Five years ago, Kristy La Rat and DJ Mafe were in a car on their way to New York to interview and see Oakland-via-Panama rap duo Los Rakas, lamenting the fact that independent artists like that never made it to D.C. Inspired by the show’s energy, Kristy and Mafe decided they would start booking the artists they loved, and Maracuyeah was born. And as the DJs and organizers of Maracuyeah celebrate their fifth anniversary tonight, it’s only fitting that the show will be headlined by Los Rakas, the duo that started it all.
Maracuyeah is many things: a DJ collective, a roving party, a talent booker, a community-building safe space. And for five years, Maracuyeah has been responsible for some of the best dance parties in D.C: inclusive celebrations by and for people of all races, countries of origin, genders, and sexualities—sweaty and sexy tributes to Latin music’s past, present, and future. Or as Mafe describes it, “the original Latin undeground tropical love party.”
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