Papa Lu, originating from the diverse musical backdrop of the San Francisco Bay Area, developed his passion for music through the local Hip Hop scene. Starting his career by organizing Hip Hop events featuring iconic artists, he soon found himself at venues that also hosted pioneering house music DJs. This exposure prompted his shift towards producing house music events, notably his Night Moves party at Monarch SF.
His latest single is Rave, a sleek tech house track designed for late-night dancefloors. With a minimalist approach, it pairs subtle basslines with precise rhythms and an earworm vocal, reflecting Papa Lu’s mastery in creating mood-driven music.
Hi Papa Lu! Thank you for taking the time to chat with us today! How has the year been treating you?
No problem. It’s a pleasure to have this interview with you guys. My year has been pretty good so far. For the last 5 years, I’ve been playing at a festival at the beginning of the year called Ocaso Festival in Costa Rica. So starting my year off in Costa Rica is always nice. Also, I spent most of 2023 locked in the studio making music, so by the end of 2023, I was sending demos to labels and while I was on my trip in Costa Rica, I received a message from Baby J of Popgang Records saying that he wanted to sign two of my tracks that I sent to them. That was a highlight of my trip, and by the time I got back, they had me DJing one of their label parties in LA, which was really cool. I love warehouse parties in LA. But other than starting my year in Costa Rica and coming back to sign music, I’ve also been busy working on new music. Making new music seems to be a constant for me nowadays. I have also been DJing some cool parties too. Some highlight events were opening up for Green Velvet at Audio SF as well as Coco & Breezy also at Audio SF, and now I’m gearing up for a big show at The Midway SF opening for Jamie Jones and Loco Dice.
My year so far has been solid and really busy.
Where do you think the impulse to create music comes from for you?
I’m a big sample guy when it comes to music production, so if I hear something that I really like, maybe it’s just a small vocal bit from an old disco record or a newer production of some sort, I feel the impulse to get into the studio and see if I can put something together with it.
Starting from your hip hop roots and shifting to house music, how has your background influenced your approach to creating and producing music today?
Hip Hop will always be a part of my tastes and who I am musically, so I do tend to find myself sampling old hip hop records frequently.
Can you share insights on the inception of The Kazbah at Burning Man, and how it’s shaped your musical identity and community presence?
Since the beginning, Kazbah has always been really reflective of our style and vibe. To be fair, Ali, Sean, and Shareef were more instrumental in its actual inception, but we were all a crew, and in the early years, Ali and I lived together, DJ’d together, and threw parties together all the time. We were just living, breathing, and always talking about music. I was pretty involved in music programming for Kazbah. Kazbah became a great place to showcase our taste and the culture, which you could say is pretty urban. Both of us love Soul, Hip-Hop, and all of that.
Discuss the evolution of your event series, Night Moves. What were the initial challenges, and how have they transformed over time?
I actually haven’t produced a Night Moves event since probably 2016. The reason for that is because I found myself more focused on building myself as an artist rather than a promoter. And once I got good at DJing, other promoters were booking me often to play their events. But in the early days of Night Moves events, I would have to say that one of the biggest challenges was promoting some of the events where I booked artists that were on the come up and hadn’t quite “made it” yet. A lot of the party people in SF weren’t always familiar with the headliners that I had booked. I just liked to book people who were making the music that I liked, and at times it turned out to be a gamble financially.
What can you tell us about the inspiration behind your latest track, Rave?
I was in Costa Rica this year riding around with my very good friend DJ Umami. She actually taught me a lot about DJing a long time ago when we were roommates in Downtown Oakland. I learned on her turntables that she had in our living room. Anyway, it has sort of become a tradition for her to come to Costa Rica during the time that I go there each year for the Ocaso Festival. She is a really amazing Hip Hop, Soul, Funk DJ, and she has a very diverse taste in music in general. I was riding around with her. I think we were headed to a beach south of Tamarindo, and she was playing a bunch of music on a Spotify playlist that she put together for moments just like that. One of the songs she played was a really obscure jazz record, and I immediately loved the vocals on it. I told her that I was going to use the vocal to create a rave tune. And that’s exactly what happened.
With such a diverse portfolio, including major festivals and underground parties, how do you tailor your sets to different audiences?
I have a broad spectrum of dance music that I’ve collected over the years. I love the challenge of adapting to a different audience or headliners or locations. I’m a big believer in there being a time and place for everything musically. So when I curate a set, I just put a lot of time into digging into the tens of thousands of records that I have to make it fit each scenario best.
How do you see the landscape of electronic music evolving in the next few years, and what role do you hope to play in it?
I definitely see underground house and techno becoming more and more mainstream, which is not a bad thing. It won’t deter me from producing and playing what I like. I see my role as an up-and-coming artist in this scene starting to gain more recognition. I’ve put a lot of hard work into my craft, and I believe that if I keep at it, it will only pay off in the long run.
Beyond music production and DJing, what are some other passions or interests that influence your creative process?
Sometimes when I’ve spent a lot of time in the studio and I need a break, I will go grocery shopping and cook a meal for my fiancee or maybe some friends. I’m into cooking Thai dishes mostly, but in general, I love learning how to cook recipes that are new to me. I might find a recipe on an Instagram reel that I like and just try it out. I feel like cooking and DJing have some similarities.
Looking to the future, are there any new projects or directions you’re excited to explore in your career?
Probably just all kinds of new productions. Ever since honing in on my craft of music production, it has become an obsession of mine. I’m addicted to creating new music regularly. I’m working on getting new productions signed to various labels that I resonate with, and I’m also working on my own label simultaneously. The label is called “Finessa Groove,” and I have some help from my creative partner on that project, Jefferson Tangradi.
What should we expect from you for the rest of 2024?
Consistency. I have a good flow going right now and I don’t plan to stop it anytime soon.