About Ricardo Baez.
Florence’s very own tastemaker Ricardo Baez has always been immersed in music. On one hand, he had his Italian father's extensive collection of old blues and jazz records. On the other hand, the 80’s pop cassettes his Venezuelan mother used as the soundtrack for her dance classes.

This melting pot gives Baez a different way to make his musical mark, as shown at his legendary party Tropical Animals in Florence, which has been running weekly since 2010. Tropical Animals has been cited as one of the most important drivers in the evolution of club culture in Italy, broadening people’s music tastes. Ricardo Baez’s trademark sets are unique- genre blurring, technically excellent and full of surprises. Ricardo Baez always leaves his audience wanting more.

And then there’s the sensational guests he books week in, week out. From Avalon Emerson to Marshall Jefferson, Vladimir Ivkovic to Jayda G (just to name a few). Ricardo Baez’s knowledge of electronic music is incredible.

It didn’t take long for his eclectic style and boundless enthusiasm to start turning heads internationally. Soon after hearing about Tropical Animals, the world wanted a piece of Ricardo Baez. Berlin came calling through Tresor, Watergate and Renate. Then Frankfurt’s Live at Robert Johnson, New York’s House of Yes and Le Bain, and London’s XOYO and Corsica Studios.

Ricardo Baez is also a well accomplished producer, taking all of his musical savoir faire and impeccable taste as a selector and making something new, that is instantly recognisable as his own. After releasing on some of the most prestigious labels in electronic music, he realised his music needed a place to call home. Since 2018, that home has been his own label, also called Tropical Animals. Other exotic creatures and musical chameleons that share his hot house include Whitesquare, The Cyclist, Robert Owens, Rebolledo, and the pioneer of Italian disco, Daniele Baldelli.

Recently, he has appeared on compilations for Running Back, Correspondant, Polifonic, and Hotmix Records, as well as outstanding releases on Mule Musiq, Permanent Vacation, Bordello a Parigi and Correspondant.

Winter 2024 brings Ricardo Baez’s pièce de resistance: His stunning debut album, Tutto Passa, available on Live at Robert Johnson. Every track filled with meaning, an anthology of the most important moments in Baez’s life. Stay tuned - the lucky few who have heard it say this work of art is going to be yet another outstanding contribution to music. We’d expect no less.

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Ricardo Baez - Tutto Passa

5. MY THURSDAY NIGHT

This track talks about My Thursday Nights since 2010. These are the feelings that I still have before, during, and after my Tropical Animals parties.

My Thursday Night

3. TEARS OF JOY

You know when you're so happy you want to cry? When you feel like you've achieved a goal? Or when you love someone so much that you get emotional inside and feel a void between your chest and stomach? These are Tears of Joy.

Tears Of Joy

2. PICCOLO INCERTO FUTURO

When I was 11 years old, I left my small town in Southern Italy for Florence. Through the choice of my father, Wladimiro, we left behind all of my friends, part of my family, and my roots. Piccolo Incerto Futuro (Little Uncertain Future) is a dichotomy - a sad song that simultaneously gives hope for the future of two little children, myself and my beautiful sister, Deborah.

Piccolo Incerto Futuro

10. A SONG 2 SAY I LOVE YOU

This song is a way to express how deeply you can love someone without being able to outwardly express it. It’s the most sincere and innocent declaration of love I’ve ever made.

A Song 2 Say I love you

1. HI NO TORI 2772

The title of this intro track comes from a 1980s Manga. This story is set in the distant future... Planet Earth is dying from a lack of energy resources. A subjugating political regime ensures all human beings are produced in test tubes, their roles in society selected by computers, predicting how things could unfold now, with an uncertain ending. With this track, I wanted to represent the moment of change, from pure natural to technological evolution.

Hi No Tori 2772

9. YOU STOLE MY HEART

This track is dedicated to Florence, the city that has given me so much. It stole my heart and made me the man I am today.

You Stole my Heart

8. ARROZ CON LECHE

This is the only nursery rhyme I remember. My parents would sing it to me to help me fall asleep. I copied the melody and intonation of the nursery rhyme with the pad present in the track.

Arroz con Leche

4. INSIDE OF ME

This is a track to apologizing to myself - becoming aware of my mistakes and having the strength to move forward.

Inside Of Me

7. LA ISLA DE MARGARITA

I’m half Venezuelan. Although I have never been to Venezuela, when I was a child, my mother Elvia talked about a paradise on earth called La Isla de Margarita. I always dreamed of that place, and I express my dream in this track.

Isla de Margarita

6. TUTTO PASSA (title track)

This track is dedicated to my family. They’ve always told me that no negative thought, no difficult moment, lasts forever. However, neither do the positive ones. The important thing is to have the right attitude towards life. Every time that I had a problem, they’d said to me “don’t worry my love, everything passes”. (Tutto Passa )

Tutto Passa

As the name states Live at Robert Johnson is the associated label of the respected venue in Offenbach and incorporates what the club stands for. The imprint has been establishing a solid ground for the new Frankfurt sound since 2009. By featuring internationally acclaimed artists LARJ has been providing DJs and audiences with essential tunes in an extensive range of high-quality house music. Laid-back dance-floor awareness with a sense for particularity in sound is what might describe best most of the releases and artists.

Ricardo Baez - Tutto Passa

Live At Robert Johnson