{{Short description|Brazilian record producer (born 2000 or 2001)}} {{use dmy dates|date=July 2025}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = DJ K | image = | caption = | image_size = | alt = | landscape = yes | birth_name = Kaique Alves Vieira | alias = | birth_date = {{Birth based on age as of date|22|2023|8|10}} | origin = Diadema, São Paulo, Brazil | genre = {{flatlist| * Funk bruxaria }} | occupation = Record producer | discography = | years_active = 2017–present | current_members = | past_members = }}
'''Kaique Alves Vieira''' (born 2000 or 2001), known professionally as '''DJ K''', is a Brazilian record producer from Diadema, São Paulo.
== Early life == Kaique Alves Vieira was born in Diadema, a municipality in the Greater São Paulo area of Brazil, where he was also raised, in 2000 or 2001.<ref name="Lisboa-2023">{{Cite web |last=Lisboa |first=Heloísa |date=2023-07-29 |title=Beat bruxaria: Quem é DJ K, artista que chamou atenção fora do país |url=https://rollingstone.com.br/musica/beat-bruxaria-quem-e-dj-k-artista-que-chamou-atencao-fora-do-pais/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Rolling Stone Brasil |language=pt-br}}</ref><ref name="Paiva-2023">{{Cite web |last=Paiva |first=Deslange |last2=Tito |first2=Fábio |date=2023-08-10 |title=DJ K: filho de pastor ganha elogios da crítica internacional e prepara turnê europeia com 'funk bruxaria' |url=https://g1.globo.com/pop-arte/noticia/2023/08/10/dj-k-filho-de-pastor-ganha-elogios-da-critica-internacional-e-prepara-turne-europeia-com-funk-bruxaria.ghtml |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=G1 |language=pt-br}}</ref> He grew up in a musically active family; his father, an evangelical pastor and drummer, supported his career in Brazilian funk despite his religious background.<ref name="Paiva-2023" /> An uncle who played in a reggae band frequently took him to performances and recording sessions, which "fascinated" him and contributed to his aspiration to work in the field.<ref name="Paiva-2023" /><ref name="Declercq-2023">{{Cite web |last=Declercq |first=Marie |last2=Larozza |first2=Felipe |date=2023-06-02 |title=É bruxaria: DJ K leva som do 'tuin' dos bailes funk de SP para a Europa |url=https://tab.uol.com.br/edicao/dj-k-funk-bruxaria/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250514180602/https://tab.uol.com.br/edicao/dj-k-funk-bruxaria/ |archive-date=2025-05-14 |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=UOL TAB |language=pt-BR}}</ref>
During his childhood, Vieira was exposed to a wide variety of musical genres, often introduced by his father. These included Brazilian hip-hop and Brazilian rock groups such as Racionais MC's, Planet Hemp, and Charlie Brown Jr., as well as gospel, sertanejo, and forró.<ref name="Yalcinkaya-2023">{{Cite web |last=Yalcinkaya |first=Günseli |date=2023-09-22 |title=Dazed Mix: DJ K |url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/60894/1/dazed-mix-dj-k-bruxaria-sound-sao-paulo-bruxaria |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Dazed |language=en}}</ref> He also listened to international rock bands including Rage Against the Machine, Led Zeppelin, and System of a Down.<ref name="Declercq-2023" /> Rock and reggae became personal favorites, with rock elements later influencing his funk productions.<ref name="Yalcinkaya-2023" /><ref name="Andrade-2023">{{Cite web |last=Andrade |first=Ranyelle |date=2023-07-28 |title=DJ K: quem é o brasileiro que está bombando no mundo |url=https://www.metropoles.com/entretenimento/musica/dj-k-quem-e-o-brasileiro-que-esta-bombando-no-mundo |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Metrópoles |language=pt-BR}}</ref>
== Career == Vieira began producing music at the age of 17, teaching himself to use the digital audio workstation FL Studio.<ref name="Paiva-2023" /><ref name="Simpson">{{Cite web |last=Simpson |first=Paul |title=DJ K Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/dj-k-mn0004529689 |access-date=2025-08-09 |publisher=AllMusic |language=en}}</ref> After approximately one year of practice, he began releasing his work online.<ref name="Simpson" /> He has stated that funk was a practical choice, as it could be produced with only a computer and headphones, unlike rock or reggae, which typically require a band and instruments.<ref name="Paiva-2023" /><ref name="Yalcinkaya-2023" /> Before earning a living from music, Vieira held various jobs, including assistant mechanic, clothing salesman, and electrician's helper,<ref name="Paiva-2023" /><ref name="Queiroz-2024">{{Cite web |last=Queiroz |first=Guilherme |date=2024-01-12 |title=DJ K, que ganhou destaque internacional, prepara novo álbum de funk |url=https://vejasp.abril.com.br/cultura-lazer/dj-k-funk-heliopolis-panico-no-submundo-novo-album/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Veja São Paulo |language=pt-BR}}</ref> humorously noting that he "didn't last 2 months in the same company".<ref name="Paiva-2023" /> Financial hardship, including difficulties paying rent and utility bills, nearly led him to abandon music; he accepted an advance from Ugandan label Nyege Nyege Tapes to produce his debut album partly out of necessity.<ref name="Clarke-2025">{{Cite web |last=Clarke |first=Patrick |date=2025-08-06 |title=Witchcraft Liberation: An Interview with DJ K |url=https://thequietus.com/interviews/witchcraft-liberation-an-interview-with-dj-k/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=The Quietus |language=en-GB}}</ref>
His public performances began in the early 2020s at ''Baile do Helipa'', a street party in Heliópolis, São Paulo's largest favela.<ref name="Helfand-2025" /> He produced tracks for the large ''paredão'' (speaker wall) systems used at these events.<ref name="Declercq-2023" /> His first set was described as a "catastrophe" that drew little attention, but he considered it a formative moment, deciding that performing was what he wanted to do.<ref name="Yalcinkaya-2023" /> By 2021, he had achieved online attention with the track "Olha o Barulinho da Cama Renk Renk Renk", which amassed over 17 million streams on Spotify,<ref name="Paiva-2023" /><ref name="Andrade-2023" /> and later with "Tuin Destrói Noia".<ref name="Declercq-2023" /> Around this period he established the label Bruxaria Sound, which by mid-2023 counted 16 artists in its roster,<ref name="Lisboa-2023" /> later expanding to more than 15 MCs and DJs,<ref name="Yalcinkaya-2023" /> with the aim of training and promoting performers within the funk mandelão style.<ref name="Yalcinkaya-2023" />
=== 2023: ''Pânico no Submundo'' === DJ K's debut album, ''Pânico no Submundo'', was released on 14 July 2023<ref name="Terra-2023" /> by Nyege Nyege Tapes.<ref name="Smith-2023" /> Conceived during the COVID-19 pandemic,<ref name="Declercq-2023" /><ref name="Helfand-2025" /> it was inspired by the unrest and "literal panic" in the favelas during lockdowns, which Vieira described as a "cry for help".<ref name="Helfand-2025" /> The 15-track album was recorded in three to four days on his mother's laptop using FL Studio, with MCs often recording vocals on iPhones from closets.<ref name="Clarke-2025" /> His self-described style, funk bruxaria, combined funk mandelão<ref name="Helfand-2025" /> with horrorcore elements, incorporating high-frequency ''tuin'' sounds (likened to tinnitus),<ref name="Smith-2023" /> horror film samples from ''Halloween'' ''and The Purge'',<ref name="Paiva-2023" /> distorted basslines, maniacal laughter, sirens, and abrupt noise bursts.<ref name="Mickles-2025" />
The album drew significant international attention. On 27 July 2023, the American online music magazine ''Pitchfork'' awarded it a 7.9/10 rating,<ref name="Smith-2023" /> higher than the publication's score for the Beatles' ''Yellow Submarine'' (6.2).<ref name="Malta-2023" /> The comparison to the Beatles' score and other artists like Taylor Swift,<ref name="Paiva-2023" /> Slipknot, and Korn<ref name="Malta-2023">{{Cite web |last=Malta |first=Jairo |last2=Fernandes |first2=Mateus |date=2023-10-11 |title=Opinião - Sons da Perifa: Seria o funk criado hoje na zona sul paulistana uma ressurreição do nu metal? |url=https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/blogs/sons-da-perifa/2023/10/seria-o-funk-paulista-a-ressurreicao-do-nu-metal.shtml |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Folha de S.Paulo |language=pt-BR}}</ref> circulated widely on Brazilian social media, becoming an internet meme.<ref name="Declercq-2023" /> DJ K later stated he was unfamiliar with ''Pitchfork'' at the time, initially misreading the name as "Pitchforte", and woke up to a flood of online mentions.<ref name="Paiva-2023" /> The review praised the album as a "transmission straight from the favelas" rather than an outsider's curated introduction to baile funk, highlighting its avant-garde vision and resistance to mainstream appropriation.<ref name="Smith-2023" />
AllMusic also reviewed the album positively, rating it four out of five stars describing it as "bizarre, surreal", and "extremely dark, sinister, and spooky", while noting "nothing else on earth that sounds like this".<ref name="AllMusic" /> By late July 2023, DJ K had over 140,000 monthly Spotify listeners,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carvalho |first=Matheus de |date=2023-07-27 |title="Pânico no Submundo": Pitchfork aclama álbum do produtor paulista DJ K {{!}} |url=https://portalpopline.com.br/panico-submundo-pitchfork-aclama-album-produtor-paulista-dj-k/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=POPline |language=pt-BR}}</ref> a figure that would later exceed 300,000 in January 2024.