Man Recordings

01/08/2025

Episode #10 in the 20 Years Of Man Recordings series is MC Tha´s „Bonde Da Pantera“

First released in 2017 on the „Baile Saboroso“ EP by the temporary transatlantic team up of boss producers Múlu (BR) and (FR), „Bonde Da Pantera“ ft. soon became a radio and streaming hit as it brought baile funk to the lounge floor. During this period, a new genre named „baile chill“ had emerged on the internet, particuarly on Soundcloud, and „Bonde Da Pantera“ was the most elaborated tune in the chill version of funk with a romantic, yet not cheesy flavour.

„Bonde Da Pantera“´s sweet marimba chords and vocal chops were giving the track a late summery vibe ideal to listen to while enjoying a last agua de coco on the beach or making love on a water bed. The song featured the sensual and sassy lyrics of then upcoming São Paulo vocalist MC Tha, who today is considered one of the major female voices in contemporary Brazilian music. Just last week, Tha released a collaboration with fellow Man Recordings alumni and



1. Bonde Da Pantera in Rio, January 2025

2. Music video for „Bonde Da Pantera“

3. Mulú + King Doudou

25/07/2025

Episode #9 in the 20 Years of Man Recordings series is Banda Westfalica´s „Versions“ release from 2013.

Banda Westfalica was a nine piece student percussion ensemble from a music school in the German city of Bünde, in the federal state of North Rhine Westphalia (hence „Banda Westfalica“). The students, then aged 13 to 17, came together to learn to play percussion instruments such as marimba, bongos, cajón, cowbell and cachichi.

When asked by their teacher for song suggestions, the students started to rehearse the Man Recordings released „Carimbo“ by , suggested by then 15 year old student Sönke Oberschmidt A cel phone video of a street performance by the group of „Carimbo“ was put on Youtube and then landed in ´s inbox, who was enthusiastic about the acoustic interpretation of the bass tune by the Munich duo.

A few weeks later,together with his brother Felix, Daniel drove to Bünde to record the group´s acoustic interpretation of six classic songs of the Man Recordings label catalogue. The result is the „Versions“ EP which included covers of tracks by , , Beware + Motorpitch , and amongst other. Sönke, today living in Berlin now releases piping hot bass music under the moniker .vital . The EP was also released in vinyl format, in a super limited edition of 100 copies and today is much sought after.

1. Banda Westfalica, 2025, model:

2. Making Of Video

3. So Vital, aged 15, 2013

19/07/2025

Episode #8 in the series is by from Hamburg, featuring Cuba´s .

So Shifty were from Hamburg, Germany and were long time associates of Man Recordings. After all, in the 2000s and 2010s there was no other German label specialised in tropical bass music, so the circle of artists and producers from Germany releasing music with a more global approach was very small, and eventually paths would cross for all on Man Recordings. Coming from a Jamaican music background, reggae and dancehall being a strong sound in Hamburg, So Shifty soon moved into other musical territories. First steps includedd remixes for Beware+Motorpitch ́s „El Toro“ as well as their remix of El Dusty ́s 3ball rave hit „K Le Pasa“. In 2012, So Shifty teamed up with Cuban outfit Madera Limpia to release the dembow inspired „Rumba“ track on our label, which made waves across the tropical bass scene.

Soon after, So Shifty moved to produce and remix for top-name JA artists such as Busy Signal, I-Octane, Chan Dizzy, Popcaan, Shal Marshall and others. One half of So Shifty was Mecki, (a.k.a. Philip Meckseper). After releasing reggae mashups of famous pop tunes under the moniker Jr. Blender, in 2015 he became involved in co-producing Major Lazer’s mega hit “Lean On” featuring MØ. This was followed by further collaborations like “Light It Up” and “Boom,” among others.Having established himself as a major pop producer he has since been involved in co-producing songs by artists such as Dua Lipa, P!nk, or Stargate.



