Born to Funk is the solo project of Amsterdam based musician Ferdinand Lijnkamp. As a pioneering leader of the international house scene, his top quality productions are mainstays of countless hype charts and well represented in the boxes of international top DJs.
His latest release is the ‘Stonetown EP’; a trio of tracks inspired and created in reverence to a recent trip to Zanzibar in which he played at the Sauti Za Busara music festival. Here we discuss touring in Africa, creating life-changing experiences through music and getting Maasai warriors jumping on the dancefloor…
Please tell us a bit about your musical background and how you got into house music production…
Well as long as I can remember I've been making music. I studied guitar, piano and composition at the school of arts and DJing started initially as a weekend job to pay for my study. At the time I had my own weekly disco classics and rare groove night in my hometown. All that changed when the first house music parties popped up in the early nineties, and I knew this was something so fresh I wanted to be part of it. I got my hands on an Atari 1040ST and a Roland W30 and started producing my first house tracks. What few people know is my first productions were signed by John Aquaviva and Richie Hawtin and released on Plus8 records in '94. I still remember the excitement of sending DAT-tapes back and forward in the pre-internet era and receiving my first test pressing on my 20th birthday.
Can you tell us about the inspiration behind the tracks on the EP?
I made these tracks in Africa while I was touring Kenya and Tanzania earlier this year. For the second year in a row I attended and performed at the famous Sauti Za Busara Music Festival in Stonetown, Zanzibar. It was there that I found my inspiration and recorded sounds and vibes of the vivid East African music scene that gathers in Zanzibar each year. The EP is my reflection on my days on the island and my interpretation of what I learned and experienced from East African culture. The titles are Swahili words that mean 'Life' (Maisha), 'Wisdom' (Busara) and 'Unity' (Umoja).
Zanzibar probably isn’t one of the first places people think of when asked about house music - tell us about the experience of playing there…
Well, as we all know, Africa is the root of most rhythmical music, so playing tribal influenced house music over there is kind of a natural thing to do. However, I must say the gigs I did on Zanzibar exceeded my wildest expectations. On the last night of the festival, all the performers, dancers, artists and music lovers gathered on the beach – a very willing, creative and open-minded crowd – and I even spotted a group of Maasai jumping on the dance floor! It was a very special and rewarding experience to be part of and I felt I that with the EP I could give something back to all those people whose jaw-dropping performances I had enjoyed so much the days before. The vibe was truly amazing.
Other than your travels, what else inspires you when it comes to your productions?
Oh that can be many things, I can get inspired by other house producers as much as my childhood heroes like Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones and Philip Glass. What also still inspires me is my vinyl collection from ‘88-‘92, from the time house was just house and free of styles and rules. I'm also inspired by people that don't give up and anyone that follows a dream. And when it comes to DJing, never forget that there might be somebody at the back of the room you can give a life changing experience through music.
What have you got planned for the rest of the year?
I'll probably head back to Africa towards the end of the summer, there's still a lot to see, hear and learn there. Then in autumn right after ADE [Amsterdam Dance Event] I'll kick-off my Asia tour in Japan, one of my favorite places in the world also, so really looking forward to that.
Stonetown EP is out 6th July on Copyright Recordings – listen & pre-order
