Montreal-based Afro house artist DJ Karaba was recently nominated for her very first JUNO Award, the 2024 Underground Dance Single of the Year for her fiery song ‘Mad Mess’.
SWOMP’s Dana Haggith caught up with Karaba to discuss the nomination and her career.
Listen, below:
Produced by DJ Karaba herself, “Mad Mess” is an upbeat and energetic pulsating anthem designed for the club scene.
Inspired by Karaba’s dance background and passion for Afro house and tech music, the track delves into the release of inner anger while focusing on deep energy and hints of darkness.
Crafted during a moment of intense anger, “Mad Mess” channels a unique emotional intensity rarely explored by Karaba.
“I am so proud to be representing black women within Canada’s electronic music scene,” said DJ Karaba.
Karaba has amassed a dedicated social media fan base in the past two years with a social media reach of over 1-million followers and over 16-million views on YouTube, in addition to becoming a sought after brand ambassador for companies and brands such as Puma, Tourism Montreal and Jabra.
Her live shows are nothing short of explosive and have taken Karaba around the globe to countries that include London, Switzerland, US, Spain, Morocco, Ibiza and Portugal.
Karaba was born in Grenoble, France and, at the age of seven, moved to Montreal.
As a child, Karaba was enrolled in dance, which would become the next key step in her artistic journey, and her first love.
Self-described as an immigrant all her life, Karaba relocated to key musical markets to pursue dance, like New York when she was 20 years old, and then Los Angeles in 2014.
While in Los Angeles, Karaba danced for some of pop music’s heaviest hitters such as Drake, Camilla Cabello, and Selena Gomez, as well as appearing in numerous music videos and award shows.
When a major tour was cancelled in 2016, Karaba felt helpless about the next step of her career.
She then found her way to DJing and music production, a thought that had been bubbling up in the back of her mind for some time.
Enrolling in the DJ Scratch Academy in L.A., Karaba says she found a renewed artistic purpose.
For more information on DJ Karaba, visit www.djkaraba.com.
The JUNO Awards Broadcast is on March 25 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.