contact: otismacmusic@gmail.com

The sounds of Shuggie Otis and Michael McDonald inspired a man to write a song. A couple of Mondays later, that song inspired an Identity. The name is Otis McDonald. The mission? Good Music. 

From the mind and ears of producer/multi-instrumentalist, Joe Bagale, comes a sound that is fresh but tangibly rooted in nostalgia. When taking a listen, one may recall the soul of the 60s or the funk of the 70s. Or perhaps it’s pop radio from the 80s or the boom bap beats of the late 90s. What ever it may be, Otis McDonald is the sound of an artist who manifests a lesson in versatility and growing perspective.

The production can be dense at times, yet through it’s syncopated rhythms and unexpected harmony, Bagale is able to find the space that counts. Starting out as a studio experiment, Otis McDonald was developed over a 3 month period which found Bagale writing short snippets of music, playing all of the instruments, sampling those snippets, playing more instruments and and eventually creating entirely new songs. 

Musically it’s both playful and emotive, while giving listeners a sense of optimism and joy. Just because it’s rooted in the blues, doesn’t mean it has to have the blues. There are beats that’ll make you wanna sweat on the dance floor. A thumpin’ bass that inspires folks to make love. Synths, guitars and horns that’ll cut through to your core, and a voice that reminds us all what it’s like to be human. 

In 2015, Bagale put out 30 tracks for free, under the name Otis McDonald. Released as copyright free music, exclusively through the YouTube audio library, these tracks have been downloaded over 5 million times, streamed over 10 million times and already have appeared in thousands of youtube creators’ videos. Take a second and search Otis McDonald on YouTube and you’ll find pages upon pages of videos featuring these songs. This being a very unusual way to release music, it may be the best music nobody has ever heard. Funny how the business works. As of 2016, Bagale has formed the Otis McDonald live experience, featuring some of San Francisco and Oakland’s finest players. He’s recorded new music, soon to be released for sale and for streaming, and at least 10 new free tracks for the YouTube audio library, due out later this year.

Combining the skills of a musician, with the power of both old and new technology, the sound of Otis McDonald was born, reminding us that music is a universal language that will always have a past and always have a future. 

DJ/ Producer/ Musician/ Writer/ Music Lover

Hosting/ together with Ralf Koester/ the <a href="http://www.mfoc.de" target=_blank>MFOC-Night</a> @ Hamburgs <a href="http://pudel.com" target=_blank>Golden Pudel Klub</a> since 1996
http://www.mfoc.de
http://www.pudel.com

Hosting the monthly MFOC-radioshow on <a href="http://byte.fm" target=_blank>byte.fm</a>.


Writing for Groove Magazine/ whatpeopleplay.com and others

Some more original tracks by me can be found here: http://soundcloud.com/sdfkt_tracks



For booking-inquieries mail: ralf (at) mfoc (dot) de

Explorer. Adventurer. Manipulator of Sound. Master of Ceremonies. Producer of Yasiin Gaye, Fela Soul, Bizarre Tribe, A Common Wonder & more.

BIO:

Forging an evolution of the "mashup" album format, producer Amerigo Gazaway's "conceptual collaboration" projects imagine studio sessions between like artist of different genres and eras. With a process the LA Times' Randall Roberts described as "drawing a different design within a similar framework," the producer/DJ deconstructs and re-orchestrates samples from his respective subjects, bridging overlapping themes of the two musician's classic catalogues. Equally influenced by his Brazilian roots and southern U.S. upbringing, the 28 year old Nashville native's work was featured in Apple's "What Will Your Verse Be" series of iPad commercials, called "brilliant" by music’s premier aficionado, Questlove, and earned praise from national/global outlets such as The Guardian, Huffington Post, The LA Times, Vulture, NPR, BBC, MTV, BET, REVOLTtv, EBONY,VIBE, XXL, THE SOURCE, OKAYPLAYER, Wax Poetic, Gizmazo and HipHopXL to name a few. 
 
