{"title":"Sofia Kourtesis","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"tclr037","title":"Sofia Kourtesis - Fresia Magdalena","description":"\u003cp\u003eBerlin based, Peruvian artist Sofia Kourtesis has today announced her new EP Fresia Magdalena will be released 19 March via Ninja Tune imprint Technicolour. Following her breakout EP Sarita Colonia - which saw her tipped as a 'One To Watch' by The Observer, feature on Emerging Artist lists from DJ and Mixmag as well as being named #4 in Gorilla Vs. Bear's 'EPs and Mixtapes of 2020' and appearing in this years NME 100 - the EP continues to hone her singular sound, \u003cspan style=\"background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);\"\u003eusing astutely selected samples and a joyful sense of personality and place to make something utterly infectious. Today she has also shared lead single ‘La Perla’, a track that is at once energising and meditative. Utilising her own singing voice for the first time, ‘La Perla’ clears the head in an uplifting wave before getting the body moving. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSpeaking of the track she says: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Although I’ve sampled my own voice before, this is the first time I’ve really sung on a track. My dream is to develop a live show and I created ‘La Perla’ with that in mind. ‘La Perla’ is about staring at the sea, It's the first thing I’ll do when I return to Peru. My dad used to say staring at the sea is like meditation, it clears your head. This song is for him. It's hard for me to listen to La Perla as it wrote it during a time I lost my dad to leukaemia. This song is for him, descansa en paz papa\" \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThough undeniably present in all her work, Fresia Magdalena is more rooted in Kourtesis’ native Peru than ever. On one of her regular extended trips home, the process of making the EP began with the collection of field recordings around the city of Lima where Kourtesis' family currently live and specifically Magdalena, their district. \"I look at songs like a collage\" she says, \"I put all the samples at the forefront and create music around them\". Then finished between Peru and Berlin, the result finds both aspects of her life bleeding effortlessly into her music and weaving around themes and a broad range of styles that remain universal. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrom the gritty and pulsating rumble of ‘Dakotas’ to the twinkling groove of ‘By Your Side’ and the exhilaration of ‘La Perla’, Kourtesis’ ability to naturally flow from one style to the next, though always with an eye on the return to the dancefloor, is ever apparent here. Thematically though, her message is simple and direct. \"Fresia Magdalena is about activism\" she says, \"It's about making positive changes, whoever and wherever you are\". \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA passionately vocal voice for the wellbeing of the community herself, Kourtesis here attributes this message to the person who inspires her most. \"Fresia is my mother’s name\" she says, \"her whole life she’s fought hard for the people of Magdalena, Peru. This is my tribute to her and the other activists around the world working hard to better the lives of others. We as musicians have a responsibility to help our communities to have their voices heard, changes are needed\". \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA nod to another significant figure both to Kourtesis and to any unheard voices, the artwork for the EP draws an elegant line between previous EP Sarita Colonia and this one. \"Housed within one of Lima’s biggest favelas, The Cementerio Baquijano del Callao contains a beautiful tribute to Sarita Colonia, the Patron of the Poor\" Kourtesis recalls, \"she’s an icon within Peru and the voice of the underrepresented. Gaining access to this cemetery is challenging as not everyone can just walk into a favela but after some negotiations we managed to gain access\". Much like the music itself these images were then collaged to create something striking and new.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFresia Magdalena loses none of its impact when taken at its surface level – a collection of vibrant dance music that gets under the skin and lifts the mood with distinctive and addictive flourishes separating it from the pack. What really makes it unique though is the life bubbling under the surface of the collection as a whole. The influences, passions and relationships of Kourtesis as a person are behind every moment - a fierce call to action softened and presented with the warmth of family and home.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ninjatune","offers":[{"title":"12\"","offer_id":44934136922271,"sku":"TCLR037","price":12.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0493\/8563\/5999\/products\/fresia-magdalena-main.jpg?v=1736247143"},{"product_id":"zendnl292","title":"Sofia Kourtesis - Madres","description":"\u003cp\u003eSofia Kourtesis has announced her debut album Madres will be released on 27 October on Ninja Tune. Along with the announcement she has shared lead single 'Si Te Portas Bonito'.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMadres is, unsurprisingly, dedicated to Kourtesis' mother. More surprising though it is also dedicated to world-renowned neurosurgeon Peter Vajkoczy. The story of how a world-renowned neurosurgeon came to appear in the liner notes of this record is one of tenacity, miracles, all-consuming love and ultimately, of hope. When she began work on her debut, Kourtesis was seemingly unstoppable. A string of rapturously received EPs and singles made her one of the fastest rising stars in the electronic world and beyond. She has already graced the cover of Mixmag, released a brilliantly energetic and moving Resident Advisor ‘RA Session’, appeared on ‘End of Year’ lists from the likes of The New York Times, Pitchfork, DJ Mag and Spotify(#6 Best Electronic Song) and played instant sell-out early shows at London’s Lafayette and Manchester’s YES as well as standout performances at Glastonbury, Green Man, Wide Awake and Primavera and tours supporting Caribou and Bicep.