Speaking with Aleroj is like a crash course in SoundCloud lingo. In the post-pandemic, the Colombian DJ, producer, and co-founder of the label and collective MUAKK emerged as one of the apocalyptic horsemen of uwuaracha, a jagged collage of club sounds woven from guaracha, hardcore techno, and jerk. This thumping universe — sometimes also polemically referred to as Latin Core — has been fleshed out alongside fellow sound demons 2AT, CRRDR, and Nacidmiento, mixing neck-braking instrumentals with Latin American classics from merengue, reggaeton, and villancicos. But while this maximalist, Lisa Frank-esque approach to dance music fosters malcriado humor, Aleroj is hardly interested in creating ephemeral club memes. Instead, uwuaracha is a surprisingly emotional form of expression informed by his cherished musical memories.
“Uwuaracha is about digging into my soul and getting vulnerable, pulling from all the music that shaped me and that I treasure in my heart,” says Aleroj, speaking with Remezcla from his bedroom in Bogotá, Colombia. “I think about my abuelos playing boleros and torbellino boyacense. I think of how much my uncles love rancheras, merengue, and chucu chucu, and how much of this music gets forgotten over time. So I want to bridge the generational gap between younger audiences and what our parents listen to and keep people dancing to beautiful tunes.”
At 26-years-old, the Bogotá native captures the essence of artists raised in the digital age. Born Miguel Alejandro Rojas, his stage name is an Internet avatar adopted when he was nine, surfing the prehistoric metaverse of gaming and chat rooms while his older siblings nourished early obsessions with Portishead, The Strokes, and Daft Punk. Though he picked up the guitar as a teenager, he eventually traded strings for beat stems, kicking off his DJ career in 2019, mixing disco and lo-fi house. Shortly after, Aleroj formed the Perro Perro Collective with fellow DJs Kem Roolhaas and Xara, throwing genre-voracious parties like “Techno de Mamá y Perreo de la Abuela” until the pandemic warped nightlife into an at-home experience of Twitch streams and pre-recorded sets.
Aleroj cites rhythms, collaborators, and influences with MLA precision. He cut his teeth in Bogotá clubs, sharing bills with Ynfynyt Scroll, Paquita Gallego, and glitchy post-punk band Babelgam (while still fronted by 2AT) and playing the essential parties Putivuelta and Continental. His sonic arsenal evolved with blasts of reggaeton, dembow, guaracha, ghetto house from Chicago, and ghettotech from Detroit, tapping into the broader Latin Club wave with mind-expanding productions from DJ Sentimiento in Peru and Hiedrah in Argentina. He became tight with 2AT, and in 2021, he met CRRDR while still a part of the collective Mothership. The three bonded over their love of fast, pummeling music. By the following year, their joint label MUAKK debuted with its first compilation, also featuring tracks from Venezuela’s DJ Baba, Mexico’s DJ Fucci, and Ecuador’s Entrañas.
“The closest thing to a mission statement we’ve ever made was Godfathers of Uwuaracha,” says Aleroj, highlighting his 2023 collaborative LP with CRRDR. However, his first international splash came later that year when Nina Kraviz played his remix of DJ XNX’s “Bandito,” a guaracha-fied rework that angered the Russian techno star’s most purist Latin American fans. “It’s a little sad that people won’t accept certain kinds of music for reasons that are psycho-social,” he adds, commenting on guaracha and la bala’s classist detractors. “There isn’t much use in paying attention to that kind of criticism, so we keep doing our thing.”
It’s a little sad that people won’t accept certain kinds of music for reasons that are psycho-social. There isn’t much use in paying attention to that kind of criticism, so we keep doing our thing.
On the flip side, the controversy put Aleroj in direct contact with Kraviz, striking a friendship and linking up for studio sessions in Mexico City and New York City that will culminate in a forthcoming album. “We operate on completely different rhythms, both musically and in life,” says Aleroj about his creative relationship with Kraviz. “Working with her has been cool and fluid, but she also has a lot of commitments, so it’ll be a while before the music comes out. But we’ve been laying foundations and exploring our common grounds of ghetto house, dance mania, the Chicago sound, juke, and, of course, guaracha.”
Back in December, Aleroj opened for Kraviz during the kick-off to Baum Festival’s 10th-anniversary cycle, where the latter wore a baby-tee emblazoned with “Sobelo!,” the ecstatic battle cry of guaracha. The massive Bogotá gig also dovetailed into the release of his latest album, QUEST FOR UWU, which arrived stacked with bonkers collisions of Baltimore club, dembow, samples of Toño Rosario, and even original vocals, bringing new dimension to his art. Remezcla also named “Caperuputa y el lobo culión” – his demented blend of reggaeton, drum&bass, and grindcore – one of our favorite dance tracks of 2024. And with MUAKK’s sixth compilation drawing a vast network of collaborators across a whopping 55 tracks, you can expect Aleroj to come to preach the gospel of uwuaracha at a club near you all throughout 2025.
“Since the pandemic, a lot of younger people started coming to raves hungry for collectivity,” reflects Aleroj, highlighting the evergreen relevance of safe, inclusive party spaces. “We all want to dance and laugh, so I’m not interested in playing a rigid, 140 BPM techno set. Our essence is irreverent and fun, and I like bouncing between 80 and 200 BPMs. Those unexpected jumps are important. And the point has always been the same: get together, dance, and have fun.”
Photography: Mateo Arciniegas Huertas
Stylist: Fresh Class
Written By: Richard Villegas
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