I recently got a chance to talk to the front woman of Portuguese super group Buraka Som Sistema. Her name is Blaya Rodrigues and she is a tiny force to be reckoned with: definitely worthy of the Dope Bitch title.
Me, random beach dude and Blaya on Holy Ship’s private beach party
I first got the pleasure of meeting Blaya during my adventures on Holy Ship (see photos here) and the first thing that stuck out about her wasn’t her crazy fashion sense- it was how nice and approachable she was. Actually all of the band members are really nice. She even posed for pictures and danced with fans on the beach. With Skrillex, Rusko, Steve Aoki and all the other completely unaproachable DJ’s on the ship it was a nice change of pace to be able to speak to her. Mind you her English isn’t the best- she’s still a sweetie.
Blaya is constantly changing her hair color and wearing some funky makeup. 2 Dope Bitches had to ask her a few questions about her music and style and what she does if she ever has free time.
Aside from standing out in a crowd ( a crowd she may currently be rocking , no less) she also teaches the crazy dance moves she performs on stage.
2DB- Who are you? Who is Buraka Som Sistema?
Blaya- Im Blaya, I’m a singer and dancer. Buraka´s a group from Portugal ( Lisbon)
2DB- How do you describe your style of music?
Blaya- Its all about electronic music.
2DB- What language(s) do you speak/sing in?
Blaya- Portuguese and English
2DB- What music/artists do you listen to?
Blaya- I’m kinda weird… I like mostly sentimental songs. but Azelia Banks, J*davey, Fat Freddys Drop, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Alex Clare, James Blake, Brazilian music.
2DB- What do you do in your off-time?
Blaya- I teach kuduro.
2DB- What color is next for your hair?
Blaya- lool good question! maybe green!..
2DB- WE LOVE YOUR STYLE- How do you decide what to wear to shows?
Blaya- It has to be pretty and short. i go shopping and [when I see the right thing] bamm!!!
2DB- How do you dress on a normal day?
Blaya- i have many styles, I can wear a jogging suit today and tomorrow I can [wear] a transparent thing. I really dont know!
Here is a bit about the band
Buraka Som Sistema is an electronic dance music project from Portugal, specializing in a fusion of techno beats with the African kuduro genre, and are generally credited with creating the “progressive kuduro” variant and have been awarded an MTV European Music Award.
Kuduro (or Kuduru) is a type of music and dance originally born in Angola in the 1980s. It is characterized as uptempo, energetic, and danceable. Kuduro, which translates as “hard ass”, began in Luanda, Angola in the late 80s. Initially, producers sampled traditional carnival music like zouk and soca from the Caribbean and semba from Angola and laid this around a fast 4/4 beat.
Thanks, Wiki.
The music is fun- up beat, easy to dance to, and high energy. I applaud the fact that Buaraka is brining a sound native to them to the fore front. Like, they are passing on the music of the people for us to hear.
Check her and Buraka Som Sistema in action:
Buraka Som Sistema – Tira o Pe
Buraka Som Sistema – (We Stay) Up All Night
Did you see Blaya in the sequins??
Erika, Me and Autumn
This past weekend, June 2nd and 3rd was the 5th annual Roots Picnic in Philly and I, Aja was lucky enough to head up North for the event. I got to hang out with my sister Autumn which like, never happens, so that was a great change. I would like to just say thanks to everyone who made this possible- Especially Mark and Gianni for giving me, Autumn and my friend Erika a free place to stay.
There were standout performances: Rakim performed ALL of Paid in Full. The Roots of course played Saturday night along with De Le Soul and Wale and also Sunday night with Rakim. When word that Kid Cudi wasn’t coming for the headline show they brought out Freeway. That was cool, but my favorite part of the performances were dring the daylight. I snapped a couple pictures of my favorite performances- favorites like Major Lazer, Diplo, Danny Brown , Starslinger and Mr. MF’n eXquire of course were dope. Bands I wasn’t familiar with such as Quadron, Shabazz Palaces and Tune-Yards blew me away. Gianni Lee and Dj Diamond Kuts were dope DJ’s throughout the weekend.
There were so many cool, stylish people around and honestly one of the best parts of my trip was just getting to know more people. Everyone was so damn nice! Philly really is a dope city- I got to see a little bit of it during the day- only bad thing is how early everything ends! Im in Miami people! I’m used to stuff starting at 1 am, but other than that I had a dope ass time. Can’t wait for the Mad Decent Block Party !
Check out the slideshow for the flicks of the weekend !
