Edna Martinez Listening Set + Talk

Edna Martinez is a visionary Colombian Caribbean DJ, producer, and curator who brings champeta and the street-born Picó sound system culture of Cartagena to global audiences. Handcrafted, powerful, and colorful speakers, where picoteros energize local bailes with Afro-Caribbean rhythms, channel a living tradition of music grounded in joy, creativity, and collective memory. From her base in Berlin, she brings this energy to international stages, blending deep basslines, electronic textures, diasporic beats, sounds from the SWANA region, UK funky, and other sound system influences into expansive journeys. Her performances have reached audiences across Europe and beyond, including Panorama Bar at Berghain, Glastonbury, Fusion Festival, Le Guess Who Festival, Museo Reina Sofía, and Bonanza, as well as communities in Palestine, Lebanon, Morocco, Colombia, Mexico, Panama, and Chile. Each set is a bridge between local histories and global sounds, bringing the power and creativity of Picó to new ears. Beyond DJing, Martinez shapes musical dialogue through curatorial practice. She served as Sound Curator at Haus der Kulturen der Welt HKW Berlin, led independent projects such as LatinArab and El Volcán, and held residencies on NTS, Radio Alhara, and Worldwide FM, amplifying overlooked voices. She is a Keychange Talent 2026, an international program recognizing artists shaping the future of music. She has also collaborated with labels including Other People in New York, Gallo in South Africa, and Sofrito Records in the United Kingdom. In June 2025, she released her debut compilation Picó! Sound System Culture From the Colombian Caribbean on Strut Records, a landmark project tracing the legacy of these sound systems, for which she produced a series of original edits and remixes, highlighting a culture that continues to evolve. Martinez shares her research through written texts, film, and lecture performances, including her acclaimed appearance at Oslo World 2025, and directed the documentary Picó: Voices of a Sonic Culture (2025).