Time to read: 5 minutes
Today we introduce you to Ohxalá, Luis, and Maria, the Portuguese duo that explores a thematic cut with a focus on Iberic, Brazilian and African cultures. Inspired by the strong foundation of popular and ancient rhythms, their music is full of field recordings, blending traditional ethnic folk elements with contemporary electronic music.
Describe what you do in your own words? What is unique about the way you do it that makes you stand out?
We are Ohxala and we love to create a mix of danceable grooves infused with traditional instruments, rhythms, and rituals. In our shows, we try to create an atmosphere where people can dance, smile, and feel free!
What inspired you to go and do it? How did it all start?
Things happened in a very organic way. We met through music and one day we decided to make a DJ set together. It worked great and we started to make music and never stopped since.
Describe a moment of huge inspiring breakthrough in your personal-professional evolution.
Inspiration comes from all places. Food, architecture, new people, new places. It all contributes to our workflow and inspiration. One moment of a definite change in our mindset was our gig at Boom Festival in 2018. Seeing and feeling all those people dancing and smiling really made us believe we could dream of a future in music.
What is your current Mount Everest? What are you in the process of creating in the world? Your ultimate vision and dream?
At this moment we are finishing our album. It’s a combination of 2 years of work, trying to capture our roots and transposing them to the future using our music. This will result in a multi-media project with physical releases and a concert with several guest musicians and instrumentalists from Portugal.
What do iDiscover and its community mean to you?
It is our first event with iDiscover and we are excited to receive new inputs and inspiration. And we are very pleased that we will be able to share our music with the iDiscover Community. We feel it is very important for people to have more human connection, power and real experiences to regain our focus and daily attention.
What is your daily/weekly/monthly ritual or performance hack that really works for you?
Walking around, exploring, meeting new places, taking some cool photographs, and very importantly, taking at least 10 minutes to listen to good music and dance a bit on a daily basis.
What is your guilty pleasure?
Food and wine
Best travel tip or secret location to share with us?
Interior of Portugal for amazing breathtaking landscapes. And food and wine :)
Your best adventure ever was? Or Most beautiful place you have ever been to?
Cappadocia in Turkey, and the islands of Delos and Mykonos in Greece.
What is your favourite quote or a question you want to leave us with?
“Dream big”
Warm-up with some Oxhalá rhythms.