KETTAMA

Rising to prominence off the back of his rave-flecked house music and loop-based club sounds, is Evan Campbell, better known as KETTAMA. Though success has materialized for the young artist, he shared that his goal was never to become a big DJ or get any recognition - he just wanted to put his music out there.

The sensational DJ and producer was raised in Galway, a small town off the Atlantic coast of the Republic of Ireland. Despite the restrictions and early closing hours of Ireland nightclubs, KETTAMA learned to work with what he had. At the age of 17, he and Shampain, a close friend and ongoing musical collaborator, held things down in the backroom of the now-inoperative Galway club, Carbon. He devoted the next three years spinning records at this venue and uploading his originals to the internet. With so few clubs to network in Ireland, KETTAMA relied on music forums, Facebook, and SoundCloud to share his music and subsequently pick up a following.

It was through the latter medium that he received an unexpected message from a promoter in China who wanted to book him for a three-day tour; this marked a turning point in his career. Upon returning to Ireland, KETTAMA was launched into the limelight, experiencing a string of career-defining moments. His track, “B.O.D.Y” was played by house heavyweight Mall Grab and the Galwegian was asked to make his Dublin debut. By May of 2018 he was playing a peak time slot at Life Festival, an Irish institution.

With the backing of Mall Grab, The Black Madonna, and many others, his debut EP was announced on the New York City based label HOMAGE. The three-track project caught the attention of Mixmag and DJ Mag, leading to a sellout of physical copies. With this success the world began to take notice of KETTAMA. He rose through the electronic music scene, wowing crowds at massive festivals with his sledgehammer house music, sharing the stage with Patrick Topping and Armand Van Helden, and selling out shows in his hometown, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Manchester and Edinburgh.

Now alongside aforementioned partner, Shampain, he is running his own label named G-Town Records. Through this collective KETTAMA is fulfilling his goal of starting his own community to release music, support other artists, and put out original merchandise.