The Alt.Latino Interview: Louie Vega, A Life In Service To The Groove
The dance floor just may be the most egalitarian place on earth. All differences are neutralized when we start moving our hips and sliding our feet, preferably surrounded by swaying bodies locked in the same ecstasy of movement. For generations public dancing has offered a form of communion with family, friends and even strangers. In a way, the dance floor becomes an almost holy space ... and that makes the people who inspire us to get out on the floor High Priests and Priestesses of Groove.
This week we spend time with Louie Vega. He is one half of the highly influential musical production duo, Masters At Work. It's impossible to overstate just how much of an impact "Little" Louie Vega and his musical partner Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez had on popular music. Since the early 1990s, their fusions of house, hip-hop, soul, reggae and Afro-Caribbean rhythms has inspired dancers around the world. The duo elevated remixing to a high art, taking songs that inspired them and re-imagining the beats and rhythms to create something new and unexpected.
Hardly one to rest on his prolific laurels, Vega is still a force in dance music, having been nominated for a Grammy this year. His interpretation of Loleatta Holloway's "Can't Let You Go" was shortlisted in the Best Remix category. I spoke to him about his childhood in the Bronx, his recent collaborations in Cuba, and what we can expect from Masters At Work in the future.
The following interview can be heard in its entirety in the latest edition of our Alt.Latino podcast. The transcript below has been edited for clarity.
Felix Contreras: Louie Vega, welcome to Alt.Latino. How are you?
Louie Vega: Thanks, man. Thanks for having me.
The idea behind our interview series is to go deep on an artist's work, and in your
