It’s not just 1990s fashion that is back. Step back into the decade of skate and surf culture, video games, neon, and boundary-pushing cartoons with Night at the Museum: Play at the National Museum of Australia on 30 August.

There will be something for everyone to enjoy – particularly the Millennials and Gen Z – including acrobatic performances, surfing mechanical waves, pop-up video games, skate demos, body paint and music to set the scene. Rooted in ‘90s nostalgia, the night intertwines with the concept of play.

For the first time in her 15-year career, DJ Tigerlily has been invited to play her beats at a museum – a space where she is excited to step outside her norm. She says the night is a special one to be added to the résumé.

“I’m going to be throwing in a whole heap of 90s songs that obviously have a lot of fond memories for me and hopefully the guests in the crowd. I’m going to be remixing them up, changing them up with a modern twist or a modern drop.”

Inspired by her favourite group, the Spice Girls, Tigerlily wanted to be a popstar when she grew up; unfortunately, reality struck, and she realised she lacked the singing and dancing skills needed. After 12 months of studying to be a dentist, Tigerlily knew it wasn’t for her, and decided to step back to her musical roots and find her version of being a pop star.

“I had fallen in love with dance music, and I thought there might be an opportunity to become a dance music version of a popstar,” says Tigerlily. “It was still all about performing and being up on stage, being able to play records, create my records and remix other people’s records, but I didn’t necessarily need to be able to sing and dance to do that.”

There is no question as to whether it was the right move. Tigerlily has travelled the world playing some of the biggest festivals including Electric Zoo in New York City, Hakkasan in Las Vegas, and Lollapalooza in Sweden. Tigerlily has only in the past few weeks returned for a European tour where she played five shows in seven days.

“This one was extra special because it was the first trip that I had done post-baby. It was a bit of a milestone for me for me to be able to come back after having a baby and to still be on line-ups of big festivals like Tomorrowland, and still be playing iconic beach parties like FarOut Beach Club in Ios. To be doing that after having a baby was something that I am very proud of.”

Although the DJ industry is still male-dominated – one of the big clubs in Greece’s line-up of 40-plus international DJs had only two females on the list – Tigerlily says she has always seen being a female DJ as a superpower rather than a weakness.

“People can see it in a negative light; maybe you won’t be taken seriously, etc., but for me, I’ve always used it to my advantage. It is a point of difference. As a woman, we should be able to play into that. I have always tried to step into my femininity when I’m on stage; to step into my female power, and be a big cheerleader for other girls doing stuff in the electronic dance music industry.

“I suppose it all depends on your perception of what it means to be a female in a male-dominated industry; but for me, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’d much prefer to be a girl in this industry than a guy.”

Looking forward to the Australian summer, Tigerlily is preparing to release new songs, and her touring schedule is looking healthy.

“I’ve got some shows in Asia coming up over the next couple of months, which is going to be really exciting.”

But first, Night at the Museum: Play, where neon, flannels, and mood rings are king. One of Tigerlily’s favourite tracks she has been mixing is a perfect match for the nostalgic event. Inspired by the resurgence of cheerleading culture thanks to the Netflix documentary series Cheer, Tigerlily has been remixing Hey Mickey by Tony Basil.

“It is a bit of a ‘90s nostalgia song to that cheerleader era. It is really fun to play at the moment.”

Relive the ‘90s in Night at the Museum: Play on Friday 30 August 6:30pm; nma.gov.au

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