<ref name="Queiroz-2024" /> Brazilian outlet ''Música Instantânea'' ranked the album 41st in its "The 50 Best Brazilian Albums of 2023" list,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Facchi |first=Cleber |date=2023-12-20 |title=Os 50 Melhores Discos Brasileiros de 2023 |url=https://musicainstantanea.com.br/os-50-melhores-discos-brasileiros-de-2023/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Música Instantânea |language=pt-BR}}</ref> while ''Pitchfork'' included it among both its "Best Electronic Music of 2023"<ref>{{Cite web |last=Herrera |first=Isabelia |date=2023-12-07 |title=The Best Electronic Music of 2023 |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/best-electronic-music-2023/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref> and "Best Music by Latine and Spanish Artists in 2023".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Herrera |first=Isabelia |date=2023-12-13 |title=The Best Music by Latine and Spanish Artists in 2023 |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/best-music-latin-spanish-artists-2023/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref> Following the album's release, DJ K performed at LGBTQ+-oriented parties such as Mamba Negra and Buero in São Paulo.<ref name="Declercq-2023" /> In October 2023<ref name="Paiva-2023" /> he embarked on his first international tour, which included dates in Germany, England, France, and Belgium;<ref name="Declercq-2023" /> he noted that he had never flown before and saw the tour as a moment when "the favela won" due to its financial impact.<ref name="Paiva-2023" /> A documentary on his rise, ''Terror Mandelão'', premiered in January 2024.<ref name="Declercq-2023" />
=== 2024: ''O Fim!'' === In June 2024, DJ K released his second album, ''O Fim!'', through Bruxaria Sound. The record continued the aggressive and experimental approach of his debut but with a dirtier and more politically charged tone. It addressed subjects such as armed violence, nightlife excess, and war, drawing on events like the conflict in Gaza and violence in Rio de Janeiro. Critics noted its atmosphere as replacing horror cinema tropes with raw social realities. Tracks included "Set Anti Sistema" and "Beat Que Faz Até Sua Tia Baforar", which showed techno influences, and "Remédio Pra Noia", which sampled the children’s television programme ''Castelo Rá-Tim-Bum''. ''Música Instantânea''{{'s}} Cleber Facchi awarded it an 8.2 rating.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Facchi |first=Cleber |date=2024-06-21 |title=Crítica {{!}} DJ K: "O Fim!" |url=http://musicainstantanea.com.br/critica-dj-k-o-fim/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Música Instantânea |language=pt-BR}}</ref>
=== 2025: ''Rádio Libertadora!'' === DJ K’s third album, ''Rádio Libertadora!'', was released on 8 August 2025 by Nyege Nyege Tapes. He described it as "ideological and reflexive",<ref name="Clarke-2025" /> framing it as a "cry for freedom" and connecting past political struggles to current social conditions in Brazil.<ref name="Helfand-2025" /> The album opens with a 1969 radio address by revolutionary Carlos Marighella,<ref name=":0" /> followed by a female broadcaster calling for an end to the military dictatorship, underscoring funk's subversive history.<ref name="Clarke-2025" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Tafoya |first=Harry |date=6 August 2025 |title=DJ K: ''Radio Libertadora!'' |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/dj-k-radio-libertadora/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref> While retaining sexual themes common in baile funk, its lyrics also address police brutality, gang violence, and educational inequality.<ref name="Helfand-2025" /><ref name=":1" /> Musical influences included Brazilian protest rap, particularly Racionais MC's and Emicida, as well as elements of early-2000s hip-hop, techno, and house.<ref name="Clarke-2025" /><ref name="Mickles-2025" />
The album reduced overt horror elements in favour of revolutionary messaging, though tracks such as "Mega Suicidio Auditivo" maintained extreme sonic intensity. Harry Tayofa of ''Pitchfork'' gave it a 6.5/10, praising its production but criticising what it saw as misogynistic lyrical content.<ref name=":1" /> ''DJ Mag''{{'s}} Henry Ivry called it "baile funk's vanguard",<ref name=":2" /> and Ammar Kalia, writing in ''The Guardian'', gave it four out of five stars and described it as "explosive, cacophonous baile funk witchcraft" and a defiant response to the criminalization of funk street parties.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kalia |first=Ammar |date=2025-08-01 |title=DJ K: Radio Libertadora! review – explosive, cacophonous baile funk witchcraft |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/aug/01/dj-k-radio-libertadora-review-nyege-nyege-tapes |access-date=2025-08-09 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>
