“When I moved back to Brisbane I realised that I can’t complain about the things that aren’t in Brisbane anymore,” Hollee tells me. “You have to create them.”
I’m sitting down with Hollee Hibberson, co-founder of QUIVR, an inclusive community centred around electronic music in the heart of Fortitude Valley. We’re sitting in QUIVR’s new bar space to talk about the path to this point. QUIVR is known primarily for its livestream DJ booth, DJ school and practice studio. Having fostered a close knit community in under three years, Hollee (along with partner Dara) has now built a space that not only helps solidify QUIVR’s presence, but also acts as a “clubhouse” for its family and wider circles.
“Full ‘mum-mode’,” Hollee says of her chosen family. “It’s all about DnMs here. Sit down and tell me about your break up; tell me about your coming out story – that you haven’t told your parents; tell me about the microdosing that you’re doing with your parents just to get through Covid!”
“It was all about how to get this city on the global map of electronic music.”
While music is the binding element, the core of QUIVR really is community; a “third space” for music lovers to transform themselves and exist without judgement. The creation of the bar has been two years in the making as a step towards making the “art viable, sustainable and accessible to people”. Relying on donations as well as revenue through the studio, the bar will now help to bolster the broadcasting of QUIVR Radio.
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“It was all about how to get this city on the global map of electronic music,” Hollee tells me. Having made her mark in various cultural capitals of the world including New York, London and Melbourne, Hollee is solidifying her place in the local creative community. Already collaborating with the likes of The Princess Theatre and iconic club nights like Bowerytopia, she’s firmly dedicated to nurturing the growing QUIVR family and its collaborative ventures.
Independent of work and home, Hollee goes on to say: “This third space… it’s interesting. It’s something I never even planned. I have beautiful tales of people coming here in their business attire and then they get in the DJ booth and transform into a different gender and for that period of time become someone else. Or what it offers another is ‘I can come here at 7 o’clock and play techno music until it shuts’ or ‘I’ve just lost someone, I can escape here and play ambient music’.
“Just turn up how you are. We are giving people the permission to express themselves.”
The power of holding space is one thing, the opportunity of having a space to hold space is an entirely greater power. As is the granting of permission. While Hollee opened up Dara’s world on gender identity and gave them the permission to be who they’ve always felt they were, she reflects on how influential her partner has been on her life and self belief system: “Dara is the rock.”
“It was really Dara that gave me the full permission of ‘yeah you can be creative and work for yourself’ – and I just didn’t believe that in myself,” she adds. “They asked ‘what does your perfect day look like’ and I closed my eyes and channeled it: I was riding my electric bike to the lot radio (which was the inspiration for this place, this space in New York that streamed 24/7out of a shipping container in a vacant lot), I can smell coffee, there’s queer people around, and that’s it.”
Then by utter serendipity, walking into Winn Lane for a haircut at the barbershop three years ago, she saw that the little vacant spot at the end where we’re sat today was available.
“I was like HOLY SHIT, that’s the lot radio,” she exclaims. And within two months, I got an electric bike, I got onto the landlord and I rented that space. Hadn’t worked anything out, I just knew that I wanted to start a lot radio in this city. Not knowing anyone but just knowing that my perfect day was me riding to that booth.”
See the reality of Hollee’s dream with our film below:
QUIVR FILM EMBED
Despite the challenges of the past three years, much has fallen into place. It took blood, sweat, sad tears and happy tears but this humble icon of the city’s music scene is only set to grow. While curating events and representing talent through its DJ agency is becoming a greater focus for QUIVR, expanding the school to under 18’s is on the horizon, as is further promoting the people of its community and using QUIVR Radio to get the world’s attention. As such, it is fast becoming a self-sustaining ecosystem.
The tone of QUIVR?
“Inviting; accepting”, Hollee says. “Just turn up how you are. We are giving people the permission to express themselves…”
“Woah,” she says, in disbelief, realising the full circle moment. “Dara’s given me full permission to believe in myself and create this space. I’ve given Dara full permission to express themselves truly. And now we’ve given anyone full permission to come here however they like.”
“Woah. That’s beautiful.”
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Check out the QUIVR livestream and more here.
