Andrés is the performing name of Detroit techno and house producer Humberto Hernandez, also known as DJ Dez. Born in Detroit in 1975, he grows up in a musical family: his father, Humberto “Nengue” Hernandez, plays percussion and sings on the Detroit jazz scene and performs with artists including Mongo Santamaria, Santana and Cachao López. Andrés gets his first drum set at the age of three and is raised around the city’s musical history.

Detroit roots and DJ work

He spends part of his childhood in California, where he begins DJing at underage parties, before moving back to Detroit with his family. He becomes known as a crate digger and vinyl archivist, and works at Buy-Rite Records, the store where Kenny Dixon Jr. also works. He later spends time at Amp Fiddler’s home studio and then meets J Dilla, who brings him in to DJ for Slum Village.

House music and recording career

Alongside his work in hip-hop, Andrés begins exploring Detroit house music from the late 1990s onwards. He releases a run of house-orientated 12-inch singles on KDJ, then develops a long relationship with Mahogani Music. After three full-length albums for Mahogani, he establishes his own label, La Vida, in 2012 and releases the single “New for U” on it.

Other artist named Andrés

The name Andrés is also used by Andres Aparicio, a California musician who grows up in Bakersfield, starts violin at eight, later learns guitar, and forms the band Terra Alive. After seven years with that group, he records as Andrés, releasing Strange Memories on This Nervous Night in 2017 and working with artists including Kurt Travis and Strawberry Girls.