Ricardo Villalobos

Ricardo Villalobos (born 1970) is a Chilean-German electronic music producer and DJ. He is well known for his work in the minimal techno and microhouse genres, and is one of the most significant figures in today's minimal techno scene. Villalobos was born in Santiago, Chile in 1970. In 1973 he moved to Germany with his family to escape the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, who had seized power that year. When Ricardo was around 10 or 11 he started to play conga and bongos. Though he loved music, he could never see himself as a musician. He began making electronic music in the late 80s. From a very young age he has been a big fan of Depeche Mode, even following their tours around Europe to listen to them. Villalobos began to play his music at parties while he was studying at university, but this was only for his own enjoyment. He started a label, Placid Flavour, in 1993 but this was unsuccessful. His first record was released on the German Playhouse label in 1994 and he began DJing as a professional in 1998. At the end of 2008 and 2010, he came 1st in Resident Advisor's Top 100 DJs of the year.