Cockwhore & Macho chose a name that works as a door sign: cheeky enough for a flyer, and clear enough to tell queer clubbers that the dance floor is theirs.
Kenneth Cockwhore and Mads Macho are a married DJ duo based in Copenhagen, and they met in 2009. They began DJing together as soon as they started dating, and their sets blend disco with the early sounds of house. They have played almost everywhere in Denmark as well as at venues abroad.
Their party MAINSTREAM, run with DJ friends Entree and Nonsmash, includes a free Pride day party at Byhaven. In July 2024 the duo played Hamam Nights in Panorama Bar at Berlin’s Berghain, and in August 2023 they played Karrusel festival on Refshaleøen. Off the decks, they have also built a sideline in t-shirts, tote bags and caps.
For Locals Insider, they talk about how they started, sharing a booth and a marriage, how Copenhagen’s club scene has changed since 2009, their favourite tracks, and the queer nights, bookshops and cafés they send people to.
We’re quite good at separating the DJ booth from the bedroom.
Kenneth
How a Copenhagen DJ Duo Began: Promo Releases, Old NYC Disco and a Cheeky Name
Kenneth: We met in 2009, although we had been talking online for about a year before that. Back then, the queer scene was quite different. Listening to techno and house was still very underground, and it was difficult to find people who shared your musical interests.
I used to send Mads promo releases, but he would never send anything back!
Mads: We started DJing together because we both shared a love for the old NYC disco scene. Our first gig was either at Warehouse9, an underground queer venue in the brown meatpacking district, or at Jolene in the white meatpacking district. We played disco for a while, but pretty early on we also started incorporating the very early sounds of house music.
Kenneth: We also came up with our name because we wanted something cheeky, but also something that would make it clear to people seeing the line-up that we were queer and that it was a safe space for them to come and dance.
Married and in the Booth Together: Two Geminis, One Line Between Work and Home
Kenneth: And we share the same birthday!
Mads: Of course we get mad at each other, like any other couple. But I think we’re pretty good at separating the two things: work and private life.
Kenneth: We’re also two Geminis with very strong opinions, so you can imagine! But I agree, we’re quite good at separating the DJ booth from the bedroom.
Mads: I mean, we actually started DJing together as soon as we started dating, so it’s always been a natural part of our relationship.
Kenneth: Yeah, things can get a little feisty sometimes, but we’re also incredibly lucky to be able to work together, travel the world and get paid for it. Haha!
Copenhagen’s Club Scene Then: Off-Venue Parties, Nu-Disco and No Safer-Space Policies
Kenneth: It was much more underground back then, and techno wasn’t nearly as big as it is today. Disco, nu-disco, indie and house dominated the club scene, although places like Culture Box and KB18 were putting on proper house and techno nights.
There were also many more off-venue parties because the city hadn’t been as heavily gentrified as it is today. There were still plenty of empty spaces around town that people could use, and people generally weren’t as uptight about nightlife as they seem to be now.
Mads: The scene also didn’t really have the same safer-space policies back then. I mean, they were definitely needed, but it wasn’t something people were particularly aware of at the time.
Techno Boom, Sunday Parties: Where Copenhagen Dance Music Is Heading
Classic house is heard less often these days. Why is the club scene leaning towards harder sounds?
Mads: I think things have changed a little. It used to be more like that, but over the last few years we’ve actually seen more and more house parties popping up again.
Kenneth: I also think it has something to do with Copenhagen techno becoming such a big thing for a while. Fast Forward Productions played a major role in putting that particular sound on the map, along with parties like Endurance.
But I think people are gradually finding their way back to slower sounds. We’ve also seen a rise in daytime and Sunday parties here in Copenhagen. When it comes to queer parties and harder sounds, I think it’s partly a younger crowd driving that movement, and the drugs people are taking have also changed compared to what they used to be.
Deep House Revival? A Genre That Never Went Away
Kenneth: It never left!
Mads: I think the sound is always present because, at the end of the day, it all started with house music. You can hear traces of it in pretty much everything.
Kenneth: Exactly. Crowds change, and every generation rediscovers things in its own way. Especially these days, with TikTok and Instagram, you see all these youngsters going, “Heeey, I just found this amazing track!”
And then it’s some absolute classic house track that we’ve known for years. Haha!
Crowds change, and every generation rediscovers things in its own way.
Kenneth
For another DJ’s view of what a dance floor needs, read Rimarkable on Detroit, New York and the dance floor.
