Venezuelan-born Londoner, Angelo Quesini, known as 'Angelo Flow', is rooted in the evolving rise of latin and reggaeton club culture, having already notched up singles "Que Tu Quieres," "Rosa Como Tusi," "Soy un Santo" and "Solo Tu" which was supported by US Tastemaker DJs DJ City, DJ Phenom, Danny West, Vlatz, ETX and NY DJ Kazzanova. His Latin-Caribbean crossover style and commercial sound mark him out as One To Watch.
Last year, Angelo Flow and J Spades brought 15,000 people in Finsbury Park to a frenzy when they performed "Hot Steppa" live for the first time at Latino Life In The Park Festival 2022, the UK's biggest Latin festival, shutting down the Park's Candela Stage. With the new release storming the internet, both expressing and embraced by London's Latino and Black communities, the 22-year old artist marks a new era in Latin music.
Nicky Trax: Great to meet you and tell us about your new single "Hot Steppa" which features J Spades and can you describe how you came to create it and work with J and also Dutch producer Diztortion?
Angelo Flow: Making the connection between the sound of the Caribbean and the UK & Europe has always been uppermost in my mind when thinking about my essence as an artist. But honestly the "Hotsteppa" song came from an idea that J Spades had with Dutch producer, Diztortion, but when they brought it to me I felt it was tailor-made for me to jump on with its gritty sound. I feel super grateful that they brought the project in my direction and release it as my new single.
NT: You've just launched the single at VIVA Reggaeton, I saw you bring the house down at the sold-out Latino Life In The Park festival last summer and I know you've got a whole load of gigs and festivals lined up this year. What's been your best and/or biggest live show to date and how can you describe it and how did it make you feel?
AF: VIVA is very special because it is London's best Latin party with 1,500 every Saturday in an amazing club and super good vibes, and my music is dance music to so its great to see people vibe to it in a club environment. My biggest concert was last summer at the Latino Life In The Park festival is Finsbury Park, which apart from being the first area where I lived in London, it was also where I spent most of my time working. Around 30, 000 people were at the festival in total and it was crazy as everyone went mad when I was performing. I hope to add some new festival dates this summer as I'm getting addicted to that feeling - lol
NT: Was it your favourite show or is there another show which you feel has set the bench mark and what make sit stand out?
AF: As well as the big crowds in Finsbury Park, I also performed at The Great Escape last year, which is the most important festival in the UK for new artists, to a totally English audience in Brighton and so it's nice to take my music to people who are unfamiliar with it. But the most impactful thing in my career has been the attention I've got from other producers and artists from the UK who want to collaborate with me. They're literally legendary artists I dreamed of meeting one day and now I'm making music with them...I feel super blessed.
NT: You are originally from Venezuela. How did your interest in making music start? In your family home, radio, clubs, certain people that inspired and encouraged you?
AF: I come from Valencia and, although I don't come from a family of musicians, my mother is a great poet, and my grandfather was the winner of a some literary prizes for his love letters in Venezuela and he even competed in other Latin American competitions. On the other hand, my father sings all day and it was something that made me unconsciously get into the habit. I grew up listening to Italian music and ballads in Spanish, but what really made me fall in love with music was reggaeton and rap. From when I was a kid and went to parties in Venezuela I used to rap at them and at school. My influences and people I love are artists like Arcangel, Canserbero, Tego Calderon, Randy, Plan B and Wisin & Yandel among others.
NT: How did you end up in Europe? Describe your journey from Venezuela to here...
AF: My family was badly affected by the economic and political crisis, which saw oil prices fall dramatically in 2014 and widespread food shortages across Venezuela. From one minute to the next there was nothing…no medicine, no food. We had to queue for six hours for flour and sugar, for basic stuff and we often didn’t have light or water. I remember my mum went out for an entire day and came home with just one packet of flour that she mixed with water to make bread to feed me and my younger brother. It got so bad, we lost all hope for any future in Venezuela and because my dad had Italian heritage he travelled first to Italy and I went later and began working alongside him as a dishwasher at a restaurant in Rome.
NT: I'm told you can sing in Italian and also English, how did you decide to settle in London?
AF: For the first seven months in Italy I didn’t stop working. When I started to improve my Italian, I got promoted to the bar and waiting on tables. In 2019, I took a trip to London to visit some friends and I saw a world of opportunities. There was a better scene for urban music and I knew I might be able to study music. In my very first week in London, I managed to sing live at a venue so I decided to stay and keep on working towards achieving my dreams. Since I’ve been in London, I've been signed to Candela Records, which is part owned by Atlantic, I released my first single last year and then doors really opened. Now work full time as a DJ and artist and I've been able to take care of my mother in Venezuela. I can send her some money every month and that feels good.
NT: Latin music and culture is having a huge global influence right now, why do you think that is?
AF: Back when reggaetón was a subculture, nobody could have predicted the way that it would climb the charts globally and affect Western tastes as it has - it's taken over music in English as the most listened to music in the world. That's a huge game changer. I feel fundamentally that it's because of the flavour and heart in Latin songs, plus the roots of our music are African, the beats very similar to Afrobeats, so this makes even people who don't understand a word of the song smile and want to dance, it reaches people on a very human level.
NT: Do you feel you're part of the London explosion and how would you describe what's happening in the London scene right now? Do you think what's being produced here is going to have an influence around the world?
AF: The UK has always had a strong musical identity and Latino movement in London has been developing its own identity for many years now. It's a subculture that has been bubbling under the surface, like the old days in Puerto Rico, a space where musicians, dancers, directors, photographers, Latino artists from all backgrounds are expressing themselves, largely ignore by mainstream media. Candela is giving us the tools to make our dreams come true. And I feel honoured to be part of this process, trying to do my bit so that Latinos in the UK are taken into account on another level, where they deserve to be. We have a different flavour than what comes out of Latin America or the US and ours is an original fusion of cultures and now even richer combined with the rich Black British musical heritage.
NT: What latin music artists inspire you - can be older and more recent - and why are these so special - is it their tunes, live performance etc
AF: I have a combination in my head between ballads, salsa, merengue and reggaeton as the closest to my style of music, and in delivery I would say Arcangel, Plan B and Randy among others inspire me more than anything for their songs and attitude at concerts.
NT: What's your favourite thing about being latino in London?
AF: What I like most about being a Latino in London is that I live a totally different experience from where I grew up. It's like being on a different planet, and although I'm almost a tourist, I feel London is more like my home than my own home. Plus I can do what I love which is music and expressing it in different languages makes me super proud.
