DJ Anjali & The Incredible Kid

DJ Anjali and the Incredible Kid have played a transformative role in the Portland, Oregon club scene for over a decade, presiding over two of Portland’s longest-running and most successful dance parties, as well as hosting a cult radio show on KBOO community radio. They are most known for incinerating dance floors with the South Asian sounds of Bhangra and Bollywood, but the duo scours the globe for any hard-hitting music that combines local musical traditions with window-rattling production. After making a name for themselves in their hometown’s raucous house party circuit, DJ Anjali & The Incredible Kid introduced the Portland, Oregon nightclub scene to the sounds of Bhangra and Bollywood on New Year’s Eve 2000. After a series of residencies, beginning with a six-month residency at the legendary Blackbird, the duo began hosting their ANDAZ dance parties in July of 2002. The party’s focus on hardcore Panjabi Bhangra and the latest electronic confections from the Bollywood film industry continue to pack the dance floor after nine years.

While ANDAZ was still in the bloom of youth, Anjali and The Kid founded the popular dance night ATLAS (with co-host/DJ E3) at Holocene in November of 2003, making it the longest-running night in the club’s history. The ATLAS parties provide a forum for the duo to feature other sounds in their repertoire including: UK Asian flavas, Middle-Eastern hip-hop, Balkan Beats, Funk Carioca, Kuduro, Merengue Urbano, Reggaeton and all local and diasporic future musics. Since introducing Portland club audiences to the amazing sounds of the South Asian diaspora and more the duo have remained in constant demand playing any number of one-off events nearly every weekend of the year in addition to their regular parties. The duo barnstormed New York in December of 2004 when they were flown out to headline a sold-out party at NYC’s oldest and best Bhangra party: Basement Bhangra, where Anjali has returned to play several times. In the Fall of 2005 Anjali and The Kid began their long association with KBOO community radio, where they currently host a weekly radio show every Tuesday evening. In January of 2007 Anjali and the Kid headlined the opening night party of the Vancouver International Bhangra Celebration in Vancouver, British Columbia, and in August of 2009 they headlined the opening night party of the Vancouver Queer Film Festival. In 2010 they played the Beloved and Photosynthesis festivals, and in 2011 they returned to these festivals as well as playing Decibel Festival. They were the only artists to play all four nights of the Sasquatch! Festival’s 10th anniversary, including headlining the dance stage opening night.

Together and separately they have supported artists as diverse as Digable Planets, Balkan Beat Box, Major Lazer, Sleigh Bells, Skrillex, DJ Spooky, Tigerstyle, Boban i Marco Markovic Orkestar, Delhi 2 Dublin, Glitch Mob, State of Bengal, MSTRKRFT, Karsh Kale, DJ Rekha, CeU, Antibalas, Dengue Fever, Blockhead, Soulico, The Decemberists, Rupa & the April Fishes, Gold Panda, DJ Marcelinho Da Lua, Washed Out, Toy Selectah, Pink Martini, Quantic, Opiuo, Bonobo, Extra Golden, Maga Bo, Plastician, Flying Lotus, Ming & FS, Joro-Boro, Kultur Shock, Ghostland Observatory, J-Boogie, and Nickodemus from Turntables on the Hudson.