For our 17th EthnoKast, we had the honor to host Rafael Aragon. Citizen of the world, now based in Brussels, Rafael was born and raised in Paris and its suburbs, embodying the cosmopolitan vision of the French capital city. Passionate about music in its entirety since a very young age, he develops a great interest for the musical folklores of the the world, their particularities and their universality. His musical vision can be summed up in 2 words: Eclecticism and Curiosity.
He began his career as a producer / dj / composer in 2006, under the pseudonym Rafiralfiro. During 5 prolific years of musical activism he has released a handle of records and OSTs, and played in Europe, Morocco and Turkey, alone or accompanied by musicians. Rafael's music is made for a club environment and loaded with bass, while being delicate, maximalist and highly psychedelic. Highly positive, he aims to "celebrate the beauty of life." Expect the unexpected, when he plays, every trip is possible, from powerful digital cumbia to soft Andean beats, taking you through Middle East's tribes, stopping by Al Andalus with flamenco-powered house music, or calling Malian ancestors to sing and play on heavy techno kicks... Unplanned, surprising, and adapting to the crowd's mood, this musician will always make you discover something new from a part of the world you have never heard of before.
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Since 2011 he performs under his real name and acts now as a central member of the Global Bass movement. What is Global Bass you might ask? Rafael explains it well:
"The desire to infuse eclecticism and diversity in Bass Music, through the prism of traditional and folk music. Bring back the roots and the mixture cultures on the dance floor, without worrying about fashions or labels. A post-modern vision of music: sharing, solidarity, no borders, no limits. Call it Global Bass, or World Music 3.0, whatever, it's the future of clubbing and music in general." |
Even when he is not travelling the world to play and make people dance, he still does it, organizing electronic world music parties at the ALG in Paris or at famous ZODIAK in Brussels with his crew and label Global Hybrid (with his pals Fanfara Electronica, also part of Ethno Kult). He even recently co-created a new "after-party-music" radio show with his bro Cédric Blavier, the AFTER, aired every Sunday on Liège (BE) waves. Oh, and he's also super friends with Curuba (Ditti, Psycho Tropiques). Well, he is friends with a lot of wonderful people, so we decided not to list all of his mind-blowing collaborations or else this page would never end!