There were many things I didn’t include on my 2025 bucket list: Abby Lee Miller coming to the Union, a U.S. invasion of Greenland, or a horse entering my Spotify ‘On Repeat’ list. While the former two remain merely announced, the latter is reality – and one I welcome with open arms.

HorsegiirL (formatting intentional) is a Berlin-based DJ, singer, and songwriter, famous in the digital sphere and rave scene for her distinctive appearance: she is half-horse. Stella Stallion (as she is also known) rose to fame in 2023 with the TikTok-viral tracks ‘My Barn My Rules’ and ‘f0rbiidden l0ve$tory,’ which explores the treachery of a human-horse love affair. If being the first cross-species being to be featured in Vogue wasn’t enough of a culture shock, now Stella is pushing boundaries further with her latest E.P., v.i.p. — very important pony.

Those familiar with her earlier tracks will know HorsegiirL for her happy hardcore sound, with thumping bass and rave-ready synths. Yet the first half of v.i.p. is much more stripped back. The lead single, ‘take it offff’ has a typical pop feel with a simple snare and electronic rhythm that would fit easily into a MASH set. And this is by no means a downgrade; the self-identified Mustand-Haflinger-cross clearly has an expert ear for production that makes even the more minimalist tracks sound polished.

Nonetheless, she makes room for dungeon rave sirens on ‘bby luv x3’ or high BPM percussion on ‘scene before the kiss xoxo.’ The tracks feature the signature intensity that bagged her a Boiler Room set in 2022. With this, HorsegiirL uses the EP to expand her repertoire, showing off her versatility as both a hardcore DJ and a pop superstar.

This versatility extends also to her lyricism. As you’d expect from such a committed persona, many of her lyrics are light-hearted and absurd, such as translating drug references to language that any farm animal would understand: “I heard you got some hay […] I heard that once you tried it you ain’t never going back.”

“It feels fresh and enticing, rather than eye-roll-inducing”

In the wrong hands, many of HorsegiirL’s lyrics could be painfully cringe, following the trend of pop stars and influencers attempting to capitalise on internet culture. A yearning for Charli-xcx-levels of fandom and a market shift in favour of dance music means artists like Bebe Rexha or JADE (the pseudonym of Little Mix’s Jade Thirwall) are releasing singles with a painfully artificial BRAT attitude and sickly spoonfuls of cultural references. Yet when HorsegiirL makes a song entitled ‘giirL math’ or ‘Eat, Sleep, Slay’ it feels fresh and enticing, rather than eye-roll-inducing.

This stems from the world she has created to accompany them. Take her Resident Advisor bio which reads: “HorsegiirL’s fast rise to fame began when she was discovered singing in the stables before a horse show by none other than legendary Song-Stallion Whitney Horseton.” In an interview with Dazed, she fielded questions about online culture by responding, “I’m not on the internet that much because I’m a horse.” Her unrelenting commitment to the bit (pardon the pun) means her music takes you into her world, forcing you to leave your embarrassment at the barn door.

“Horses have no concept of ‘cringe,’ and neither should you”

Her world-building is most evident in the visuals accompanying the album. The video for ‘take it offff’ depicts the DJ dressed in a skin-tight bodysuit dancing provocatively to the sound of squeaking beds and “take my body.” The result is as disturbing as you imagine. Alongside this comes the video for ‘material hor$e’ where she nonchalantly trots around the globe. In this universe, it isn’t bizarre for a horse to work out on a beach or strut through the city, and by forcing you to accept that version of reality, it becomes easier to swallow the chronically online lyricism. Horses have no concept of ‘cringe,’ and neither should you.

Yet, alongside this, she pens a romanticism into her lyrics that I didn’t expect possible when holding the pen between hooves. ‘scene before the kiss xoxo’ paints a vivid picture of HorsegiirL downhearted and lonely, longing for a lover to return the spark of joy in her life as she sings “didn’t need someone to hold me… now it’s cold between the bedsheets… and the world stops for a bit.” The extended build-up of the song eventually explodes into an angelic vox and D’n’B-esque percussion that infuses the track with the heart-racing feel of a first kiss.

The last decade of pop ushered in a shift in what dance music was seen to be, and HorsegiirL continues to push the boundaries of what an electronic musician can achieve. She is both radio-ready and fit for a rave; both gimmicky and emotional; she is both girl and horse.

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