-
- Star Singer
-
- Quadron
-
- Tune-Yards
-
- Flosstradamus
-
- Mr. Mutha Fuckin eXquire and I, grillin’ em
-
- Diplo and I
-
- Major Lazer
-
- Chill Moody
-
- DJ Diamond Kuts
-
- Diplo crowd surfing
-
- Diplo and a stage of girls, as always
-
- My sister Autumn, Mark of Babylon Cartel and I
-
- Sisters
-
- Shabaz Palaces
-
- Autumn and Erika
-
- The Lineup
-
- Danny Brown
-
- Walshy Fire (Major Lazer)
-
- Before all the madness
-
- Vitamin Water photo booth foolishness
Yes, there was a “cannibal” in Miami. He ate someone’s face. You can read all about it here. But there is some happy news in the world of 2dopebitches.com. The Dope Bitch herself Norma’s birthday is June 2nd, so do NOT forget to wish her a happy birthday! June 2nd is also the date of Just Blaze’s show at Grand Central- we’re giving away a pair of tickets so ENTER NOW ! Also, June 2nd and 3rd is the Roots Picnic in Philly. We will be there to cover the madness that is a 2-day picnic featuring performances by The Roots, Kid Cudi, Danny Brown (!), Diplo, Major Lazer, Rakim, Wale, Gianni Lee, Chill Moody, Flosstradamus, The Hood Internet, Star Slinger and many more amazing acts. Get your tickets here!
So, it’s a music festival, what do we wear?? I was thinking- the weather is going to be in the mid to upper 70′s, hopefully sunny and not too windy, so bandeaus, belly shirts and high waisted shorts would work, right? I looked up some music festival fashiion to get in the spirit and got to packing.
Here’s my inspiration. Stay tuned for my recap of the weekend and of course my fashion choices !
Rihanna is a sexy bitch- the high waisted thing is of course a dope trend. Oh and Miss Purple Hair to the left is killing it too.
Will I be daring enough for this see-thru style??
Flower Children at Ultra- I might add some Daisies to my blonde hair, who knows?
Simple- a nice bustier is an option- I might even wear my glasses!
Bathing Suit as Shirt works with the high shorts..gives a weird tan but who cares? That's a dope belt as well!
Arm Party? Check. Cool head piece and hippie bag? Check. Dope flats? Check !
Stay Tuned!
MIAMI ! What are you doing this Friday night? That’s right, it’s another Friday meaning it’s SUPER FRIDAYS at Mansion !
AE Collective & Mansion Nightclub invite you to come out this Friday for a DJ Set by Flosstradamus along with sounds by Damaged Goods.
If you’re not familiar with Flosstradamus, get familiar! They are dope DJ’s from Chi-town who work with Fools Gold and Mad Decent, so you know they’re dope.
As always, it’s sure to be a dope night. We always get it in so be sure you RSVP with code 1163 and find us in the VIP!
DATE: Friday, April 13, 2012
TIME: 11:00 PM-5:00 AM
LOCATION:
MANSION NIGHT CLUB
1235 Washington Avenue
Miami Beach, FL
**RSVP FOR COMPLIMENTARY ADMISSION WWW.GUESTCODE.COM CODE #1163**
Check out some of Flosstradamus’ work below: Dope mixes and songs to shake your ass to (not to mention a video-mentary of thier rampage of SXSW ) !
Luuk Out Girl Feat. Kid Sister
SXSW 2012
Overnight Star
Here at 2DB we love music. And with that we are always amazed at the sophistication and flexxibilty of our friend and super producer werido guy Diplo‘s amount of talent. From working with Deer Hunter to Usher, he’s your favorite producer you probably never knew/heard of. The songs he’s produced have topped the charts throughout the years and you probably even never knew they came from this incredible man. He’s made stars out of M.I.A. and Maluca, but then again hes just a freckly faced white boy from South Florida. Check out some of our fave and latest Diplo tracks below and lets give this dude a round of applause for being so freakin dope.
Usher – Climax
I’ve literally been obsessed with this song, playing it over and over and over and over and over …… Okay and over. Its soothing and building rhythm are just enough to keep me deeply enticed by the lyrics and Ushers always amazing signing abilities. Usher hits that famous high note of his, and his lyrics are just dead on. Love songs make me all gushy even if I don’t want to admit it, and this ones a perfect mix of “trying so hard it almost kills you” and “I’m desperate to hold on to our memories” all embodies into a musical structure. Literally, this song sends me on an emotional roller coaster, and once a song does that – you know you’ve done your job as an artist. Bravo, Diplo. Bravo.
Diplo – Express Yourself Feat. Nicky Da B
Get ready for a booty seizure. Im not joking , literally you will foam at the mouth while doing the doodoo brown. Shit. This song is literally my hype up anthem. Going to school, Express yourself. Going to work, Express Yourself. Going to the club, Express Yourself. Those claps and snares and and those werido other noises mixed in with the ratchet yelling of Nicky Da B – dance perfection. The video was filmed in the NO (New Orleans) and of course you see our fav white boi, Diplo rockin a tall tee and Marithé + François Girbaud jeans behind the upside down booty jiggling goddesses. Everyone will think you’re looking at porn when you watch this vid, don’t mind us.