== Artistry == DJ K describes his sound as funk bruxaria, characterizing it as an aggressive, "punk of funk" style.<ref name="Terra-2023">{{Cite web |last= |date=2023-07-28 |title=Conheça DJ K, um dos principais DJs de bruxaria do Brasil |url=https://www.terra.com.br/visao-do-corre/pega-a-visao/conheca-dj-k-um-dos-principais-djs-de-bruxaria-do-brasil,6fe7373fe12078651e1186f0c359a6bbav2bz96c.html |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Terra |language=pt-BR}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Casaletti |first=Danilo |date=2023-07-28 |title=Quem é o DJ K, paulista de 22 anos que está ganhando elogios nos maiores veículos de música do mundo |url=https://www.estadao.com.br/cultura/musica/quem-e-o-dj-k-paulista-de-22-anos-que-esta-ganhando-elogios-nos-maiores-veiculos-de-musica-do-mundo/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Estadão |language=pt-br}}</ref> It combines elements of funk mandelão with sonic motifs intended to evoke fear and disorientation.<ref name="Paiva-2023" /><ref name="Helfand-2025" /> His work has been described as an "aural assault" and "psychological siege" by Raphael Helfand of ''The Fader'',<ref name="Helfand-2025">{{Cite web |last=Helfand |first=Raphael |date=2025-08-07 |title=DJ K isn't producing anymore. He's doing witchcraft. |url=https://www.thefader.com/2025/08/07/dj-k-radio-libertadora-interview |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=The Fader |language=en}}</ref> incorporating high-frequency noises known as ''tuin'', a tinnitus-like pitch that alludes to ''lança perfume'', a recreational inhalant associated with funk dance parties.<ref name="Clarke-2025" /><ref name="Smith-2023">{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Nadine |date=2023-07-27 |title=DJ K: ''PANICO NO SUBMUNDO'' |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/dj-k-panico-no-submundo/ |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref> Other common features include heavy distortion, sudden bursts of noise such as weather alert tones, ringing telephones, laser blasts, and samples of maniacal laughter.<ref name="Smith-2023" /><ref name="AllMusic">{{cite web |last=Simpson |first=Paul |title=''Panico No Submundo'' – DJ K |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/panico-no-submundo-mw0004133935 |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date=2025-08-09 |publisher=AllMusic}}</ref> The result has been likened to a "miniature apocalypse" by ''DJ Mag''<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Ivry |first=Henry |date=2025-08-05 |title=DJ K - Rádio Libertadora |url=https://djmag.com/reviews/dj-k-radio-libertadora |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=DJ Mag |language=en}}</ref> or "sonic warfare" by ''Resident Advisor''.<ref name="Mickles-2025">{{Cite web |last=Mickles |first=Kiana |date=2025-08-07 |title=DJ K - Radio Libertadora ! · Album Review ⟋ RA |url=https://ra.co/reviews/36300 |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=Resident Advisor |language=en}}</ref>
His productions often incorporate horrorcore<ref name="Smith-2023" /> and horror-themed elements, sampling film scores from works such as ''Halloween'' and ''The Purge''.<ref name="Paiva-2023" /> They are also influenced by electronic styles including South African gqom, Jersey club, European hardstyle, and distorted phonk,''<ref name="Smith-2023" />'' as well as 2000s hip-hop, techno, and house.<ref name="Clarke-2025" /><ref name="Mickles-2025" /> He cites rock acts such as Evanescence, System of a Down, Guns N' Roses<ref name="Paiva-2023" /> Pearl Jam,<ref name="Lisboa-2023" /> Rage Against the Machine, and Led Zeppelin among his influences,<ref name="Declercq-2023" /> and has incorporated samples from sources as varied as the Muslim call to prayer.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Helfand |first=Raphael |date=2025-08-08 |title=4 New Albums You Need: Amaraae, For Those I Love, DJ K, and more |url=https://www.thefader.com/2025/08/08/4-new-albums-you-need-amaraae-for-those-i-love-dj-k-and-more |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=The Fader |language=en}}</ref> His songs are typically marked by the vocal tag "DJ K isn't producing anymore, he's doing witchcraft", a studio in-joke with an MC that became a hallmark of his work.<ref name="Declercq-2023" /><ref name="Clarke-2025" /><ref name="Helfand-2025" />
== Discography ==
=== Studio albums ===
* ''Pânico no Submundo'' (2023) * ''O Fim!'' (2024) * ''Radio Libertadora!'' (2025)
== References == {{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:K, Dj}} Category:Brazilian DJs Category:Living people Category:Musicians from São Paulo (state) Category:Funk carioca musicians Category:Year of birth missing (living people)