A young talented Namibian DJ/producer has embarked on a journey to reach a wider audience and become international.
Alfredo Herman (20) is making his mark in London and says he went to Europe because of the lack of exposure here.
“What made me move to Europe apart from my mother who lives in the UK is realising that the local industry was not happening for me although I won’t be here for long,” said Herman, also known as Maniac 017.
The boy from Donkerhoek told Entertainment Now! his forte is deep house.
“I am a deep house fan but that didn’t have a fan base in Namibia back then, so I switched things up to amapiano. Now, I alternate between deep house and amapiano,” said Maniac 017, who was first a dancer but now decided to bea disc jockey.
With DJ Asserdeep, as his mentor and manager, Maniac 017 said his inspiration comes from people like Asserdeep.
“I only started in 2017 and it grew into a passion until I got an official gig at a local club in Windhoek with DJ Stizo,” reminisced Maniac 017. Being the only Namibian DJ that plays amapiano and local tunes, he has perfected the craft to the point where other DJs have requested him to perform sets at their events.
“Being a DJ in the UK is a dream come true as I got to know big promoters through networking,” said Maniac 017. He said it was overwhelming at first, as many gigs were coming his way after he was scouted on Instagram but he later started securing the gigs himself.
“I also look for gigs by myself and try to introduce the Namibian flair in Europe. I got to meet Viagra Deep, who is very popular, but now I want to work with DJ Spuzza,” said Maniac 017.
His EP 017 is expected in June or August.
-psiririka@nepc.com.na