Diplo – I Think She Ready Feat. FKi and Iggy Azalea
Presented by Ssense, the luxury e-commerce website that we frequent on Window Shopping Wednesdays, you can literally shop for Iggy’s outfit while she spits a verse since everything you see is available for purchase on the Ssense website. I’m hype that Ms Azalea called the male equivalent of “Becky” Brian !
Anyways, as you can see, the man has his hands in a lot of different types of music. Check us daily as we school you to some new and some not so new music that Diplo has created.
MIAMI!! The time is now here - WMC is around the corner and the events are in no shortage! The Winter Music Conference brings to Miami the best DJ’s from around the globe and the craziest parties ( and partiers! )
Ultra is sold out but who cares?? You KNOW we got you with the info you need to have a crazy ass time !
March 21 and 22 HARD and Mad Decent are bringing some of our favorites to Grand Central. Diplo, Dillon Francis, Buraka Som Sistema, Miami’s own Craze, Tittsworth, Toddla T, and more will grace the stage on day one. Day two it’s Boys Noize, Busy P, Brodinski, Gesaffelstein, and many more !
Buy your tickets HERE before it’s too late !
Grand Central 697 North Miami Ave
Miami, FL 33136
VIP Table Reservations email bottleservice@hardfest.com
Whoa. Sleighbells released their track “Comeback Kid” which is available as a free download when you pre-order their upcoming album Reign of Terror on iTunes. This song rocks- I love the heavy layered sound and those damn super-fast “bike-spokes” sounds!
And side note, is that a crazy fast kick drum? The melodic and angelic voice of Alexis over these rough sounds are perfect. I can’t wait for the upcoming show at Grand Central this February 14 with Diplo and Liturgy (more on that to come). They are doing a Florida-only tour so check it out even if you’re not in Miami!
So, just WHO is Sleighbells?
Based in Brooklyn, New York, Sleigh Bells is composed of Derek E. Miller (songwriter, guitarist, producer) and Alexis Krauss(vocals, songwriter). Miller was formerly the guitarist for the hardcore band Poison the Well, and Krauss was a member of theteen pop group Rubyblue.
The group released “Tell ‘Em“, the first single from their debut album, Treats, as a free download in April 2010. Treats was released on May 11, 2010 exclusively through the iTunes Store by Mom + Pop Music. They performed at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2010 and 2011, the Primavera Sound Festival in May 2010, and thePitchfork Music Festival in July 2010. In June 2010, they released “Crown on the Ground” as their second single. The track “Rill Rill” from the album Treats was featured in a 4th season episode of Gossip Girl. The song “Kids” off of the album Treats was used in an advert for Koppaberg and the Promo for MTV’s Skins, adaption of UK series. Music videos were shot for their third and fourth singles, “Infinity Guitars” and “Rill Rill”. “Infinity Guitars” has also featured in commercials for Windows Phone.
So there you go. Now youtube them and be happy!
Via HYPETRAK
Check out more of my photos here!
I, Aja, am happy to report that I attended the maiden voyage of Holy Ship!, the craziest 3 day dance party ever. I am so thankful to those who made it happen and I couldn’t be more satisfied with the outcome. I am also happy to report that I went on the trip as a true fan, not as a work assignment. I left my real camera at home (for fear it would get damaged, lost etc) and rocked with some disposable Kodak joints (and a waterproof one!) I got to dance to my heart’s content, met people from all over the globe and really just had a great, relaxing time. No one’s phones had service and aside from making plans a little bit more difficult, it was dope to have freedom from my celly.
Here’s the pool deck right before we left:
The first night started with a kick off party featuring Diplo (in no shoes at some point. Boys Noize was supposed to go on but since he had to miss the trip, Skrillex fileld in followed by Rusko, Laidback Luke and Gessafelstein. That was all just on the pool deck. We watched Buraka Som Sistema kill it on the theatre. We literally ran around the length of the ship getting lost and going from party to party.
Pool deck every night:
The second day started super early as we were rocked awake not by music but by the boat itself! We hit a sandbar and got stuck there for hours. Boats came and picked us up so we could go enjoy the Bahamas for a little while. After breakfast we went inland where we were greeted by random dancers, free gin and coconut milk and also Elmo was there… The beach was so beautiful except were got surrounded by bees and my allergy-fueled fear got the best of me. We left the beach and hit up Atrak‘s DJ lessons. He is so talented and such a nerd about DJ’ing it was truly an honor to get to learn from him. Also, dad jokes aside, he’s pretty funny. Check out the video of Atrak, Laidback Luke and Craze giving us all a dope lil lesson:
Shouts to Mrbusterguy for the video!