The son of renowned Jazz trumpeter, Gary “El Buho” Gazaway, Amerigo’s thematic documentary-like concept albums uses found interview sound-bites, live performances, and original multi-track stems to help narrate and craft his combined artists' stories. Finding his first success with 2011's Fela Kuti/De La Soul pairing "Fela Soul," the project went on to land on several year-end "best of" lists including NPR, Soul Train, and OKAYPLAYER. Following the release in 2012 with "Bizarre Tribe: A Quest to the Pharcyde", a concept that layered vocals of The Pharcyde over re-imagined productions sourced from the original Soul, Jazz, and Funk records ATCQ utilized to create their productions, Gazaway would later collaborate with The Pharcyde on their single "Still Got Love" and perform with the legendary group at SXSW.
 
Continuing the theme of his previous work in 2014, the producer united Brooklyn rapper Yasiin Bey (FKA Mos Def) and soul legend Marvin Gaye for a dream collaboration aptly titled "Yasiin Gaye" (side one and side two.) Building the album’s foundation from deconstructed samples of Gaye’s Motown classics, Amerigo re-purposes the instrumentation into new productions with the familiar fervor of the original work. Carefully weaving Bey’s tangled raps and Gaye’s soulful vocals over his new arrangements, Gazaway delivers a quality much closer to an authentic collaboration than a lukewarm “mashup” album. Drawing nearly 20,000 downloads in its first two days of release, the “Master Modern Soul Match Maker” (Juan Vidal- Vibe Magazine) earned a perfect “5 Star” review from BET, collaborated with New York Magazine cartoonist, Drew Dernavich, for the project's side two cover art, and landed on Billboard's Best Selling Singles Chart with the album's third single, "You Are Undeniable."
 
Honing his DJ skills through tours of Europe, Brazil, and the U.S., Gazaway’s dancefloor driving live set features classic breakbeats, original blends, remixes, edits, and mashups of multiple genres including Funk, Soul, Disco, Hip-Hop, Afrobeat, and everything in-between. With presentations and lectures logged at USC, MTSU and upcoming dates at Google HQ (NYC) and SXSW 2015, the DJ/Producer continues to highlight the possibilities of sample based art and shows no signs of slowing down.

Booking & Promos: falscherhase@hoerverlesen.de

Ich mache Menschen mit Musik glücklich.

Hier könnte eine typische Biografie stehen. Ist aber nicht so. Ich habe keine Schallplattensammlung geerbt. Meine Eltern waren keine Musiker. Ich habe nie ein Instrument gespielt. Ich habe nie produziert. Ich habe kein Label. Ich habe keine Booking-Agentur. Ich bin kein DJ. Ich liebe Musik und empfehle sie weiter. Ich erzähle damit auch gerne eigene Geschichten. Musik sagt mehr als tausend Worte. Sie soll mich nicht reich machen. Und nicht berühmt. Nur glücklich. Das ist alles. Und das ist auch gut so.

★★★ Termine ★★★

31.12.2025 (MI) 806qm, Darmstadt

Tickets & Infos: https://linktr.ee/falscherhase

★★★ Auszug vergangener Highlights ★★★

3000Grad Festival, Feldberg
A.R.M., Kassel
Bahnwärter Thiel, München
Breidenbach Studios, Heidelberg
Castello Festival, Debrznica
Circle of Leaves Festival, Odenwald
Cocoon Club, Frankfurt am Main
Docks, Hamburg
Dora Brilliant, Frankfurt am Main
Douala, Ravensburg
Eulenflug Festival, Rothenburg
Fluc & Fluc Wanne, Wien
FREUD, Frankfurt
Fuchsbau Festival, Springe
Groovestation, Dresden
Habitat Festival, Hohenlockstedt
Hafen 49, Mannheim
Harry Klein, München
Heinz Gaul, Köln
Hive, Zürich
Hotel Shanghai, Essen
Ikarus Festival, Memmingen
Kabinett der Kuriositäten Open-Air, Offenbach am Main
Katzensprung Festival, Kerpen
Klunkerkranich, Berlin
komm schon Alter, Amsterdam
Kosmonaut, Berlin
Kowalski, Stuttgart
Kuddelmuddel Festival, Offenbach am Main
Kreisen Festival, Hamburg
Loft Club, Ludwigshafen
Love Family Park, Mainz
Magdalena, Berlin
Mauerpfeiffer, Saarbrücken
Moyn Festival, Oyten
MS Dockville Festival, Hamburg
Musikbunker, Aachen
Odonien, Köln
Pangea Festival, Pütniz
Paula, Dresden
Pratersauna, Wien
Rave on Snow Festival, Saalbach Hinterglemm
Reineke Fuchs, Köln
Revier, Zürich
Ritter Butzke, Berlin
Rocker33, Stuttgart
Rote Sonne, München
Rummelfest, Offenbach am Main
Rummels Bucht, Berlin
Silodom, Saarbrücken
Sisyphos, Berlin
Südpol, Hamburg
Station Endlos, Halle
Tanzhaus West, Frankfurt am Main
Time Warp, Mannheim
Tresor, Berlin
Übel & Gefährlich, Hamburg
Weidendamm, Hannover
Wilde Möhre Festival, Drebkau
Zuparken Festival, Kägsdorf

