With influences ranging from Flora Purim and Minnie Riperton to Portishead, Sweetback and Warpaint, multi-hyphenate Malena Pérez is an enigmatic, otherworldly force. Born in Atlanta, Georgia to a Cuban father and German mother that surrounded her with music, she was exposed early on to a diverse sonic palette that would later inform her evocative, genre-bending style.

Pérez debuted on the international music scene in 2004 with her first vinyl release, "Free To Fly", and introduced a bilingual fusion of Nu Latin Jazz and soulful, Atlanta-infused broken beat and dance music performed with a live eight-piece band. Over the ensuing decade and a half, taking up residence in New York, Berlin and the San Francisco Bay, she's delivered an eclectic suite of experimental, bass-driven electronic soul, garnering worldwide radio and DJ support. Her collaborative partners span the globe and have included Grammy-nominated producers Dennis Ferrer, Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez and deep house trailblazers Osunlade and Fred P. (Black Jazz Consortium). Her recordings have been distributed by acclaimed labels P-Vine (Japan), Mobilee (Berlin) and Objektivity Records (NYC), to name a few. Pérez is also a contributor to Sydney, Australia’s Curved Radio program (107.3 FM) where she features music from other independent artists from around the world. Now based in Baja California Sur, Mexico, Pérez is currently preparing new projects for forthcoming release.

Photography by Julie Yarbrough.