DJ Marfox (born Marlon Silva in June 1988) is a Portuguese DJ best known for pioneering or , a music genre that emerged from Lisbon's housing estates. Batida and Batucada are referred to as the "ghetto sound of Lisbon", and they incorporate African-influenced dance music such as

kuduro Kuduro (or kuduru) is a type of music and dance from Angola. It is characterized as uptempo, energetic, and danceable. Kuduro was developed in Luanda, Angola, in the late 1980s. Producers sampled traditional carnival music like soca and zouk b� ...

kizomba Kizomba is a social dance and music genre that originated in Angola during late 1970s to early 1980s. Kizomba is a national heritage of Angola and means "party" in Kimbundu. Traditionally, kizomba was danced with family, friends, and acquaint ...

funaná The ''funaná'' is a music and dance genre from Cape Verde. ''Funaná'' is an accordion-based music. The rhythm is usually provided by the '' ferrinho'' much like the use of washboards in zydeco, the saw in Caribbean ripsaw music, the scrape ...

and tarraxinhaBarry, Rober
'“This is our grime”: DJ Marfox, DJ Nigga Fox, Principe Records and the Sound of the Lisbon Ghettos'
''FactMag''. 18 October 2013. with

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

and

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempos being in the range from 120 to 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time ( ) and often ...

.'RA.406 DJ Marfox'
''Resident Advisor''. Podcast 406. 10.03.2013. Taking inspiration from a Nintendo character, 'Marfox' merged part of his first name "Marl" from "Marlon" with

Star Fox ''Star Fox'' is a rail shooter, space flight simulator, and third person action-adventure video game series created by Shigeru Miyamoto and developed and published by Nintendo. The games follow the Star Fox combat team of anthropomorphic a ...

, a character he played as a teenager.Beta, And
'Lisbon's Batida Revolution'
''Pitchfork''. 29.08.2014.

Career

Silva was born in

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

to parents from

São Tomé e Príncipe SAO or Sao may refer to: Places * Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD * Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso * Serb Autonomous Regions (''Srpska autonomna oblast'', SAO), during the breakup of ...

.Sherburne, Philip
'Review: Eu Sei Quem Sou'
''Resident Advisor''. 27.01.2012. He started deejaying as DJ Marfox in 2002.Dolding, Sian
'Introducing DJ Marfox'
''Dazed''. April 2014. In 2005, together with DJ Pausas and DJ Fofuxo, he founded DJs do Guetto and a year later they released ''DJs do Ghetto Vol. I'', a digital compilation made up of 37 tracks, onto

eMule eMule is a Free software, free peer-to-peer file sharing application for Microsoft Windows. Started in May 2002 as an alternative to eDonkey2000, eMule connects to both the eDonkey network and the Kad network. The distinguishing features of eM ...

. This compilation, which has since been re-issued as a free download by Príncipe Discos, has been viewed as the foundational release of the ''ghetto sound of Lisbon''. His first solo album, ''Eu sei quem Eu Sou'' (''I Know Who I Am)'', released by Príncipe Discos in early 2011, was described by

Philip Sherburne Philip Sherburne is an American journalist, musician and DJ based in Barcelona. He coined the term "Microhouse" (in a 2001 article for ''The Wire'')Cox, Christoph; Daniel Warner (Eds.) (2004). ''Audio Culture: Readings in Modern Music''. Continuu ...

as “an atomic field of taut drums, hiccupping yelps, zapping synths and pinprick details."Sherburne, Philip
'DJ Marfox Hypnotic Hard Assed Dance Mix'
''Spin''. 05.07.2012. In 2014, DJ Marfox released an EP called ''Lucky Punch'' on Lit City TraxCedar, Young
'DJ Marfox Talks' ''Do Androids Dance''
20.06.2014. and performed on the

Red Bull Music Academy The Red Bull Music Academy (RBMA) is a world-traveling series of music workshops and festivals that was founded in 1998 by Red Bull GmbH. The main five-week event is held in a different city each year. The public portion of its program is a festiv ...

in New York, as well as in the

Warm Up 'Warming up' is a part of stretching and preparation for physical exertion or a performance by exercising or practicing gently beforehand, usually undertaken before a performance or practice. Athletes, singers, actors and others warm up before s ...