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn amongst touring and working though, Kourtesis was rushing home to Peru at any opportunity to be with her mother, who some months after the passing of her father – the subject of Kourtesis’ breakout single ‘La Perla’ – had been diagnosed with cancer and was deteriorating rapidly. \"Doctors were all the time calling me to say goodbye to her, for months\", she recalls.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRefusing to lose hope, Kourtesis had spoken to every doctor she could get hold of and all of them told her chances were low, operation was too risky. Having read about Vajkoczy but knowing he was in incredibly high demand, in desperation she posted music snippet on social media, promising to dedicate the track to Vajkoczy for just a few minutes of his time. Unbelievably he responded and agreed to meet. Vajkoczy agreed to operate. The operation was a success and Kourtesis’s mother’s life is extended further than anyone could have possibly hoped.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWith her mother now well and living nearby in Berlin, Kourtesis had her life back. Madres is the product of that life. Though it contains shades of the struggle of those years and her own mental health journey, Madres is joyful, awash with warm light and brimming with \"hope and the value that big love can create miracles\". It’s filled with the minutiae of life that Kourtesis didn’t have time or energy for; going out with friends, dating, dancing, eating, living. Vaikoczy became part of this world, an avid music fan himself he became something of a sounding board for the album and Kourtesis even took him on his first trip to Berghain.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMadres also contains everything that has made Kourtesis so beloved already. The dual sounds of her Peruvian home and her adopted home in Berlin are present (\"my heart is very Latin American, but my motor is German\"), as is the activism surrounding gender equality, protection of queer people and access to safe abortions in Peru that is so close to her heart. Having left Peru herself due to being ostracised, and ultimately forced into conversion therapy for her queerness, Kourtesis hadn’t spoken about the real reason she left Peru before but now she hopes her music and words will resonate with others, her experience sadly, infuriatingly, still commonplace.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ninjatune","offers":[{"title":"2xLP","offer_id":44934152945823,"sku":"ZEN292","price":25.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":44934152978591,"sku":"ZENCD292","price":13.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0493\/8563\/5999\/products\/madres-2-main.jpg?v=1736246928"},{"product_id":"volver","title":"Sofia Kourtesis - Volver","description":"\u003cp\u003eSofia Kourtesis has announced that she will release her new EP Volver on 1 August via Ninja Tune. Along with the announcement she has shared lead single ‘Unidos’ which is made in collaboration with Daphni (aka Dan Snaith aka Caribou), the first ever Daphni collaboration track.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003eSpeaking of the single Sofia says:\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Unidos is about the power and beauty of how much stronger we are together. I always admire the light and the beautiful shine of Dan, he is a hero and he is so generous without making a big fuss about it”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003eWhile Daphni says:\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Sofia sent me a demo of this track that she’d been working on and it was immediately evident that it was a massive track. To be clear, all the good ideas in this track are Sofia’s I just added some drums and pumped up the arrangement”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003eSpeaking of the Volver EP Sofia says:\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e“In the Volver EP I am paying tribute to all the LGBT+ community and all the amazing trans women that I was lucky to meet through the course of the last few years. Their bravery and existence in a world full of hate and danger, they find a way to bring the lights to the most vulnerable communities, specifically those that are behind the walls of terrible corruption in the Latino America Security and Health System.”\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe EP recording itself she describes - in keeping with its title - as like a Pedro Almodóvar movie: a chaotic, painful but ultimately joyful experience, as she worked across her twin homes in Germany and Peru with dramatic changes occurring all the time. Across this process Sofia was touring the world, playing bigger and bigger shows, working with local communities in Germany and South America, navigating the continued care of her mother, and even decided to throw beginning to study medicine into the mix.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis has always been what makes Sofia such a special artist - there is so much living crammed into every inch of her music. Here she builds on that, her intoxicating spirit more present than ever.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ninja Tune","offers":[{"title":"12\"","offer_id":62165392392351,"sku":"ZEN12703","price":26.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0493\/8563\/5999\/files\/volver-main.jpg?v=1747825088"}],"url":"https:\/\/merch.ninjatune.net\/collections\/sofia-kourtesis.oembed","provider":"Ninja Tune","version":"1.0","type":"link"}