1. „Rumba“ in Berlin, 2025
2. So Shifty
3. Madera Limpia

14/07/2025

Episode #7 in the series is the "Ayoba" EP by Munich based

Released in 2010, the "Ayoba" EP introduced the hyper-energetic bass sound by Schlachthofbronx. Consisting of two young Bavarians called Bene + Jakob, their sound nurturing from Jamaican dancehall, Angolan kuduro, Trinidad carnival sounds, baile funk, Dirty South Balkan beats and rave music all at once. The "Bronx" sound from Munich was magic and ripped through global bass dancefloors internationally.

At a time, when South Africa wasn´t yet on the global club map (despite kwaito already making waves), Schlachthofbronx teamed up with the South African glam rap prince from Soweto, , with whom Schlachthofbronx had collaborated on various tracks on their earlier debut album, icing the cake was the contribution of Swedish rapper Banana, making "Ayoba" (South African youth slang meaning "cool") a staple in global bass music for years. Other tracks on the EP feature the - still up to date baile funk tracks - "Vem Que Tem" feat. MC Marina, as well as "Sai Safarda" ("Watch Out, you little bastard") feat. MC Leka. Up until today, their band name refering to Munich city quarter "Schlachthofviertel" ("Slaughterhouse neigbourhood"), has been a a tongue twister for any foreign, non-German speaker

1.“Ayoba“ in Berlin, 2025

2. Music video for „Ayoba“ ft. Spoek Mathambo + Gnucci Banana

3. Schlachthofbronx live on stage at Popkomm Cologne, DE, 2010

03/07/2025

After their acclaimed debut release „Aguacerito Llové“, with radio airplay of by (Worldwide FM) and (BBC6), and BR2 Zündfunk amongst others, Berlin choir .diaspora returns with a hot remix!

The task to rework the all acoustic, all vocal original „Aguacerito Llové“ into a club ready track was masterfully executed by Berlin´s tropical bass pioneer Daniel Haaksman. Only using the main vocal hook, Daniel spliced the remaining voices and scattered them loosely over the track, adding a flute melody and heavy bass. In a second moment, Haaksman knocks out a dembow ryhthm over the call and response part. All combined, “Aguacerito Llové” turned into a tropical banger, reflecting the powerful energy that arises when Canto Diáspora sing live together.

Early DJ support from Gilles Peterson, Peter Kruder (Kruder & Dorfmeister), DJ Feadz, Papaoul and Tash LC amongst others.

Play it out loud!

03/07/2025

After their acclaimed debut single "Aguacerito Llové", with radio airplay by Gilles Peterson (Worldwide FM), Jamz Supernova (BBC6) and Cosmo radio, Berlin choir Canto Diáspora returns with a hot remix by DANIEL HAAKSMAN

The task to rework the all acoustic, all vocal original „Aguacerito Llové“ into a club ready track was masterfully executed by the Berlin´s tropical bass pioneer. Only using the main vocal hook, Daniel spliced the remaining voices and scattered them loosely over the track, adding a flute melody and heavy bass. In a second moment, Haaksman knocks out ad embow ryhthm over the call and response part. All combined, “Aguacerito Llové” becomes a tropical banger, reflecting the powerful energy that arises when Canto Diáspora sing live together.

Early DJ support by Gilles Peterson, Tash LC, Papaoul and Tom B Mignon amongst others

Out now on all platforms, buy it, stream it from here: https://orcd.co/rnrq8xk

Geben Sie Ihren Lieblings-Musik-Service ein

01/07/2025

Big up Jamz Supernova for playing "Aguacerito Llové" by Canto Diáspora on your show on BBC Radio 6 Music!

27/06/2025

Episode #6 in the series is ´s debut EP „Who’s Afraid Of Rio?“, released in 2008.

