Points of interest in Miami: Cimafunk on the North Seashore Bandshell October 16, 2021

Many in the United States feel that those who live on the island of Cuba can only hear the Buena Vista Social Club over and over again. Cuban-born afro-funk artist Cimafunk contradicts this stereotype and says that he had no other musical upbringing than his American counterparts.

“When I was a kid, I would sing in church and listen to everything,” he tells the New Times. “Up until then you could hear all kinds of music in Cuba. My uncles had Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Bob Marley and loads of dancehall music that we always heard.”

In the church, all of his elders praised the boy, then known by his maiden name Erik Iglesias Rodríguez, for his singing voice. But music wasn’t the first career path he envisioned; he spent three years in medical school. Although it took him some time to gain the realization, he knew he had to give up medicine for future patients.

“My mind wasn’t in the right place for medicine,” he admits. “I wasn’t paying attention. I would be a terrible doctor.”

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After dropping out of college, he focused on his voice and dance moves and moved to Havana, where he renamed himself Cimafunk. His 2017 debut album Terapia mixed Cuban and African funk rhythms with catchy Spanish-speaking choirs and earned him a following that allowed him to tour the world. His energetic live performances, during which he danced across the entire stage, increased his success.

He hopes his second album El Alimento will take his musical career to the next level. It certainly has some notable guest features including Lupe Fiasco and CeeLo Green. But what really got Cimafunk excited during the recording process was the opportunity to work with legendary musicians like the Godfather of Funk, George Clinton, and Cuban pianist Chucho Valdés.

“We talked about people we could work with. I’m a huge George Clinton fan. We spoke to each other and he liked the music. After that, other people performed, ”says Cimafunk.
While several artists recorded their roles separately, Cimafunk worked in the same room as Valdés and Clinton. He even made a music video for the track “Funk Aspirin” with the man named Dr. Spark stone.

“We talked for hours about the whole Afro-Cuban movement in US music,” he says of working with Clinton. He was also exuberant in praise for Valdés. “Chucho picks up the piano and the simplest things he’s done have so much soul. Chucho is an old ghost – he makes you feel things. ”

Cimafunk had even nicer things to say about the album’s producer, Jack Splash, who worked with artists like Alicia Keys and Kendrick Lamar.

“He’s a teacher and he’s also a student. In the middle of a session, we just talk about music or our childhood,” he says. “Sometimes people who know a lot about music don’t want to give you the keys. They don’t want to share their secrets.

Despite having completed an entire album together, Cimafunk and Splash never met in person.

“It was all produced during the pandemic,” says Cimafunk. “He was in LA and I was in France. We were never in the same room. I recorded the singing in my room. He worked on the bass in his room. ”

With El Alimento ready to be unleashed in its entirety on Friday October 8th, Cimafunk looks forward to performing the songs in a live setting for the first time, including the North Beach Bandshell on Saturday , October, 16th.

“This is one of the first places I played in Miami. I love the sound and the open air,” he says. “It’s going to be fun like it was when you only had a cheap bottle of rum and an acoustic guitar. It’s getting a little crazy. We’re going to create a tribal state where we’re all the same and people forget what they’re wearing. ”

Cimafunk 7:00 p.m. Saturday, October 16, North Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; 305-672-5202; www.northbeachbandshell.com. Tickets are $ 35.