In 2016, Jayda G moved from Vancouver to Berlin to pursue her career as a DJ/producer while simultaneously finishing her graduate degree in environmental toxicology. “It was a lot,” she tells Apple Music. “I would not recommend it.” But still, no regrets: The experience made her one of dance music's fastest-rising stars and inspired her first full-length album, Significant Changes. Split down the middle with odes to both science and serious clubbing, it’s a joyful, adventurous commentary on her double life. “I’ve learned a lot about people and culture and how much we have in common,” she says. All that accrued wisdom is pervasive throughout her electrifying debut, and she offers up her most useful life lessons here for you to learn as well. Change it up: “During the year that I made the album and moved to Berlin, my entire life changed to the point where it was unrecognizable to me: a new city, a new job, new people, a new language, on top of finishing my thesis. I found myself in situations that stretched me and learned a lot about what I was capable of. I grew up. The album title is also a really nerdy statistical reference inspired by the linear regressions in my thesis, which call for specific references to changes you find in your study. I won’t bore you beyond that—just trust me, there were parallels.” Protect the environment: “My thesis looked at how pollution affects the health of killer whales off the coast of Vancouver. 'Orca’s Reprise' has found recordings of killer whales from off the coast in Alaska and a more melancholy melody. Learning about the health of these animals…they’re endangered already, you can imagine it’s pretty depressing.” Put your phone away: "'Stanley’s Get Down' speaks to people being on their phones so much. Sometimes I’ll be DJ-ing and the whole front row of people are on their phones, which totally goes against the whole reason you're out in the first place. You’re there to dance, to meet people, to let loose. You're not doing that when you're on your phone. It’s important to be present.” Girls to the front: “My song 'Move to the Front' is about how all the women in the club who dance their asses off seem to hide out way in the back. What’s that about? I'm trying to telepathically tell them to come to the front and dance with me.” Nerd out on nightlife: “When you're in the field looking for animals, you have to be really observant. You’re not just going to happen upon a certain type of snake; you have to look at the environment and say, 'This is where that snake would like to be.' It’s the same thing with DJ-ing. You have an audience, they don't really know what they want to hear, and the only way to present them with something they'll enjoy listening to is by being really observant—of the environment, the people, their reactions. It’s, uh, DJ science.” Get thee to Berlin: “It’s like a modern-day Renaissance community, but with more leather, piercings, and hedonism.” Keep your chin up: “I listen to a lot of disco, funk, and soul. A lot of my DJ sets have these elements, and when I make music I always try to have a funky bassline or a fun, light, soulful edge. Optimism: That’s what people need right now.”