Meet Isabella Armas, a senior in Marketing at the University of South Florida by day, a virtual reality DJ by night, and a hustler at basically any other time of the day.
While her friends know her as Izzy, Armas also goes under the stage name of ‘Virtual DJ Izzy’. With over 26,000 Youtube subscribers and about a year and a half of experience, Virtual DJ Izzy uses her platform to combine mesmerizing futuristic visual designs with layered rhythms that synthesize your senses and put you in a psychotropic trance.
Izzy gave me the chance to get a better look at her hustle when I met up at her apartment for a photo shoot with her friends to promote her recently released Virtual Reality Goggles.
Photo courtesy of Isabelle Eugene
How would you describe your work/vision?
I would describe my work as a fully immersive visual and auditory experience. I make DJ sets that you can really immerse yourself into using my virtual reality goggles, so it’s a musical journey.
How would you describe your creative process?
It takes me about 3 months to fully create and edit a video, I do all the music and editing myself so it’s quite a project but it’s totally worth it.
Photo courtesy of Isabelle Eugene
What experience made you realize that you wanted a career in music?
It happened when I went to my first music festival. It was crazy seeing all those people come together like that for the music. I’d never seen or felt anything like it, so I knew then that I wanted to be apart of that somehow.
How do you think VR will integrate into the future of music?
I think it will integrate itself very well. It’s already been used at top festivals like Coachella, so I really think the sky’s the limit when it comes to virtual reality and music.
Photo courtesy of Isabelle Eugene
What gave you the idea for the VR goggles?
A silent disco actually. After I went to my first one, I became so intrigued. I thought, ‘Why not combine visuals with this stuff?’ So I did.
Do you have any future VR projects in mind?
I do want to eventually come out with an app. And then maybe start having my own virtual reality raves.
To hear more of Virtual DJ Izzy, you can follow her on Soundcloud, YouTube and Instagram.
Photo courtesy of Isabelle Eugene