Ricardo Da Costa
Ricardo Da Costa
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About Ricardo Da Costa
RICARDO DA COSTA ‘Be careful what you set your heart upon, for it will surely be yours’, the James Baldwin credence to the old cliché that if you want something bad enough, it really can happen has special significance for Ricardo da Costa, who at 27, has been perfecting the nuances of his craft for the almost 9 years. A far cry from a start equipped with no more than a smattering of vinyl & his trusty, steel twins, the foundation of Ricardo’s professional DJ career, his self taught mastery of dance floor devastation, was laid by unrelenting tenacity & a diligent work ethic. Widely admired & highly respected, he is regarded as one of South Africa’s most skilful mix masters by players & colleagues in the industry but more importantly ‘down & dirty’ on every dance floor, in every nightclub, where it truly counts!! Every DJ is mindfully aware of being only as good as his last set. Yet, Ricardo never fails to prove his worth! Time & again, he is relied upon to provide a roof ripping performance that is technically flawless, quality consistent & crowd-pleasing!! Securing street-cred & respect from the dance underground is a daunting task for any DJ. To acquire & maintain a rep of Ricardo’s calibre is virtually unheard of. His impeccable track record & faultless reputation is the hard earned result of steadfast professionalism & integrity. Ricardo’s always affable exterior belies a wickedly sarcastic sense of humour, virtuous sense of purpose & conscience & an ever-present optimistic vitality. Unassuming & refreshingly unaffected, he is an inspiring presence in an industry where money & ego is God. Purposefully oblivious to dance music’s internal politics, he chooses instead to focus on his near evangelical love of house music. His inner beat & inherent rhythm stem from a proud Brazilian birthright. And it is the natural musicality of Ricardo’s Latino roots combined with his penchant for ‘nail to the grindstone’ hard work & the propensity for tearing dance floors to shreds with his distinctive House sound that has earned him well deserved status as one of SA’s true DJ elite. By no means a newcomer to the industry, Ricardo’s ascent began at Azurri Cafe on Johannesburg’s East Rand in 1994, his recognition & draw card status climbing steadily ever since. He has graced the decks of almost every Gauteng nightclub including Flyhouse, Tramps, DNA, Therapy, ESP, Nexus, Sudada, Sutra & Truth & caused mayhem in venues all over SA from Cape Town, East London, Port Elizabeth to Ballito, Durban, Bloemfontein & Mozambique. Resident of SA’s largest, outdoor dance event, H20, since its inception in 1998, qualifies Ricardo no stranger to rocking expectant, 10 000-strong crowds to obscene levels! He has held his own alongside a list of International DJ’s too numerous to mention. Most notably, in support of ‘Cyprus Hill’ (Lucky Strike), Smokin’ Jo (Jamiroquai Afterparty), Pete Tong, Judge Jules, Tall Paul, Junior Jack, Kid Crème, the Boogie Pimps & Tim de Luxe. In the early stages, pursuit of his destined career shared centre stage with Ricardo’s tertiary education. In ‘99, he was hired as store manager of Mental Groove Records in Bruma Lake. The 5-year stint immersed him daily in the order, import & trade of vinyl & imparted indispensable industry experience & expertise. Immediate access to the latest releases & hottest tunes afforded Ricardo an added advantage - the coveted means by which to maintain his elusive DJ edge. In 2004, Ricardo became Manager of Retro Music, playing an integral role in the opening, establishment & success of the Linksfield record store, DJ school & recording studio. ‘Slick Ric’ turned viable commodity in 2003 with the successful release of, ‘Subliminal SA’, ‘Definitive Sound of Ricardo’ & ‘Ricardo presents Funksensual’. Ricardo compiled & mixed House Anthems Vol. 1 in mid 2005 whilst heading up management of Retro Music & maintaining a frenetic weekly DJing schedule. The ensuing popularity of the House Anthems double album series mixed by Ricardo & Kevin Grenfell ensured that follow up compilation, House Anthems Vol. 2, hit shelves as soon as April 2006. On a production front, a collaboration with ‘Unathi’ & ‘First Project’ in 2003 resulted in the track ‘the Greatest Invention’’ Well received & prompting numerous local remixes, Ricardo’s first offering was snapped up by Grooved Records & licensed to three local compilations, ‘Definitive Sounds of Ricardo’, ‘Truth Volume 2’ & ‘Flipside House 4’. During 2004, he teamed up with Justin V & the resultant funky house belter ‘Basement Sessions Vol. 1’, was featured on ‘Ricardo presents Funksensual’. As far as local media, Ricardo is a regular feature on 5FM jock Roger Goode’s weekend dance show ‘the Saturday Surgery. Since airing commenced in 2002, Ric’s on-air residency for 5FM has been vital in exposing his technical prowess & unmistakeable House sound to a vast national listenership. Unceasingly blazing the trail that is funk, Ricardo’s uncanny musical foresight continues to attract attention locally & stir interest further afield. Residencies with Jhb’s most successful nightclubs, Truth, Sutra, Evolution, Natural Groove & Aruba Lounge paved the way for Ricardo’s international DJ debut in October 2004 at legendary Dubai nightclub, ‘Oxygen’. And his notoriety & growing influence has not gone unnoticed by the corporate arena. Finally reaped the fruits of his labour, he was chosen from a shortlist of his peers during 2005 & awarded artist sponsorship by both Oakley International & Stanton Magnetics. Fast forward to present day. 2006 proves a bumper year of career milestones for the DJ/Producer/Remixer so intent on the attainment of global acclaim. 2006 alone saw Slick share billing with Martin Solveig, Sandy Rivera, Simon Dunmore & Jeremy (Defected SA), Erick Morillo & Tiesto (Unity), Paul van Dyk & D.O.N.S. (Festival Electric), Tom Novy (Kiss), Brandon Block, Axwell, Rebekah, Milk ‘n Sugar, Voodoo & Serano & Ian Carey (Natural Groove), in support of Sarah Main (Pacha NYE 05/06) & Erick Morillo (Heineken Thirst). Ricardo concludes a 2-year stint with Retro Music in May 2006 before effective appointment as Label Manager of Soul Candi Records, the Jhb-based outfit responsible for some of SA’s biggest selling, most successful dance compilations to date. Ricardo’s self produced 2005 track ‘Get On Down’ is signed to San Francisco based imprint Om Records, he is commissioned to remix breakthrough artist Samantha James’ first Om single, ‘Rise’ & anticipation grows for the Ricardo da Costa, Frankie Martinez & Ryan Murgatroid collaboration, titled ‘I’m Feelin’ It’. Ricardo places himself on the global music map with the launch of his website & official online presence, www.ricardodacosta.com. And adding to his burgeoning discography, Ricardo releases, ‘House Anthems Vol. 3’, his third & final instalment for the compilation series. Forthcoming for 2007, anticipate the unexpected…. A brand new mix concept & compilation courtesy of Soul Candi label boss, Ricardo da Costa! His hunger for turntable control & absolute dance floor supremacy, after nearly a decade on deck duty, shows no sign of abating. To witness him rip a dance floor apart with his music, etching an indelible impression whilst instantly unhinging every party animal on it, is proof of his incessant desire to rock the house, thump the beat, pound the bass & shake every damn coconut on the planet!! Heed this warning! There is no warm up DJ on this spin-doctor’s club crawl. When at the helm, Ricardo da Costa wastes no time in heading straight for the party jugular! Under the masterful manipulation of his fingertips seductive moody vocals intersperse as he seamlessly laces signature, sex infused slick funk with a tough & dirty electro groove. His is bassline heavy house & brooding rhythm guaranteed to entice even the shyest wallflower onto the dance floor. His star set firmly in the ascendant, Ricardo has shown that he possesses a tremendous power… the rare, instinctive talent to mix & manipulate records in a way that makes an entire dance floor fall in love. And it is the key to becoming a truly great DJ!
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