DAYMÉ AROCENA
Genres: World Fusion, Latin Rock, Soul, Latin Jazz • Cuba

Dayme Arocena displays a rare combination of youthful energy and very adult composure. She has an easy laugh and irradiates warmth, yet the power of her voice and the articulateness of her speech would make you think that she’s much older than twenty-two. A native of Havana’s Diez de Octubre neighborhood, Dayme underlines the weight of her upbringing in the musician that she is today: “Diez de Octubre has an important Afro-Cuban influence. I was born and lived there all my life, so I have a strong base of the [Afro-Cuban] religion— the chants, the rituals and the celebrations.” And, as it is often the case in Cuba, music was also a family affair: “When there was a celebration, my mom and my grandmother would sing and my uncles would play tumbadoras—or if there wasn’t one around they would just find a bucket and a stick and throw read more...