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Please feel free to send all music submissions:
Erez 'Diwon' Safar
c/o SMF
302 Bedford Ave
pmb 132
Brooklyn, NY 11211
For press, sponsorship, inquiries, or to volunteer
EMAIL: erez@shemspeed.com with "Sephardic Fest" in the subject.
SMF NEEDS INTERNS & STREET TEAM PEEPS (email us)
BIO:
Erez Safar a.k.a. Diwon is the founder, director, and mastermind of Shemspeed (largest, most diverse Jewish music site), Modular Mood Records (an independent record label), the groundbreaking Jewish–Muslim Hip Hop Sulha, and , and renowned The Sephardic Music Festival. Based out of the stereophonic heart of Brooklyn, Safar is one of the most innovative and versatile Producer/DJs performing and recording music today. His beats are strongly influenced by the musical traditions of his mother’s family, whose roots lie in the ancient Jewish community of Yemen. Safar blends Yemenite music with electro hip-hop and cinematic psychadelia, and draws inspiration from the aural history of Middle Eastern Jewry.
A prolific producer, Safar releases a clutch of albums every year. In the past twelve months, Safar has produced The Beat Guide to Yiddish - revisiting the music and culture of European Jewry, the quirky Rarities & Remixes, and the hour-long meditation Shir Ha Shirim (The Song of Songs) - mixing heartfelt Moroccan song with hypnotic hip-hop, rock, and Middle Eastern beats. Diwon is currently completing his soaring, cinematic album Dreams in Static with guitarist Dugans. Simultaneously, he is working on the revolutionary hip hop record This is Unity with acclaimed multilingual MC Y-Love, as well as his own record titled "Others" which will feature singers and rappers from all over the world and aesthetic map.
With Safar's musical work as well as his work on the Sephardic Music Festival and its diverse programming, he bridges ethnic, religious, and cultural boundaries. The festival serves as a platform for the preservation and continuation of Sephardic heritage by promoting a variety of music styles, such as Ladino which is nearly extinct as a spoken language. Safar created "Shemspeed's 40 Days 40 Nights College Tour" which is an interactive, live music festival and educational workshops stopping at 30 colleges nationwide. This tour serves to expose college students to the breadth and depth of Jewish music and culture. Safar continues to discover, promote, and produce artists and projects that embody this message of unity, positivity, and Jewish values, while getting the message and music out into the world.
Safar has performed with Lou Reed, Anthony Coleman, DJ Spooky, Matisyahu, Idan Raichel, and countless others. London Radio's 104.4 FM called him "one of New York's hottest Jewish musicians;" URB MAGAZINE listed him amongst their NEXT 1000; The Village Voice reported that his work "as producer and DJ is among the most adventurous and banging on the new Jewish music scene;" The Jerusalem Post dubbed him, "Jewish music's multimedia mogul;" The Forward listed him as one of the Top 50 "most influential Jews of 2007;" The Jewish Week gave him a spot in their "36 under 36" list; and Heeb listed him in that magazine's "Heeb Hundred." Safar's music, style, and presence get famous US clubs to resemble the craziest festivals abroad.
MYSPACE
myspace.com/diwon
TWITTER:
twitter.com/diwon |
