Experience the Afro-Brazilian Electronic Sound of NenaHalena as he touches down in London alongside One Tribe boss AMÉMÉ We caught up with NenaHalena ahead of the show alongside One Tribe boss AMÉMÉ at Village Underground on Friday February 14, for an in-depth chat and he's recorded an exclusive mix for The Night Bazaar Sessions

EMERGING from the northwest 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, honing his craft and he has become renowned as both a percussionist and as a DJ alongside an impeccable and vast 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 interview which you can read below and he has recorded an exclusive mix for The Night Bazaar Sessions which you can also listen to right here.

 

You have been working in the industry for over two decades now and masqueraded under numerous aliases along the way in addition to engineering huge records for some notable artists too before arriving in our consciousness as NenaHalena a few years ago. How did all of your experiences in the industry along the way 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. And so 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 for a while 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. Music production, audio engineering, DJing, live performance. All a discipline in their own right, but together its 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 too. You could refer to it as a Hybrid-Live show. I use an electronic drum pad (Roland HPD-20) which I can dial-up 100’s 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 funny because, 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 over and above someone wearing headphones waving their arms every so often!

 

What have been your stand out shows last year and so far in your career 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 moving train in Amsterdam run by the 50Hertz Experience. During the ‘Amsterdam Dance Event’ (ADE) 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, Bar’s 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 in there was outstanding. We’re excited to do it again in this year.

 

You have just returned from Mexico, one of your favourite places to play alongside other exotic locations such as India where your music is especially warmly received. Apart from the weather and stunning scenery what do you love about playing there and why has NenaHalena been embraced so warmly in these territories?

What you find in territories such as India and Central / South Americas, Africas and Middle East is, their strong bonds to percussion in their music, its 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 that primal switch on.

 

Talk us through some of the stand out 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 21st is a collaboration with South Africa’s ’Stones and Bones’ the track is Called Abo Malume. It’s a powerful track which is as comfortable in a tightly packed club room as it is in a massive stadium. Look out for this 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 It’s 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, RnB, Disco and now of course this global way of life, now referred to as Electronic Dance Music (And it’s 1000’s 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 on 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 resequenced 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 tonnes great music over the last few years and perform regularly together around the world. Look out for our next project on his music label, ‘One Tribe Records’

 

As you say, you have developed close working relationships with artists such as AMÉMÉ, Chris Lake and DJ T together with a veritable conveyer belt of other artists who have worked with you looking for a sprinkling of your sonic magic on their music. How important is collaboration to you 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.

February 14th Is going to see my return to London for Parables at Village Underground, I’ll 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 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.

There is a lot of really satisfying touring coming up where I can just enjoy performing for people who enjoy me performing!!