Meet Gaby Endo, one of Hong Kong’s upcoming it-girls. She came to Hong Kong a few years ago and immediately became high demand as a model. Besides that, after being inspired by Burning Man in 2015, she started DJing and we had a little chat with her about all that.

Photography, Styling and Interview by: Lauren Engel

You were born in Brazil. Tell me about your background.

I was born in Sao Paulo. My mom is Brazilian and my dad is Japanese. My dad’s parents moved to Brazil from Japan so my dad was already born in Brazil. They met in Sao Paulo in their mid 20’s. My mom spends more time taking care of their home and she is also a great runner and gym affectionate. Recently she won 1st place in her category for half marathons and she is now training for a full one. My dad has a car shop where he fixes the mechanics, restores the exteriors and does everything necessary to make an antique car look and feel brand new, it´s his biggest passion.

How did you get scouted at 16 to be a model? What was it like modeling in Asia at such a young age? Were you always comfortable with modelling in lingerie and swimwear?

I got scouted by a renowned agency in Sao Paulo. They used to work with this agency in Bangkok, RED Models. That’s how I got my first international contract when I was 16. Everything was pretty smooth and natural and I didn’t really encounter any difficulties except for the language. I didn’t speak English at all when I left Brazil so I had to learn when I was already abroad and within 3 months I learnt it. Through my 12 year modeling career around the world, I did mostly TV commercials for beauty brands and print advertisements. But I also did a lot of bikini and lingerie jobs. I guess because I spend half of my time in Brazil at the beach in a bikini, I always felt pretty comfortable with wearing little for photo shoots.

You said previously that you went to a lot of parties in Hong Kong watching the DJ and you were kind of like an iPod DJ. What made you want to start DJing?

I always loved music, but i never planned to become a DJ. I thought I was doing it all for fun when I started playing my first gigs in HK and Brazil. But then I realized that I was already playing for a thousand people crowd and by then it was already too late to go back to be anything else.

“It’s a sad reality that they are girls who are just eye candy and are not even really DJing. But I am not scared of that. Who is real is real and who is not, won’t last very long in the industry.”

Tell me about your time at Burning Man. How has it influenced you as a person?

Just magic. The first time I went I had this feeling of returning home. Everything made so much sense to me, artistically and spiritually. It served to inspire me in a lot of things I create and do today. Also in how I live and see certain aspects of my life.

What made you want to start Harmonia with Daniella? What were your inspirations for your brand?

Burning Man was one of our main inspirations. We felt like curating a platform where people could easily find amazing costumes. We have so much fun doing it, shooting for it and creating all the concept from scratch. Right now our inspirations are tribalist and futurism. And a lot of love.

You have two series– Love&Beats and Rewind, a Sunday daytime party series. What were your ideas behind starting those two?

Love&beats is no longer mine, but Rewind is still going beautifully and strong. The idea behind it was to bring something different and unique to Hong Kong. By creating the Sunday rooftop parties (our core), and expanding to beaches, warehouses, and nature outdoor parties we want to bring into life an experience where people can connect to emotionally and musically.

Are you ever scared of the stereotype “female DJ”?

I think there is a lot of that out there nowadays. Girls who are just eye candy and are not even really DJing. It’s a sad reality but I’m not scared of that because I trust that the girls who actually play good music are going to be recognized for their talent and not for their looks. Who is real is real and who is not, won’t last very long in the industry.

You are more so focused on music now rather than modeling. Why did you decide to make this change? Do you still find modeling enjoyable?

I feel like I want to be more creative, tune more into to my art and how I can express myself. Music is the way now. I’m still doing some modeling and yes, I still enjoy doing it! My favourite part is acting and I think besides music it’s what I love to do the most. I will love it forever. I still want to act in a movie one day.