The twenty-fourth edition of the creative development program with mentor Afriqua and mentees isa holo and MINQ. The residency is still running despite the cuurent lockdown. The showcase is postponed until further notice. Follow Amplify social channels to see what will come out of this new month of creative guidance.
LINE-UP
Afriqua
... (AKA Adam Longman Parker) crafts his mercurial productions with an eye to the future and an ear to the past. At a young age, he straddled the seemingly disparate worlds of classical music and hip-hop, studying piano works while developing his skills as a producer and DJ. Diving into turntablism and b-boy culture, he performed alongside pioneers Jazzy Jay, Grandwizard Theodore, and Grandmaster Caz, formative experiences that evolved into a natural versatility behind the decks.
Born and raised in Virginia, Parker was inspired by the productions of local legends The Neptunes, Timbaland, and Missy Elliot. He went on to study at the Royal Academy of Music in London by day, while receiving the essential nightlife education of institutions like Fabric and Plastic People. He moved to Berlin a few years later, embracing the city’s rich musical offerings. His early productions as Afriqua caught the attention of independent labels including 2nd Drop Records, Souvenir, and All Inn, where he explored sounds both firmly within the house/techno sphere and unmistakably beyond it. 2017 marked the beginning of an exclusive relationship with R&S Records.
Standout tracks “Soul Correction,” “Chronic Cool,” and his R&S debut “Aleph” have been DJ and crowd favorites alike, and exemplify Parker’s approach to production: weaving deep samples into spacey sonic tapestries, honoring black heritage while propelling it into the future.
isa holo
... is a fractal echo of multi-disciplinary artist Lisa Stewart exploring the resonance of sound as a vessel for transportation and energetic transmutation. Her tracks create holographic landscapes that tour micro/macro-verses through layers of rhythmic and melodic loops that absorb and disintegrate within continual reduction-expansion cycles.
MINQ
... is a Berlin-based DJ, sound artist, and cultural producer. With roots in the queer underground, their work is by and for queerdos, weirdos, freaks and geeks and draws from a multiplicity of movements and spheres including DIY ethos and punk aesthetics. A self-identified queer, Black music nerd, their creative process is fueled by the belief that music is a place of connection, to the self, others, and the world. From non-fiction to fantasy, MINQ’s work is a mode of storytelling – stories from the past, present, or future. Today they are curious in exploring ways in which music is omnipresent by using field recordings, vocal samples, peculiar analog machines and experimenting with audio collage, non-conventional rhythmic patterns and song arrangements.
Inspired by music and artists who unapologetically and boldy shake the system, MINQ also uses music as a mode of activism and enjoys being localized and interacting with the community and environment around them. Currently they are involved with the the Queer Black Therapy Fund, which is raising money provide access to Mental Health Professionals for people who identify as Black, of the African diaspora, and LGBTQIA+. They are also developing WE OUT HERE | A Moment of Black Tea, a docu-series exploring the lived experiences of Queer/Trans/Gender Non-Conforming, Black People living in Berlin.
Outside of their work, MINQ enjoys meditating, practicing yoga, going on long bike rides in and around the city, watching “She-Ra”, raising my happy plant family, rollerblading in Templehofer Feld, reading - especially Sci-Fi, writing - mostly journaling and writing poetry, DANCING! and cooking for their loved ones.