BIO
The Funkologist, born in 1998, is a Berlin- based producer, sound engineer and MC with roots in Ethiopia, Germany and Greece.
Deriving from a multicultural background in combination with the extensive record collection of his father who worked as a radio host he got in touch with music early in his childhood, attending percussion and piano lessons at the local music school.
After finishing his A Levels in Berlin Kreuzberg, he gave multiple creative songwriting and music production workshops at the Käthe-Kollwitz-Oberschule Potsdam, working together with teenagers in order to strengthen their ability to imagine and create rhythmical patterns as well as meaningful lyrics.
In 2021 he began his studies in audiodesign and electronic composition at the Hochschule der populären Künste Berlin which was shortly after followed by his debut single ‘Zeitzonen’ which received wide recognition in the underground Hip-Hop scene around Germany Austria and Switzerland.
In the same year he co founded the nomadic art collective Culture.Room (https://culture-room.com) which aims to accentuate the conceptual and aesthetic characteristics of the presented works through the fluid combination of visual, performative and auditory elements in exhibitions, concerts and other formats. Within Culture.Room he mainly functions as curator, booker and FOH mixer and has worked together with e.g 48h Neukölln-Festival, Adidas or MusicBoard Berlin in order to organize concerts and events around Germany and Europe.
As an artist he performed in various locations and festivals around Europe and the world.
Recent collaborations include artists such as Kurt Tallert (Retrogott), Verbz (High Focus Records) and Figub Brazlevic on whose label he will also release his entirely self produced debut EP 'Sparflamme' in 2025.
Since 2025, he has also been a member of the band Skipback and has released music on labels such as XJAZZ as part of various projects.
Besides mixing classical Jazz elements with fragments of HipHop, Dub and Soul, his focus lies on sharing his emotions and experiences while using the microphone. A message behind both instrumentals and lyrics is a very significant element in his work. While shifting between moody beats and political lyrics he is telling a story which re-explores his roots as well as current eruptions in our political, cultural and social landscape. Not all of his compositions adhere to strict rhyming structures—allowing the microphone to "breathe" is an intentional technique, emphasizing the music's communicative power. Not all of his compositions adhere to strict rhyming structures—allowing the microphone to "breathe" is an intentional technique, emphasizing the music's communicative power. Like in Bebop, live performances include improvisation and audience interaction combined with set structures, fostering an intimate environment that underscores the intersections of jazz, spoken word, and hip-hop, beyond materialistic intentions.
