"Kosta Kostov is not a nickname! Kosta is a DJ,
music producer and radio journalist who comes
from Bulgaria but lives and works in Cologne, Germany.
He is one of the most interesting persons
i have met in my life. Little bit Balkan, little bit
European, little bit International! A man who knows
how to keep his mind always open, how to unify
everyone with his music and how to celebrate life.
He just has a big smile, a big heart and a Balkan soul."
1) Kosta, you
were born in Bulgaria and you live in Germany. What did you take with you from
your motherland and what you preferred to leave there?
- “Well..I
live actually 18years in this country, in Germany and what I definitely took
with me on my way from Bulgaria is..emotions-just emotions. Something that I
really miss sometimes in this country, where the people are so well structured,
well functioning, very rational and pretty much convinced in the things that
they’re doing. I try to keep it not only for me but share it with all the
people around me. I see it also, somehow, like a mission of mine and I think
that’s a mission of all immigrants here in Germany, to bring some emotions and
a bit of sex-appealing with them, everyday! What I definitely didn’t want to
take with me is the, how I call it, “Balkan hate-love”. I’m talking about an
extreme situation of sentimentality that makes you quit from thinking. This is
something that I grew up with, I don’t like it and I think I left it behind..”
2) What came
first in your life, the DJing or the radio and when?
- “The radio! It was actually
just after my studies in history and German philology. I was waiting for
12months to pass because they gave me one year to find a job here but then I
realized how difficult it is to do so with a linguistic-history diploma, if you
don’t want to stay in the “academic area”. I wanted to move somehow! So, I sent
a lot of CVs and one day I listened to a radio station that I didn’t know
before. I liked a lot their track list and on a Wednesday i think, I sent them
an email where I was saying that their music is great and I wanted to work for
them! I didn’t have the needed education but I was pretty sure that I could be
useful for them. This is what I wrote! So, next day they called me and invited
me for an interview and then I got the job! It was like a miracle..because I
got the permission to stay in Germany and get my working visa, as well. I met
some people after 2months who asked me to play a Balkan set for an event at an
African museum! Everybody was prepared to listen to African music but I played
Balkan! (laughs) So, this is how everything started back to 2003..”
3) How would
you describe better your music identity/style?
- “What I really
love to play is Global Electro or Urban sounds from all around the world. I
love to “dig” not only the gipsy-Balkan sounds but also Latin-African-Brazilian
music..This “bastard” music that makes the electronic music richer and on the
other hand, moves every person back to his roots and makes him to take them a
little bit further to new Urban sounds. It’s difficult to describe because
there are a lot of terms like: Balkan Beats, Bailefunk, Kuduro, Moombahton etc.
These are styles that already existed. They just took a new name, a new face
and they are very exciting for me.”
4) You are the
founder of the “Balkan Express” party in Cologne. How this idea came up and
when?
- “The idea came up straight after I started working at this
radio station, the Funkhaus Europa in Cologne and after listening to the
Bucovina Club compilations of Shantel. I also heard Goran Bregovic’s
soundtracks for Underground and Arizona dream, all these good movies that made
the big boom in the 90’s..This music was something that I always had the idea
to make but I didn’t have the skills to produce it. So, I had to start somehow
and I started by exploring sounds from Ex-Yugoslavia, Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria,
Romania etc. “Balkan Beats” is a term that Western Europeans developed and year
by year, I noticed that is wrong. The Balkans are connected not only to a
geographic term but also to a cultural one. There are Balkan Bands in France,
in Brazil, in America..So, the “Balkan Express” is a party which interprets the
idea of all these Balkan and gypsy sounds. It started in 2004 when I had to
travel from Bulgaria and my plane had a 10hours delay so i went straight to the
party with the whole crew with me! (laughs) “
5)What is the BxPsoundsistema?
- “It was actually a logical
development of the “Balkan Express” idea. As I said before, I was bored to play
every time the same tunes, like Bregovic and Shantel sounds (and I say it with
all of my respect because they both contributed so many things) so, I wanted to
do something on my own, my own production. This is when I got connected with a
Greek producer named Giorgos Fotiadis (aka “Basement Freaks”) and we did
together some remixes, some mash-ups etc…Then, he moved to Germany, we shared
my flat and we were living together, making music with other musicians. That’s
the idea of BxP Soundsistema (Balkan Express Soundsistema).
Today, I work with three more musicians, on compositions which are not only
Balkan but also have some Global sounds..like in my DJ sets..”
6) You have
done a lot of remixes for La Cherga, Watcha Clan, DJ Click etc. but also your
own productions such as the “Balkan Train” and the “Mambessa” EP. What’s your
next step?
-“Right now, I’m dropping out my new EP, the “French Wine” which is
dedicated to..the French wine! (laughs) There were two EPs before that also
showed how I was moving musically. The first was focused very much on the
Balkan sound but even at that moment, I wanted to “open” the format and make it
sound a little bit different than all the other productions which were very
“folkloristic” to me.
I look for more fusion in my sounds..So this is why that EP (the “Balkan
Train”) is more funky, break beat, ragga-dancehall style. The “Mambessa EP” has
more belly dancing, shaky, cocek style tracks. Now, my third fresh EP contains
the original “French wine” track, the “Peaches and Oats” track and some remixes
by DJ Click, DJ Marcelinho Da Lua, DJ LK and Triplet Tricks. It is already
released on the Juno digital shop, from the 2nd of November.
Another project that I’m working on, is the video making of a new song of
mine with my singer and songwriter from Cologne, John Felix. The video is
almost done and I think that is going to come out in about a month.”
7) You have
shared your decks with many DJs and bands, played in countless clubs and you
have also taken part in many festivals. Where was the most exciting place to
play music, so far and why?
-“Exciting for me, is when I get the public’s response so, it depends on
it. There is always some energy between the DJ and the public. I got amazing
gigs in France, in Spain..One of the festivals that I will always remember is
the “Roskilde” in Denmark..However, the high light for me, was the time that I
played in Brazil! I was playing at a restaurant in the capital of Brazil, in
front of 600 people..They were applauding me without stopping, in the end!
There were also some young local and foreign people (with Serbian and Croatian
roots), saying “Thank you for playing my grand parents’ music’’! They were so
illuminated and there was also one person who was crying from joy…It’s
something that I will never forget, it was such a “touching” moment…but of
course, there are plenty of them!”
8)You are a big lover of good food and you’re cooking a lot! Do you think
that mixing music is often like cooking?
-“Definitely! Most of the best producers and DJs that I know, are good
cooks! You always look for the best ingredients, the best quality of bread, of
meat, of vegetable..It’s the same with music. You will always look for the best
sample, the best kick or snare etc. You will have to combine them right, put
them in the right place and in the right quantity & quality. Then, you will
enjoy a good meal or a good mix!”
9)Speaking of your “French Wine”, why do you think that alcohol plays such
an important role for the Balkan people?
-“ Why? You should ask my father, my grandfather, my grandmother or your
father, your grandparents etc.! It’s a tradition that I’m not judging, of
course, it’s just there! It comes from the Greeks, actually.. I heard that
everything comes from them..! (laughs) It started from the Gods and then, came
to the people! It’s a nice way to celebrate life, so..why not?! All nations,
all people drink. They just have different drinks and different music..”
10)What does Europe and what do the Balkans, mean for you?
-“ It’s an individuation that is not needed. They belong to each other,
culturally and politically. Dividing them, for me, means a lot of troubles.
Europe is one.”
"French wine" video:
"Peaches and Oats" video:
"Kosta Kostov (balkanXpress Video)" :
-Sound Cloud Page:
-Official Facebook Page:
