ALY GILLANI aka GILLA
A&R, DJ, Presenter
Biography
A&R - FIRST WORD RECORDS
Aly Gillani (aka Gilla) is the founder and A&R of First Word Records, home to Children Of Zeus, Tall Black Guy, Allysha Joy, Kaidi Tatham, Tawiah and many more. Starting out as a club promoter in his adopted city of Leeds he ran seminal nights Funky Mule and New Bohemia as well as becoming a respected DJ across across the North of England.
He started First Word in 2004 to shine a light on a under-celebrated local music scene; since then First Word has grown to over 300 releases, as well as being recognised as ‘Label of The Year’ award at Gilles Peterson’s prestigious Worldwide Awards in 2019.
Now in it’s 20th year, First Word has become a byword for genuine music with soul, helping launch the careers of the likes of Yazmin Lacey, Children Of Zeus, Homecut and countless others.
EDUCATION / PUBLIC SPEAKING
Aly is also the European rep for Bandcamp, a thriving, global music community where fans discover new artists, intimately connect with them, and directly compensate them for their work. Aly’s role involves expanding and managing the growing network of labels and artists using Bandcamp to connect with their fans.
A regular on panels at festivals including The Great Escape, Reeperbahn Festival, ADE and Aim Connected, he is also an educator, having been a guest lecturor on artist development and DIY releasing for Royal Northern College Of Music, Westminster College, Guildhall School of Music, Take Five (Serious Music) and Future Bubblers.
Selected Radio Highlights: Worldwide FM, Balamii, NTS, Sister Midnight, Soho Radio, 6Music (guest mix for Huey Morgan/contributor for Tom Robinson).
DJ: Past residencies include Hifi Club (Leeds), Bussey Building (Peckham) and Soundwave Festival. Other notable gigs: Jazz Cafe, XOYO, Koko, Cargo, Dimensions Festival, The Garden Festival, Outlook Festival, Tola, Daytimers, Boiler Room, My Analog Journal.
RADIO & DJ
A resident on Worldwide FM, Gilla’s ‘The Lesson’ shows with Mr Thing have featured guests including James Poyser (The Roots), Theon Cross, author Marcus J Moore and Femi Fem (Young Disciples). He is also a regular host on the Bandcamp Weekly, conducting dozens of interviews including Bonobo, Benji B, Tenderlonious, Mount Kimbie, DJ Krust and Kokoroko.
Currently holding down a DJ residency at The Standard in London, he is a regular at London’s Jazz Cafe and is a main-stage host at We Out Here festival. In 2024 he made his debut at the legendary Fabric in London.
He is the host of Liner Notes, a new live podcast which invites notable music fans to select their top tracks from their favourite artists. Launching in late 2023, guests Doc Brown and Simone Marie (Primal Scream) selected music from Wu-Tang Clan and Prince respectively. Next up is Hugo Chegwin (People Just Do Nothing) talking through his selections from Pharrell and The Neptunes, with more guests set to be announced soon.