After releasing various compilations and producing a couple of remixes, in 2008 Daniel felt that it was time to release music himself. He had been to Rio numerous times recording funk MCs for the Funk Mundial series when he realised he could give it a try. After all, producing music wasn´t so hard and he went to Rio twice a year, so he was at the source. Through mutual friend in Berlin, , Daniel met the then unknown young producer with whom he worked on a first set of beats. The results were really exciting, as Oliver came from a house background and they fused funk tracks with house beats, as can be heard in „Senta Senta“ on the „Who´s Afraid Of Rio?“ EP.

Techno and house were still ruling the clubs in Berlin in pre-Berghain days, in particular in spring 2008 when a track by Claude Von Stroke, „Who´s Afraid Of Detroit?“ was all the rage. Daniel thought: Why not shift the focus from the ever present Detroit and counter with the question „Who´s Afraid Of Rio?“, meaning: Why the hell was no one getting what kind of revolutionary music was happening in Rio and why were Berlin DJs afraid of playing music that would not relate to the ever enduring legacy of Detroit? So when in Rio, Daniel went to the studio with baile funk MC Jennifer and asked her to rap over some beats that Daniel had made in Berlin. He asked her how she perceived the Rio x Berlin connection, coming from the favela Jacarepaguá. Her answer is to be found in „Who´s Afraid Of Rio?“: „Você vai sacudir, pega o avião e vem vem pra cá, curtir Rio de Janeiro só pra você sacudir.“ (You’re going to shake it up, get on a plane and come here, enjoy Rio de Janeiro just so you can shake it up).

The cover artwork of the single, shot by then unknown French photographer - now considered the world´s leading baile funk photographer - shows a funk party at the Boqueirão, a gymnasium next to Rio´s Santos Dumont airport.



1. At Boqueirão, Jan 2025
2. MC Dandão, DJ Amazing Clay, Mc Jennifer, 2009
3. Baile Do Boqueirão, 2008

23/06/2025

Episode #5 in the series is „Funk Do Iphone“ by ft. Marina Gasolina aka

In the mid to late 2000s, baile funk had gone mainstream in Brasil. From around 2003-2005, Rio de Janeiro’s white middle class began to celebrate baile funk as a cultural phenomenon - initially ironically, then increasingly seriously. With artists like Tati Quebra Barraco, Bonde do Tigrão and later MCs Leozinho and Marcinho, funk became a bit more “pop-friendly” and started to be played on radios and at university parties. The international praise of foreign productions featuring baile funk, i.e. the compilation, „Rio Baile Funk Favela B***y Beats“ (2004) and ´s „Favela On Blast“ mixtapes were noticed in Brasil. Former funk critics changed their minds, when realising gr**gos were loving baile funk, which, by and large, was still considered “noise” and socially unacceptable by the majority of Brasilians. But funk became more accepted, when white, middle-class artists such as De Falla (already in the early 2000s), Bonde Do Rôle from the mid 2000s onwards, as well as the carioca artist João Brasil, who pioneered funk as a serious form of international compatible Brasilian pop music, became internationally representants of funk, touring around the globe.

João Brasil´s „Funk Do Iphone“ from 2011 was one of those baile funk pop-tunes that were adressing a different, international audience rather than original funk tracks from the favelas. His song about the technological miracles that the first generation of Iphones created upon the mobile phone´s release, with its trademark marimba ringtone, were sung by former Bonde Do Rôle singer Marina Gasolina. „Funk Do Iphone“ became a small international underground hit, even receiveing a tecno brega remix by legendary DJ Cremoso.

16/06/2025

Episode #4 in the series is the Funk Mundial series.

conceived the series in 2006 after realising that when playing DJ sets in Europe, it needed tracks to bridge original baile funk tunes with more electronic (and better sounding) club tracks from Europe. So Daniel thought: Why not create productions in which vocal talent from Brasil teams up together with producers from Europe? Also I thought, baile funk has the potential to become a global phenomenon, so why not call the series „Funk Mundial“ („worldwide funk“ in Portuguese) and put funk in various other local genres from around the world?