Quality will find its way.
booking: info@pracht.dk


Egokind & Ozean is the project of two Berlin-based electronic music producers and sound aesthetes. During their studies of audio design, they merged their previous band backgrounds with an in-depth knowledge for rich arrangements while establishing Egokind & Ozean into a DJ duo as well as a live act. Releasing their first album „Transition“ in 2014, they were introduced as „Berlin’s new electronic generation of producers“ (Mixmag) convincing with a „prosperous debut LP“ (Groove Mag) by creating „intricately detailed electronic hybrids“ (XLR8R) between UK-infected house, dreamy ambient soundscapes, emotional electronica and deep techno grooves.

contact:
contact@egozean.com


In a world of ever recycled trends, Tiefschwarz (deep black) is that most classic of shades. Its timeless style is testament to its staying power, and with a DJ and production career spanning over 14 years, this German deep house duo have proven just how apt a moniker can be. Born and bred in Stuttgart, brothers Ali and Basti Schwarz’s passion for techno and deep house flourished their initial experience as DJs in the early 90’s at the now legendary clubs that Ali ran in their home town, ON –U and Red Dog. This led to the formation of Tiefschwarz in 1997, from which they found rapid success with their debut single ‘Music’ (on Francois K’s Wave Music label) and album Ral 9005. By 2001, this had been licensed to the London label Classic Recordings from where they springboarded to international recognition. They decided to make the move to Berlin, at the time fast becoming the epicentre of a true electronic music renaissance, from where they pursued a hectic touring schedule and remixing the likes of Cassius, The Rapture, Missy Elliott, Kelis and their personal heroes Masters At Work. They then scored a double whammy with their all-conquering crossover hit remix of Spektrum’s ‘Kinda New’ and the single ‘Isst’ off their 2005 long-player, ‘Eat Books’. This was also the year that electrohouse dominated the charts and minimal the clubs, but Tiefschwarz have never allowed themselves to be tied down to a certain sound, staying true to their love of melody as demonstrated on their contribution to the Fabric mix series that year.
A series of high profile mixes in 2006, including Depeche Mode, Madonna, Roxy Music, Booka Shade, Phonique, Plastikman, dOP, and many others saw them continue perfecting their distinctive sound. Yet this was also the year in which Ali and Basti gravitated back to Berlin to found their own label, Souvenir. Basti explains “We like the idea of seeing music as a souvenir, an impression you take from somewhere. Something intimate that you remember”. They haven’t let this slow down their impressive production workload though, with a ten year anniversary compilation and a 2010 follow up album ‘Chocolate’ made in collaboration with Santé, and featuring Cassy, Seth Troxler, Dave Aju amongst others. At a perfect time to take stock of their career, the brothers are proudly contributing the ninth installment in the Watergate mix series, and have chosen a number of tracks that simultaneously pay homage to the tracks that shaped the beginnings of their career whilst also remaining very much forward looking. After years of constant touring, however, their Souvenir label has allowed them to lay down more permanent roots back in Berlin. It’s a place to foster talent, both young and old, not only in a sense of releasing records but also as a platform to share mutual experiences within a common network, a close core of artists work together including Ruede Hagelstein, Maher Daniel, the brothers Santé and Re.You, Ali &amp; Basti at the helm. With plenty more artists on the roster as well as a digital only subsidiary, Souvenir Plus, and a debut LP from Hagelstein on the horizon, there is promise of plenty yet to come for the Schwarz brothers’ imprint.

ahommel is following