The half-human, half-horse DJ and pop provocateur known as horsegiirL, real name Stella Stallion, has opened up about her journey from burnout to a new eco-conscious album. The Berlin-based artist, who describes herself as trilingual in English, German, and 'neigh', has polarized the dance music community with her blend of Eurodance, 90s techno, happy hardcore, and gabba.
A Polarizing Figure
On one side of the paddock are her loyal fans, or 'farmies', who embrace the horsegiirL lore: born and raised on Sunshine Farms, surrounded by animal friends, and discovered by the legendary Whitney Horseton. On the other side, near the manure, are dance purists who dismissed her meteoric rise in 2022 as a cheap gimmick. Stallion, 26, recalls a legendary DJ from 'like, 1902' who called her 'the face of commercialisation.' She laughs it off, noting she was mainly playing small underground queer and trans raves at the time.
Early Style and Criticism
Stallion admits her early 'very punk' style prioritized instinct over craft. Songs like My Little White Pony and My Barn My Rules were pummelling equine anthems. She says critics were often technically proficient DJs with dead dancefloors: 'Who cares about the transition if your track selection and energy is off?'
One early fan was actor Danny Dyer, with whom she spent much of the 2025 Brit Awards chatting. She can't recall their banter but enjoyed infiltrating the mainstream, even appearing in the Daily Mail.
From Burnout to Healing
Last year's EP v.i.p. (very important pony) was made between DJ sets as Stallion battled burnout. Her new album, Nature Is Healing, benefited from time and space. 'I'm a horse, I love to keep going. Horses don't stop. That is something I really had to learn,' she says. She took a four-month break from DJing, crafting the album in Berlin, LA, and London with producers including AG Cook and Margo XS.
Musical Evolution
The album features flashes of club music, like the mutant happy hardcore single Apple a Day, but the sonic palette is more refined, taking in 90s Madonna, Sophie's liquid-pop, and acoustic instruments. The 15 songs are a 'love letter to Mother Nature, to Mother Earth, and to every creature, every plant on this planet.' Stallion meditates on how humans treat the planet, questioning the intelligence of a species that destroys its own base.
Tracks like Organic Intelligence praise the natural world in contrast to AI, while Hands Hands Hands explores the duality of human hands: tools for healing but also for building missiles and guns.
Artist, Not Activist
Stallion is clear she is more artist than activist. 'With climate activism, there's a real burnout phenomenon because the crisis is so big. I wanted to come from a perspective of joy, because joy can be a real motivator. Humour and playfulness are very, very serious tools.'
She is aware of the potential hypocrisy of globetrotting while making an eco-opus. She distinguishes between travelling for work and for fun, vowing never to fly private. 'But what do you want us to do? Play a set on Zoom? We tried that in the pandemic and it's not the vibe.'
Looking Ahead
Stallion hopes listeners reflect on the privilege of being human and the importance of loving each other. 'Maybe that is the hippy talking,' she says with a laugh. Nature Is Healing is released by RCA on 5 June.
