In pictures: GGI 끼, the club night for London’s queer ESEA community

If you’re a regular on London’s queer circuit, chances are you’re familiar with GGI 끼 (pronounced ‘kee’ in Korean). Founded in 2021, the east London club night emerged out of the city’s eclectic post-pandemic scene, fostering a much-needed space for joy and healing for the ESEA community. “[It’s essentially] queer and trans ESEA [people] feeling comfortable to be with our kin and also express our queerness, while seeing ourselves centred on the line-ups too,” explains June Lam, the founder of GGI 끼. 

Featuring head-spinning line-ups focusing solely on queer ESEA artists and DJs, each night spans a wild stretch of styles and genres, though the sound is rooted firmly on the dancefloor – “there’s no saying what you can expect a GGI 끼 event to sound like, baile funk one day and gabalan, Taiwanese drill and melodic hardcore the next,” expands Lam. There are DJ sets and live performances from local artists and regular faces from the city’s creative milieu, and also international club names, such as Fitness, Wanton Witch and Zah, to name but a few. Off the dancefloor, punters spill out into the smoker’s area, where the community vibe comes into full force – plus, some tantalising rave snacks courtesy of Vietnamese catering company Vinaxoa. 

“As you step outside the chaos of the club it often feels a lot more like a vibrant extended family than a rave,” says Lam. “[GGI 끼] has a uniquely ESEA focus on family, community and collective care. There are few other raves out there that have such a reputation for being warm and wholesome where everyone feels comfortable to start a conversation with a stranger over food and shared diaspora identity.”

With a handful of nights already under its belt this year – a Lunar New Year celebration with Eastern Margins and a recent spring rave at its go-to spot at The Yard in Hackney Wick – photographer Zhuanxu Xu captures the energy of the night in the gallery above.