By Chesney Hearst, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Local and international DJs, club goers, promoters, venue owners and music lovers alike will gather together on Thursday, May 9th from 7PM to 11PM in Rio. The first of its kind event will kick off at Leblon’s Mekong restaurant and lounge, attendees will mix, mingle and discuss the current DJ scene in the city as The Rio Times presents a special event: the Rio DJ MixUp.
“The significance of the event is that it is the first social ‘mixer’ in Rio regarding Rio’s nightlife,” explained host, DJ and Nightlife Guide editor for The Rio Times, Mike Frugaletti, “It’s a chance to come together outside of the club in order to discuss the current and future status of the Rio nightlife.”
Presented by The Rio Times in association with co-promoters; Fosfobox, Alto Vidigal, Galeria Café, Molotov21, Sr2 Fotografia, Strikeconcert and Brazilian Wax, the four hour event will take place at Asian-inspired restaurant/lounge Mekong on Rua Dias Ferreira.
“We have been having different DJs playing at the bar on Wednesdays since we opened,” said Mary Byker, Mekong owner and current front-man for the band Pop Will Eat Itself. “The Rio Times has been involved one way or another from the get go. So, when the idea was mooted it seemed like a good fit.”
From 7PM to 9PM during the Rio DJ MixUp, Mekong will offer a special promotion of buy any drink with co-sponsor Absolut Vodka and get one Absolut Ping Pong cocktail or Lichia Spice free (Mekong signature drinks). Co-sponsor Magnífica Cachaça will also graciously offer a buy one caipirinha get one free promotion.
“We had some success throwing Happy Hour events last year, and wanted to build on that with a series of monthly ‘MixUp’ events, but promoting them in a much bigger way,” said The Rio Times Editor and Publisher, Stone Korshak. “This is the first of hopefully four [events] we will put on this season, and they are all about bringing people together around international arts/culture in Rio.”
Byker along with Botafogo Social Club DJ Tee Cardaci, originally hailing from San Fransisco, will provide the music at the party.
“I plan to bring to the event our unique blend of various genres of funky music …from soul and funk to disco and deep house with a few harder to categorize tracks thrown in the mix,” Cardaci told The Rio Times. “As always when we play, our primary goal is to entertain the crowd with our selection of tunes but we also always aim to educate them by connecting the dots between various genres.”
When asked what he thought of the current DJ scene in the city, Tee Cardaci, who has been DJing for 22 years, said, “I think the DJ scene is very strong in Rio right now. There is no shortage of quality DJs. There is also loads of talent on the production side of things. You have labels like Molotov21 releasing quality music to an international audience.”
Byker expressed similar feelings, “the DJ scene here in Rio over the last few years has, thankfully, become much more diverse.” “As far as this event goes,” Byker added, “hopefully different types of DJs, promoters and people involved in the scene can meet up, talk turkey and share ideas, failing that, everyone can get drunk!”
Korshak concluded, “Beyond getting together with some great music and drink specials in a cool place in Leblon, we see it as a chance for people in all aspects of the music scene – even those just interested in the Rio nightlife – to get together. It’s also an early party, so we’re looking forward to seeing where the night carries on to.”
What: Rio DJ MixUP @ Mekong
When: 7PM-11PM, Thursday, May 9th
Where: Rua General Urquiza 188 A (@ Rua Dias Ferreira)
Leblon, RJ
Tel: (21) 2529-2124
Entrance: FREE (drink promotion from 7PM – 9PM)