Max Pela (Afrobeta Bodega / Uhuru Afrika)
Born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Latin America’s new mecca for electronic music. Max Pela started his musical journey as a percusionist learning Jazz, Blues, Rock, and the different ethnic rhythms from the Dominican Republic and Haiti. He is known for the cool and fresh sounds that take you on a journey throughout paradise and the eternal warmth of summer on every track that he spins.
He began spinning by the late 90’s and became the resident dj of Ocho Puertas. Spinning on such prestige clubs like Abacus, Almodobar, Fusion Rose, Pop Lounge, XXO, and Spot Cafe in the Dominican Republic. In the United States has played at Soul Funktion Radio, Shine Lounge, Aria, WRGP 88.1 & 95.3FM Miami, Circa28, Love Lounge, Stop Miami, Bullfrog Eatz, Club Rain and Jowas Lounge. Working with local and international stars such as Adam Gibbons, Dj Sabine, Dj Offbeat, Saeed Younan, Carlos Mena, King Britt, OrganicArma, Marco Bailey, Hyper, Mr. Oniel, Roberto Zayas and Lean Vargas (UrbanSoul Duo), Hazzard, Dr. Glow, Souenalo Sound System, Fitzroy, Bacon Beatz and Cooltura Dj Colective.
His passion is non other than House Music, and some of it’s variations like Vocal House, Soulful House, Deep House, Afro House and Tribal House. Some of his mayor musical influences are Little Louie Vega (MAW), Osunlade, Danny Tenaglia, Miguel Migs, Steve Lawler, Peter Tha Zouk, Dj Vibe, Chus & Ceballos, Bruno Marciano, Peace Division, Thievery Corporation, Jazzanova, Atjazz….
Max Pela adds that he is constantly seeking variety, an uncommon sounds in each genre, the mixture of these genres, creativity and the search for that specific sound, and his fondness for non-conventional producers, of newer generations.
Roberto Zayas (Afrobeta Bodega / Visionario RD)
Roberto Zayas is a Santo Domingo-Based DJ and graphic designer whose early beginnings can date back to the year 2000 as a resident of Ocho Puertas; where along with Max Pela, they experienced the growing boom of tribal and progressive house in the Dominican Republic.
He forms the duo URBANSOUL along with Lean Vargas in 2005, this time concentrating on Deep House music, and pushing the genre towards different bars, venues, promotions, and social events such as Heineken Thirst 2005, Miller, Cerveza TheOne, Verano Presidente 2007, Música por los Haitices, Trolty Lounge @ Haiti, along others.
Currently, Zayas is known for his ability to travel between the diversity of subgenres of House Music, focusing more on his passion for Deep, Soulful, Tech, and Afro House.
Zayas has shared the stage in the Dominican Republic with a great number of International DJs such as Little Louie Vega, Andy Caldwell, J Davey, Waajeed, Willy Graff, Alix Alvarez, John Creamer, B Jornk Now – How, Roger Sanchez, Sander kleinenberg, and many others.
On the Graphic Design side, he currently owns VDK., a multimedia agency dedicated to managing international and local clients such as Afrobeta Bodega, Visionario Grupo Creativo RD, Pav Entertainment, Casamena, Ocha Records, Ezel, Lions & Lions Agency, Including many clients overseas such as Puerto Rico, United States, among others.
Jay Medina VJ (Afrobeta Bodega / Uhuru Afrika)
Jay Medina aka VJ Zaiko is a multimedia designer & artist. A natural from the Dominican Republic and currently living around the Boston area, Jay Medina developed a passion for video at the early age of 16, when he bought his first professional camcorder mainly used to record and edit clips to post them on a pre-Youtube.com Internet.
Medina’s Love for Vjing began a few years back only as a personal project, when he felt his love for music needed to be expressed in a visual manner. Using basic tools such as adobe after effects, Modul8, and Arkaos has given him the ability to deliver an experience at the crossroads between clubbing, cinema, and visual arts.
Jay Medina is currently the VJ Resident of Uhuru Afrika playing along Boston’s finest DJ’s such as Adam Gibbons, Max Pela, DJ Bruno, and out of town DJ/Producers such as Abicah Soul, Julius The MadThinker, Rich Medina and Black Coffee.
Adam Gibbons (Uhuru Afrika / Afrobeta Bodega )
Called “Boston’s best kept secret” by Decontrol Magazine, Working in the industry for over 15 years, Adam Gibbons has been producing and spinning events for just about as long as he can remember. Through mind, body and soul, Gibbons is a music lover and strives to share his passion with the crowds he plays for. Whether it is in Miami at the Winter Music Conference, in Detroit at the Movement Festival, an underground club in Lisbon or any other city he has played, Gibbons’ selections range from soulful, deep, Afro-Latin, and vocal house music, Afro beat, disco and various underground classics and works to create a reciprocal positive energy with his crowd.
Adam has worked with such heavyweights as Bebel Gilberto, De La Soul, ex-Fela Drummer and co-creator of Afrobeat Tony Allen, Amayo’s Fu-Arkestra (Members of Antibalas & Dap Kings) Grammy winner Louie Vega, Ron Trent, Osunlade, King Britt, Thievery Corporation, LTJ Bukem, Yerba Buena and many others. Adam has also studied African Hand Percussion with Bob Bloom, Faculty Advisor at the Olatunji Institute, learning the Olatunji method of traditional Yoruba hand percussion and has traveled to US and beyond bringing his sound to some of the countries hottest parties. He has been to six African countries, gathering inspiration and energy for the event and his musical selection.
His party, Soul Revival, was Boston’s longest running event and has gained international recognition. Rolling Stone magazine named it one of the ten best parties in America and wrote, “For the past ten years, spiritual-minded partiers have gathered every Saturday of the full moon at Villa Victoria, a former church, for this throwdown.” URB Magazine, referred to it as one of the hottest parties in the nation for house music, and said that the party was “a direct link to the days of the Paradise Garage.” Adam’s current project Uhuru Afrika is a bridge between ancient traditional African music as played by the Yoruba, the Zulu, the Massai,,, and the electronic dancefloor sounds of modern clubs. It is known globally and has hosted parties in it hometown of Boston as well as NYC, Miami and Mexico. It’s live podcast on fellow resident DJ Max Pela’s website is averaging over a thousand downloads a month from IP addresses all over the world.
Marco Castro (Dancegruv / Afrobeta Bodega)
Born in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. Marco Castro sound derives from coastal inspired mixture of Garifuna flavor and Latin beats. Marco who later migrated to Union City, New Jersey has been influenced by numerous styles of music including Disco, Funk, and Soul.
Marco has been behind the decks for over 10 years and now lives in Miami, FL. His latest residency included the growing FOOT CREAM party in Orlando, FL. Marco now continues to contribute to the house community through community projects which include DANCEGRUV RADIO to name a few.
Along the years, he has performed next to renowned dj’s such as; Adam Gibbons, Max Pela, Stell*R, Ian Friday, Ray Vasquez, Mikki Aflick, Marshall Jones, Master Kev, Keith Evan, Jask, Ezel, Djinji Brown, HallexM and Culoe De Song to name a few.
His style, presents a special blend Afro-Deep and Deep Soulful inspired by from his Honduran roots of tropical Garifuna rhythms and Global Soul.