One of the most notable releases in the series is #4 by London producer Seiji, formerly part of Bugz In The Attic and then producer of FKA Twigs as well as Roisin Murphy. For „Todo Mundo“ Seiji teamed up in 2007 with baile funk legend MC Dolores to create a minimalist broken beat tune that is still fresh today, in which Dolores reflects on the musical relationships between Brasil and Germany. „Todo Mundo“ vai dancar indeed!

Other Funk Mundial collaborations included the then unknown duo Crookers from Italy, who a year later, would launch the career of Kid Cudi with their bootleg remix of „Day + Night“. Other volumes were produced by Feadz from Paris, Riva Starr from London, Jesse Rose + Oliver Dollar, Stereotyp from Vienna amongst others, all marked by club beats from Europe accompanied by baile funk vocals.

The Funk Mundial series also had an impact in Brasil where, in 2007, Rio funk was still largely considered trash music. Hermano Viana, the author of the first academic book on baile funk, „O Mundo Funk Carioca“, and one of Brasil´s leading music journalists, was so impressed by the series and the foreign, gr**go apprecation of funk, that he curated a „Funk Mundial“ stage at Rio´s Tim Festival in 2007 (see photo), where Daniel played together with Sinden and Diplo back to back with DJ Sandrinho, MC Gr**go and DJ Marlboro.



Funk Mundial in Rocinha, January 2025
Funk Mundial stage at Tim Festival in Rio, 2007
Funk Mundial compilation
Funk Mundial colored vinyls

06/06/2025

Man Recordings is pleased to present the debut single of the Berlin-based choir Canto Diaspora . The choir, consisting of forty female singers from the Latin American world, is led by singer Carolina Riaño, who has brought the Latin American folkore classic “Aguaçerito Llové” (literally: “Little Rain Shower”) into a new format.

“Aguacerito Llové” sounds lyrical and poetic - like something that could be written in a novel by García Márquez or whispered in a verse by Pablo Neruda. It is magical realism in musical form.

In Carolina Riaño's arrangement, “Aguacerito Llové” becomes a song about collectivity, reflecting the powerful energy that arises when Canto Diaspora sings live together.

“Yo no canto por cantar ni por tener buena voz, canto porque no estoy sola y así se siente mejor.” (“I don't sing for the sake of singing or to have a good voice, I sing because I'm not alone and so it feels better”).

It is also about the transformative, sometimes melancholy experience of living away from home and settling into a new culture:

“Yo no sé si fue el destino el que me trajo hasta aquí , habitando mis dos mundos, resguardando la raíz.”
(“I don't know if it was fate that brought me here, inhabiting my two worlds, protecting the root”).

The song is an integral part of popular culture in Latin America and has been sung by generations of artists. “Aguacerito Llové” is associated with Afro-Latin American musical traditions, especially in countries such as Colombia, Venezuela and the Caribbean. These regions have a rich history of African influence through the transatlantic slave trade, and their music reflects the resilience, spirituality and emotional depth of these communities.

In Canto Diaspora's version, “Aguaçerito Llové” becomes an empowering sound and cultural bridge builder.

Early DJ support from Gilles Peterson (BBC Radio 6) and Tash LC amongst others.

Download it, stream it from here:

Geben Sie Ihren Lieblings-Musik-Service ein

07/03/2025

Introducing "Fauna", DADANIEL HAAKSMANs new track that mashes up batida rhythms from Lisbon and Angola with baile funk beatboxing, topped with a Detroit-inspired TR-303 synth line!

A perfect match for its predecessor "Flora" (played by DJs like Tash LC & Black Mamba amongst others), this transatlantic super melange is a must-play. Rio x Luanda x Berlin x Detroit come together in harmony.

Download it / stream it from here: orcd.co/0py87ea

Video directed by Kinga Kielczynska

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L-HamnraDI

Directed by Kinga Kielczynska