—the live music concerts curated by

MoMA PS1 MoMA PS1 is a contemporary art institution at 2201 Jackson Avenue in the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens in New York City, United States. In addition to its exhibitions, the institution organizes the Sunday Sessions performance series, th ...

.'DJ Marfox Continues MoMA PS1 Warm Up Mix Series'
''Pitchfork''. 29.08.2014. According to Cedar Pasori, DJ Marfox's participation in MoMA PS1's highly acclaimed experimental electronic music series, which took place on 30 August 2014, "reinforced the accelerating spread of Afro-Portuguese dance music around the world." The album ''Lucky Punch'' was listed as one of ''

DAZED ''Dazed'' (''Dazed & Confused'' until February 2014) is a quarterly British lifestyle magazine founded in 1991. It covers music, fashion, film, art, and literature. ''Dazed'' is published by Dazed Media, an independent media group known for produ ...

'''s top ten albums for August 2014. In between the aforementioned performances, the ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' magazine included him in their list of "10 New Artists You Need to Know". One of the first international collaborations of the Portuguese DJ and producer was a rework of

tUnE-yArDs Tune-Yards (stylized as tUnE-yArDs) is the Oakland, California–based music project of Merrill Garbus (vocals, various instruments) and Nate Brenner (bass, various instruments). Garbus's music draws from an eclectic variety of sources and use ...

' song "Water Fountain" featuring Brazilian band Pearls Negras. On 13 March 2015 the British independent record label

WARP Warp, warped or warping may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books and comics * WaRP Graphics, an alternative comics publisher * ''Warp'' (First Comics), comic book series published by First Comics based on the play ''Warp!'' * Warp (comics), a D ...

announced the release on 7 April of a new EP called ''Cargaa 1'' featuring DJ Marfox as the central figure of what MR P describes as the "cream-of-the-crop purveyors of Lisbon's thrilling electronic dance scene". A compilation of songs crafted in the artist's bedroom from 2005 to 2008 was launched as a CD as well as free download under the name ''Revolução 2005–2008'' on March 16, 2015. DJ Marfox released an EP in April 2016 titled ''Chapa Quente,'' featuring such songs as ''Tarraxo Everyday.''

Discography

Albums & EPs

*''Eu sei quem Eu sou'' (Príncipe, 2011) – reviewed by Philip Sherburne/''Resident Advisor'' *''Artist Unknown'' (Pollinaire, 2012) – reviewed by Philip Sherburne/''SPIN'' *''Subliminar'' (Enchufada, 2013) *''Lucky Punch'' (Lit City Trax, 2014) – reviewed by Philip Sherburne/''SPIN'' as well as Joe Muggs & Seb Wheeler/''MixMag''Muggs, Joe & Seb Wheeler
'Bass: August'
. ''MixMag''. 18.08.2014. *''Revolução 2005–2008'' (NOS, 2015) *''Chapa Cuente'' (Principe, 2015) Songs featured in compilations: *"Funk em Kuduro" – ''DJs do Guetto Vol. 1'' first released in 2006; re-release in 2013 by Príncipe Discos.

Mixtapes

*''Distortion Ass Mix'' – featured in ''SPIN'' 05.07.2012 *''Dazed Digital (DJ Marfox Mix)'' – featured in ''DAZED DIGITAL'' 03.2014 *''The Ghetto Sound of Lisbon'' – featured in ''Resident Advisor'' 10.03.2014 *''MOMA PS1 Warm Up Mix'' – featured in ''Pitchfork'' 29.08.2014

References

External links

DJ Marfox
on

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marfox, DJ Portuguese DJs Living people 1988 births