Hozho

Joel Monteiro, popularly known as Hozho, is an electronic music producer and DJ from Portugal. With millions of streams across multiple platforms, Hozho achieved what few artists can: capture the world’s attention and build a huge fanbase with his own unique signature – Melodark – that takes anyone who listens to him on an unforgettable journey. A project born in 2015, Melodark goes beyond being just a musical genre. Since its inception, it has become an artistic movement with an emotional, motivational and overcoming message. Hozho describes it as a lifestyle and a philosophy. Musically speaking, Melodark is characterized by the symbiotic contrast between the beautiful melodies (melo) and the darkness surrounding the synths and basslines (dark), often based on a minimal techno beat. A self-proclaimed activist against the status quo, Hozho’s personal style of music has helped him test his boundaries and not keep his creativity in a box, being very common to hear in his productions mesmerising vocals and experiments with the most diverse musical genres such as classical music and breakbeat. Where many electronic producers get lost in the loopiness of lengthier beats, Hozho feels at home there. Each tune is a journey in its own right, courting the listener through the enchanted Melodark forest of the Portuguese producer’s sonic envoy. Take for example his 2019 album Yin Yang, one of Hozho’s greatest hits so far. Yin Yang invites listeners on an aesthetically sound aural adventure fusing darker influences, from techno, progressive, electro and even orchestral sound palates for an experience all its own, where most of his songs are longer than 7 minutes. In addition to the album, Hozho has released several EP’s, singles and remixes over the years. His first single of 2022 – Honey Trap – came to reinforce his unique style, diversifying the Plague Doctor from the pack and disregarding the current dance music meta for something more intrinsically expressive, currently counting more than 10 million views on YouTube. Though he began exploring other sounds which reflect in his music, he didn’t stray away from his genre. Passion, motivation and the sheer love for music has been the driving force for Hozho to achieve the success he has today, taking his art and performing all over the world.