Panamanian-born artist CIENFUE chats with Melodic Magazine about his English-debut, love for MTV, and the earthly delights that influence his unique sound.
CIENFUE isn’t trying to fit into a mold, he’s creating his own, and you’ll want to watch. His upcoming album, Sunset Sesh, is the most recent example of the unique sound he’s coined as “Psicodelia Tropical” — full of feel-good tracks, fusing the best elements of Tropical Island sounds and Electronic Dance Music.
Listeners will find CIENFUE’s dance-inducing music an essential addition to any “Good Vibes” playlist. So much so, that it is almost inconceivable to imagine his artistic talents developed in Panama under restrictive military rule. “I grew up in Panama City in the ’80s and ’90s. The whole part of the ’80s had a full military dictatorship” CIENFUE says, I was 12 when the U.S. invasion of Panama happened in ‘89,” “It was a huge influence on all my creative endeavors. I’ve always had the distinct influence of all the conflict I saw.”
His childhood is also filled with fond memories, including seeing music videos on what was then the brand new MTV network. When he was known simply as Camilo Navarro Quelquejeu, CIENFUE’s older sister would watch music videos, and he would get a peek at the world that would provide a full circle moment in his adulthood. “She would watch MTV all day and I was like ‘What is that?'” he laughs. His fascination of music led him to Berklee College of Music, on tour with bands in the US, Spain and Puerto Rico, and an original song catalog with over 65 tracks. Little did he know, success would bring him back to where it all started, “Later on I got a couple of videos on MTV for all of America,” CIENFUE says “It was very cathartic to see my creation on this enormous network.”
These days, CIENFUE’s attention is focused on producing sounds his growing audience haven’t heard before, he says “The thing that draws me to music are creating new things and compositions that don’t exist in the world.” This is true two-fold as he makes his English debut with album Sunset Sesh after five full-length projects in his native Spanish. Early single releases “Life in the Tropics” and “Easy on the Eyes” speak to CIENFUE’s ability to compose non-homogeneous music that stays true to his original “Tropical Psychedelia” vibe. The passion CIENFUE uses to speak about music is only rivaled by his love of nature, the album itself is a nod to the charm of beach culture. CIENFUE spoke fondly of the inspiration behind the title track “Sunset sesh is a surfer term for when the sun hits the horizon and the water turns pink at sundown. It’s super magical, it’s [some of ] the inspiration behind the album.”
Fans, new and old, can enjoy the magic of Sunset Sesh as new singles are released monthly on Spotify throughout the year. When asked how he hoped to connect with his expanding English audience, he sounded hopeful, “Come check us out [on Spotify] there’s a lot of material and a lot more coming.” He paused briefly and invited fans to form a deeper bond, “Find me on Instagram, I answer each of my messages personally. I’m looking for a personal connection with each fan.”
