madrid

Having a background in visual art, sculpture and fashion, Madrid has fused his talent into the art of the dj as a soundscape tastemaker. Madrid first earned early recognition in the music field through his company Ultra Urban Aesthetics in the nineties, importing mixes from top hip-hop djs in New York City to distribute across the Midwest. After a noticeable shift in urban music towards the late nineties, Madrid began djing on his own.
“I’ve always been a big fan of music and had keen interest in rare grooves and collecting hard to find records. I started throwing parties at my house and invited various djs to spin. When I didn’t have a dj, I would end up playing music that I collected on own. I noticed there was a wide range of music that wasn’t being heard so I elected to start playing this type of music out. The rest, as they say, is history.”
Madrid created a unique programming of music, what he calls ‘Diaspora Funk’, inspired by the African Diaspora across the world. “I was playing all things from Africa, Brasil, Latin America, United States and Europe from all music genres together. The rhythm is what I used to guide me. From there it took a life of its own."
With his love for history and culture, Madrid has formed a distinguished style that encompasses all genres and global cultures, literally. He has played in North, South America and Europe beside such notables as Antibalas, Juan Atkins, Brazilian Girls, King Britt, Derrick Carter, DJ Cam, Green Velvet, Gotan Project, the Hacker, Jazzanova, Osunlade, Larry Tee and Ron Trent and has premiered for events for Akira, Jaguar, Louis Vuitton and Vogue Magazine.
“Growing up in Chicago, I was exposed to music themes from the seventies and eighties. I witnessed the birth of hip-hop, the birth of punk, and the birth of house, which were then interlinked. There was this merging. The early proto hip-hop shared connections with The Clash, Kraftwerk, electro and techno. This music was played at what one would call a hip-hop party. Hip-hop wasn’t just rap music; it was music to get down to, dance music. The house scene shared similar links. You had people like Ron Hardy playing disco, techno and punk all in one set. You also had people like Don Letts who documented the Clash, Afrika Bambaataa who incorporate German techno in their music and Juan Atkins with Model 500. Music was being cross-pollinated. There was this whole theme where was nothing off limits. That is what I can actually say formed my background as far as how I play music and formed my craft of djing. Over seven years, I have collected a catalogue of music worldwide that has allowed me to seamlessly perform what I call ‘Freeform Radio’; punk electro hip-hop latin brasilica fusion jazz funk soul.”
Needless to say, the man is versatile and is able to hold his own within any genre and selected atmospheric venue. Currently Madrid holds residencies Nuevo Latin cuisine restaurants Nacional 27 located in Chicago’s River North Area and De La Costa in the River East Arts District. Here you have the best seam-lined sound design to accompany your dining and cocktail experience. Madrid also holds a monthly residency Analog Punk at Rodan, Asian and South American restaurant lounge hot spot in Wicker Park, where you can catch Madrid in rare form as well as tag team sets with guest deejays.
“I use my love of all to embrace all: fusion. I draw no lines between genres; I use the line to connect them together. Rhythm is rhythm. I play what sounds good. I use the drum as my guide.”Layout Provided By FreeCodeSource.com - Myspace Layouts