Ones2Watch Home

Thanks to massive acts like Rosalía and C. Tangana, there’s been a mainstream integration of traditional Spanish culture. Pulsing sounds that once lived confined in cobblestoned alleyways now breathe new life through burgeoning artists, introducing ancient texts to a young generation.  

Flamenco music in particular has been reborn through collaborations with rap and pop, and now electronic music as well. Spanish female DJ and producer duo MESTIZA have concocted a unique recipe of melodic techno with traditional Spanish folklore, producing something that pays deep honor to their ancestral roots while equally producing something modern and alive.

Together, Pitty Bernad and Belah have pioneered a once unexplored sound that makes this vibrant and massive world feel just a little bit smaller and interconnected. More than music, their sounds elicit something deeply primitive, a psychadelic trip that cracks the spirit wide open.

We sat down with one half of MESTIZA ahead of their Coachella performance to discuss the true meaning of what it means to be a Spanish Chica, and how their club beats blending with flamenco instrumentation heals something far beyond the music.

OTW: What is it exactly about Spanish culture that you want to translate to the rest of the globe through your music?

Pitty Bernad: We define ourselves as these Spanish chicas. It's the name of our second album and we’ve been working so much on the music and on the concept, since five years ago. For those who don’t know, we mix Spanish music and electronic music. In this new album, we try to tell the story of our roots, of how flamenco is a long story of many generations. It has multicultural roots because of the travel from India, Asia, Europe, and finally coming to Spain. We wanted to tell a multicultural story through our music, as we do also in our sets. In the new album, you can find many mixes of many other languages, not only Spanish. We have some references to the Indians, to the Arabs.

I think that's why when I'm immersed in your music, I have a very spiritual experience. It’s a celebration of something so much deeper. Moving to it feels so much more than just dancing. 

Flamenco is a very deep genre. It comes from the soul. Sometimes, it feels like someone is really telling you something from the inside. It's very passionate. So we wanted to transfer this in the mix that we are doing so that we can just dance with the passion and deepness from the soul that these singers are singing. 

What kind of crowd do you want to see when you bring this experience around the world?

As DJs, we want the people to enjoy, to dance, to forget what's the future, the past, everything. We want them to live the present moment. We’ve been performing as DJs for more than 10 years separately. Then we started together and when we started this project and our first motive was to make the people dance. But also to communicate and to make people emotional with our music. It's a combination of making them dance with passion and with a purpose.

Has there been a crowd in any city or country that really surprised you with the way that they responded?

We’ve been performing in so many different countries. When we go to places like Thailand or Indonesia, you never know what you're gonna see. But at the end, it's incredible because you can really connect through this traditional mixes with them very easily. We realized that the cantos, when someone is singing in a traditional way, is all very connected. The whole root of the music in the world is the same.

Speaking to the title of this next project, what would you say defines exactly what a Spanish Chica is?

For us, the definition of a For us, the definition of a Spanish Chica is very easy, because she's this woman who wants to look straight to what she wants. Together with her girls, with her partner, with her friends, she likes helping other Spanish chicas to succeed. Very brave, very confident and knows what she wants. On the cover of the album, we tried to present this through riding a horse together on the same horse. Like, we go together to the same direction, we are facing our way.

How do you think that the music translates that intention?

If you listen to the album, there is a lot of feminine energy. This whole album is a presentation of how we face the reality of the life. For example, there is a song that says, “Alili, Alili,” it's called “Te Doy La Libertad.” This song is a very traditional song that we got from Hermanas Montoya that are this all girls gypsy family. It's a very magical moment. It's like an empowering moment of women dancing together.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but are you the only Spanish act to be performing at Coachella this year?

There are two, one is us and the other one is a guy that is going to perform. But we are the only feminine act from Spain that is performing this year.

How do you feel about Coachella? Are you guys nervous? Are you excited? 

It’s such an honor to be part of this festival. It's a dream. I always wanted to go and now, going as an artist is a complete dream. We’re working a lot to prepare a cool show and a nice performance. I think you're gonna love what we're preparing. We have such many surprises for you guys. We are very excited. From the day we got confirmed, we started thinking, “How we can do this? How we can present this, what are we going to wear?” It's such an honor to be there.

Are there any acts that you're excited to see just as fans?

Of course, Karol G, Justin Bieber, Anyma for sure. There are so many. I think it's such an opportunity also to know new artists in the festival. We're very excited to go. 

Listen to Spanish Chica below: