Brazilian street rhythm DJ NenaHalena heads to London for Valentine’s Day with One Tribe Boss AMEME
EMERGING from the north-west of England in the mid ’90s, NenaHalena became an influential figure in the electronic music scene under a variety of guises.
With a deep passion for Brazilian street rhythms, NenaHalena - real name Neil Barber - has since evolved both as a performer and a producer over the last decade.
He honed his craft and has become renowned as both a percussionist and a DJ alongside an impeccable array of music that he has produced or sprinkled his magic on as an engineer for other artists.
The One Tribe resident lands in London next Friday February 14, completing a world tour where he has showcased his Afro-Brazilian electronic sound across four continents.
The show, alongside One Tribe boss AMÉMÉ, at London’s Village Underground promises to bring carnival vibes to the capital.
We caught up with NenaHalena this week for an in-depth chat. He also recorded an exclusive mix for The Night Bazaar Sessions which you can listen to .
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You've worked in the industry for over two decades and masqueraded under numerous aliases before arriving in our consciousness as NenaHalena a few years ago. How did all of those experiences help you achieve the satisfaction you now have as both as a DJ and producer?
I’ve always loved making music and I've always loved performing. In the pursuit of this happiness I became really good at it. Naturally people then wanted to pay me, both for shows, but also to help produce their music.
This became my main source of income allowing me to focus solely on a musical life. Be it learning lots of different instruments, honing my audio engineering skills, and of course DJing and collecting music.
What you are seeing now is a natural culmination of all of these attributes.
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Music production, audio engineering, DJing, live performance.
All a discipline in their own right - but together it’s a full feedback cycle, which I love riding!
For those who have yet to experience a DJ set from NenaHalena, can you describe what they might expect?
I DJ while I drum. You could refer to it as a Hybrid-Live show. I use an electronic drum pad (Roland HPD-20) which I can dial-up 100s of different sounds to compliment the music which I play.
My music style is routed in rhythm. I have a background in Brazilian street rhythms (think Rio Carnival).
When I’m performing, you'll see me burning a lot of energy into the drum which hypes up the energy in the space.
It’s such a simple concept, yet triggers a huge primal response on the dance floor.
I think also, it’s great for people to see something actually happening in the DJ booth - as opposed to someone wearing headphones and waving their arms every so often.
What have been your stand out shows as NenaHalena?
Akasha, Ibiza last year - The Sound System was the clearest and most comfortable system I’ve played on for a while, in this environment everything flows.
I’m in full creative control without thought. Just enjoying every moment. This transfers to crowd energy almost instantly too.
Another highlight from last year was the One Tribe Records Showcase, on a moving train in Amsterdam run by the 50Hertz Experience.
During the Amsterdam Dance Event in October a new event series was launched to take passengers on a 4-hour long tour around Holland.
The train was fully installed with sound and light systems, bars and even a chill out carriage.
No one knew quite what to expect as we stepped onboard.
But from the first beat until the last, the energy and vibe was outstanding. We’re excited to do it again this year.
You have just returned from Mexico, one of your favourite places to play, alongside other exotic locations such as India. What do you love about playing there and why has NenaHalena been so warmly embraced in these territories?
What you find in territories such as India and Central/South Americas, Africas and the Middle East is their strong bonds to percussion in their music, it’s in their cultural heritage.
Percussion in all of its many forms is featured forefront, whereas, in western/European sounds, percussion has traditionally played more of a supportive role.
So when I’m on stage working my drum, I believe it just taps right into this DNA and flicks on that primal switch.
Talk us through some of the standout releases you have coming up. We are particularly looking forward to your collaboration with AMÉMÉ and your releases on Get Physical and Black Book Records.
It can be difficult to keep a consistent release pipeline together, especially when factoring in touring plus my Co-Production & Engineering work.
But I’ve been working tirelessly throughout 2024 to hit 2025 with a regular flow of music.
I’m excited to share it all with the world. First up on February 21 is a collaboration with South Africa’s Stones And Bones, with a track Called Abo Malume.
It’s a powerful tune which is as comfortable in a tightly packed club room as it is in a massive stadium. Look out for it on Ulu Records.
Another collaboration which I’m particularly happy about is my release on Get Physical Music.
It’s called Hail From Mali, and is between myself and the Wassolou Benkain.
This is an ensemble from Mali Africa. I found them on YouTube. Their music jumped out at me through the immediate infectious, funky grooves and strong vocals.
I contacted the video owner Alex Ngoni who is on a personal mission to shed light to the musicians of this region.
It’s believed that Mali and surrounding regions are the deepest root of modern western music.
Through evolution of blues, gospel into Rock 'n’ Roll, R 'n' B, Disco and Electronic Dance Music (plus it’s 1000s of sub Genres).
To me it was paramount that the original musicians got recognition and financial recompense for their art as sadly there is way too much use of other peoples music going on without the recognition and crediting of the original artists.
I’m thankful for the record label and to Alex Ngoni for making this work for everyone involved and I’m looking forward to doing more projects like this.
My release on Black Book Records is also a special one to me. Another collaboration, this time with a very talented Brazilian friend called Ain The Machine.
He specialises in creating rhythms out of everyday objects from kids toys to lampposts!
He can create a rhythm from literally everything. So my mission on this project was to get a rhythm out of him.
All of the drums (and his voice) were recorded at his studio in Berlin and later re-sequenced to create Batuki Nation. A hard-hitting track set to ignite in the Springtime courtesy of Chris Lake’s Black Book Records.
AMÉMÉ is another artist who I’ve developed a special relationship with. We collaborate often. We have written loads of great music over the last few years and perform regularly together around the
world. Look out for our on his music label, One Tribe Records.
How important is collaboration and also your experiences engineering other artists work?
Collaboration is an essential part of what I do. Both on a musically influential level and on the social level too. Even though much of my studio time can be alone, the human connection and teamwork
which plays out to get a project from an idea, to a release is intricate and nuanced.
There is a constant feedback loop encouraging decisions and direction. This is important as without this many artists and producers suffer from creative dead-ends and therefore lack of productivity.
Collaborations keep things fresh and moving. It is of course not always a completely harmonious process but I would prefer a little creative push and pull than being a lone wolf!
You are manifesting 2025 and have a lovely tour schedule already booked in. Talk us through what you have coming up in the first half of the year and what you are most looking forward to.
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February 14 is going to see my return to London for Parables at Village Underground. I’m excited for a B2B set with Abel and I’ll no doubt jump on with AMÉMÉ with my Drum as we often do. It always
takes the energy to the next level.
I’m extremely excited to be getting back to Brazil for Carnival time. Reconnecting with The Source. Also Glastonbury Festival is one of my favourite places on the globe. My Ibiza shows are also taking shape too, TBA! Plus my usual Dubai and India trips are always a pleasure.