Ritmo Equis - Interview
Who were your main musical influences growing up and which artists did you first start buying records from?
My cousin, he always used to play the radio every single day in the morning. It was in the 80s and all the genres in the 80s were dope. So, we used to spend a lot of time listening to the radio. My first cassette I bought was the Esteem Driven Engine of Pulley, my first CD was the Exit Planet Dust from The Chemical Brothers and my first brand new vinyl was the Bully Breaks 2 from DJ Craze.
When was your first dj gig and how did it go?
I had 2 crates full of underground music (hiphop, house, electronic and funk) No common music for common ears. So I start looking for events where I can play this music. My first gig was in a BBoy Contest and then in a Skateboarding Contest. After that some open mics.
Can you tell us about the 45s scene in terms of music venues and record shops in Panama?
The scene is growing, more people are interested in taking care of their old records. Around the 90s and 2000s with the difficulty to buy needles and good turntables people started to throw their records away. Now this is not happening anymore and there is a kind of vinyl culture growing right now. I sincerely can’t believe i
Why do you love 45s?
Haha! I used to hate 45s because all the records I used to have in my hand were scratched or damaged. Without stores and internet, we weren’t able to buy the sleeves, the records normally were in really bad condition. Then when I started collecting records and meeting people, they showed me the importance of 45s. Another world from the 12″, it’s amazing. In the DJing world I like the 45s flow because when you’re spinning you need to be quick, If you think too much, the song is over and you mess it up! haha!
Can you list 5 Panamanian artists we should check out?
Italian Somalí https://open.spotify.
Salsa Del Monte (Various artists) https://open.spotify.com/