Grace Jones, Film and Fellow DJs: What Inspires a Queer DJ Duo
Kenneth: Grace Jones, always and forever.
Mads: I get inspired by so many different things: movies, music and all kinds of art.
Kenneth: And, of course, our peers and fellow DJs, like Peach, BASHKKA, Britney Speed and DJ Nah Care, to name a very few. Not just because of their track selections, but also because of the energy they bring. It’s always 10/10.
Ten Favourite Tracks, From Plastic Dreams to Pearls
Five favourite tracks each, and what to play on a gloomy winter’s day to lift your spirits.
Mads: Jaydee – Plastic Dreams. Janet Jackson – Throb. X-Press 2 – London X-Press. Orbital – Chime. Supermax – Love Machine.
Kenneth: Sade – Pearls, BASHKKA – Surrender, Precious System – Voice From Planet Love, Kelela – Contact, and Mix Masters – In the Mix (Fast Eddie Mix).
If the room matters as much as the record, Rafi Mercer of Tracks & Tales has a view on what makes a listening bar worth the trip.
Queer Night Out in Copenhagen: MAINSTREAM, Endurance, Group Therapy and Essence
Three to five venues or regular club nights for a queer night out in Copenhagen.
Kenneth & Mads: Well, we obviously have to promote our own MAINSTREAM party that we do with our DJ friends Entree & Nonsmash.
Then there’s Endurance, which definitely leans towards a harder sound, but is suuuuper cute. Group Therapy at DAS is also a great one, as well as the Sunday party Essence.
MAINSTREAM’s Pride day party at Byhaven is free to enter. For another city’s night out, see Britt Kanja’s Berlin bars, galleries and clubs.
Beyond the Clubs: A Queer Bookshop, Chicken Salad on Rye and Indian Food on Vesterbrogade
Favourite places in Copenhagen beyond the clubs: galleries, museums, restaurants or bars.
Kenneth & Mads: The Pond, a queer bookshop; Dyrehaven – their chicken salad on rye is the best; ATM Records; Dzidra in Nørrebro; Frederiksberg Gardens; and Deep Restaurant on Vesterbrogade.
For more of the city between parties, see our local tips on Copenhagen breakfasts, design, parks and swimming.
Locals Insider · Copenhagen · 5 places
Copenhagen Places Picked by Cockwhore & Macho: Bookshop, Cafés and a Royal Garden
www.thepondcph.com Queer bookshop and café · Nørrebro
The Pond
Daytime queer space
An LGBTQIA+ bookstore serving coffee and drinks, in a basement on Poppelgade in Nørrebro. It is run by three non-binary people, who describe it as a space for queer people to grow, organise and rest.
- Poppelgade 6, kld., 2200 CopenhagenMap
- Official websitethepondcph.com
- @the.pond.cph
www.dyrehavenkbh.dk Café, bar and eatery · Vesterbro
Café Dyrehaven
Chicken salad on rye
A local café, bar and eatery on Sønder Boulevard in Vesterbro, with brown wooden panelling and a long natural wine list. It serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, including kartoffelmad, a Danish potato open sandwich.
their chicken salad on rye is the best
- Sønder Boulevard 72, 1720 Copenhagen VMap
- Official websitedyrehavenkbh.dk
- @instagram.com/stories/dyrehavenkbh
Café · Nørrebro
Dzidra
Nørrebro lunch and cakes
A café just off Nørrebrogade, known for a lunch menu that changes from week to week and cakes that change with mood and season. Art is often on display in the large window, and locally made goods are on sale.
- Baldersgade 8, 2200 Copenhagen NMap
- Official websitedzidra.dk
Address and website: Google Maps
Park · Frederiksberg
Frederiksberg Gardens
Royal park walk
A landscaped royal park on the western edge of inner Copenhagen, with canals, Frederiksberg Palace on its hill and a Chinese Pavilion built in 1799 as a royal teahouse. Boat tours run all summer, and the park borders Copenhagen Zoo.
- Frederiksberg Runddel, 2000 FrederiksbergMap
Indian restaurant · Vesterbro
Deep
North Indian dinner
An Indian restaurant on Vesterbrogade whose à la carte menu draws on northern Indian cooking, with every dish available mild, medium or spicy. It also runs a daily buffet and has a second restaurant on Amagerbrogade.
- Vesterbrogade 89, 1620 Copenhagen VMap
- Official websitedeeprestaurant.dk