Atra’s set on the pool deck was SO GOOD, he did his famed “Robot Rock” set and played the shit I really wanted to hear. I kept being like “I love this song!” so much I had to stop myself from being annoying.
We got to watch the awesome Fool’s Gold artist Danny Brown perform and then directly after that we got a nice little peep show from miss Dita Von Teese! Who could ask for more right? Also we met Andrew who runs FLiBY clothing. He and his boys were fresh in their FLiBY gear and gave us some dope pins to wear (came in handy when I needed a safety pin let me tell you..) We then ran around to random parties, running into people along the way and stopping briefly at the Casino where our friendd Phil won a cool $49 big ones. At one point we met Victoria from Videofashion!, big up to her because she’s dope!
Spin Mag caught us dancing to Danny Brown
The final day of the trip started super early as well. We headed to the private island and partied on a beach full of only us cruisers and staff. Fatboy Slim, Diplo, Dave Nada and Dillon Francis provided the background to people wylin’ out, drinking, and dancing in the shallow water. I FINALLY got my #boatswag tattoo that I had seen so many people with. we got to dance with Blaya from Buraka Som Sistema and I ran into the crazy Aussies we met on our first night. The whole thing was just unreal. The water on both island was so crystal clear and the perfect temperature. words can’t describe how unreal the whole thing was- and the DJ’s were spinning inside of a giant fake ship wreck with a bar in the bottom floor.
Beach party
Here’s a video of the party via busketusonasty:
The Fool’s Gold Rap party was the icing on the cake. Like, that perfect cream cheese icing. I like the music that was played throughout the weekend, especially that of Atrak, Buraka Som Sistema, Danny Brown and Diplo, but to be able to throw on my gold grill, jump up and down and get a little “ratchet” as my friend says while jamming to Rick Ross and Tupac was amazing and refreshing. The music was ON POINT. My homie from Cali was there throwing up the “LA” sign so my friend and I of course had to throw up the “305″ and the “E” for east coast. All in the name of fun. Aside from Atrak, Miami’s DJ Craze was there throwing up the 305 along with us, rocking a Slow Roast Records shirt! I even met a cool dude from Canada who told me he was waiting for this party the whole trip while blasting rap music in his cabin. That was the one party I actually danced my ass off and got sweaty at. Everyone was gross and just loving it.
It’s funny living in Miami I finally got my tan… in the Bahamas.
BEST VACATION EVER. #BOATSWAG. Holy Ship!
More Photos here!
Oh, by the way, here’s a news clip of our little ship being stuck on the sandbar!
Last night Diplo brought Moombahton and dub step to the club goers of LIV nightclub and of course we were there to document the night. DJ’s Jessica Who, Ross One and Contra were there spinning as well. It was a pretty dope night- I met some new friends Bando and Addy (they’re doing big things!) , got to hang with the girls Eva (gorgeous girl in the pics with me) and Erica ( I don’t know how she escaped the photos), danced on the couches. Check the pictures below and also peep them on our Facebook page so you can tag yourself if you’re in them!
Be sure to watch our interview/hang session with this crazy motherfucker himself!
YES! Another chance to see the super talented Santigold perform in Miami Beach is upon us. Philly born Santi White a.k.a. Santigold will be performing at LIV’s Dirty Harry party on Wednesday, Nov 30th. She will be accompanied by MMG signee Walé which is a random but pretty cool mix of musical styles. It’s funny, the last time she performed in SoBe for a Diesel concert in 2009 she was joined by Kid Cudi. It was a fun night, her dancers are AWESOME and I don’t know about you guys but I’m excited to see her. Check out my shitty cell phone pictures from that night below, and don’t judge me I was using an old Blackberry with no flash…
*Fun fact- the concert was held in late 2009, Norma couldn’t go because she was in JAPAN. Dopeness.
Anyways, LIV (the über club inside of the Fontainebleau hotel) is always packed so expect a crowd for this. Speaking of LIV on a Wednesday, I, Aja, attended last night’s Dirty Harry party and got to see Diplo spin (on his birthday) but was a little disappointed he didn’t strip out of his suit as I’ve seen him do for performances before. Such is life. Pictures from last night are coming soon! Oh, also I got to meet the gorgeous DJ Jessica Who, resident at LIV. Just wanted to point that out 
LIV
4441 Collins Ave.,
Miami Beach
Thanks for the info, Crossfade!
Diesel U Concert, 2009:
Santi and her dancers
Kid Cudi
© 2013 2DOPEBITCHES.com