempo influences – genres that naturally lean toward slower tempos than her usual style. “People know me for tracks that sit around 150 or 160 bpm [beats per minute],” she says, “but this time, I’m more in the 120 to 130 range. It’s still explosive, just a little more contained. I’d say it’s mostly an album driven by feeling.”
Created on the road, the album took shape over several stopovers in Paris, where TDJ had the support (and studio) of producer Aamourocean. The lyrics reflect life on tour, especially the anxiety that comes with it. “It’s about losing control, about how hard it is to trust people when you’re far away,” she says. “But overall, the lyrics aren’t negative. I tend to flip everything into something positive. There’s a sunny side to the album, an airy quality that’s probably tied to always being in the air, always in motion.”
Select the image to access the YouTube video of the TDJ song “Where is My Angel”
TDJ has learned to adapt to the intense pace of touring. Her rise has been meteoric in recent years, helped in part by a deep-dive feature from Pitchfork on the resurgence of trance – Trance Is Back – and It’s No Joke – published in February of 2023. “Coming out of COVID, I felt there was a collective hunger for something new,” she says. “People wanted to let go, to feel euphoric again. The return of trance answered that need. Timing had a lot to do with it.”
Alongside Lucas Jacques, her manager, the producer has built a global network of booking agents, with representation in the U.K., Francophone Europe, Australia, and the U.S. “We started out as just the two of us, and we’ve grown steadily ever since,” she says. “I work so hard. It just feels right that things are finally paying off. I’ve poured so much energy into this, and taken a lot of risks for the project, and it’s had an impact.” Among those risks are the ambitious and striking films that accompanied her SPF INFINI compilation releases, all directed by Laurence Baz Morais.
But amid the whirlwind of shows, back-and-forth travel, and relentless bpms, TDJ is now craving peace and quiet. “At first, when I started touring, I was so excited. I wanted to live abroad, I imagined myself all over the world.” she says. “But as time went on, I realized that my real goal is just to feel good in Montréal. I’ve been touring almost non-stop for three years now. And right as the album is coming out, I feel more than ever that I need to take a breather.”