Buraka Som Sistema (PT)

Back in 2006 when four buddies got together to play music at a small club in the center of Lisbon, little did they know they would end up becoming part of a very select group of international bands involved in the process of re-shaping “World Music” — making it the coolest it has ever been. João Barbosa (J-Wow) and Rui Pité (Riot) met while attending high school in Amadora, a city in the outskirts of Lisbon. They were in a band for a while, but quickly got sick of rehearsals and crappy concerts. Instead they picked up a second-hand sampler, a computer and locked themselves in an attic making beats. Together they started collaborating with several artists from the Lisbon music scene, where they bumped into Kalaf Angelo. The encounter with Andro Carvalho (Conductor) took place a little before they set their minds on Kuduro — the dance music genre that was taking the ghettos of Luanda by storm and spreading to African clubs in Lisbon. Together, the four started editing and remixing Kuduro instrumentals from artists like DJ Znobia, DJ Du Marcel and DJ Jesus, to play at their then new monthly residence at Club Mercado.