Gordo

Gordo is the house and techno project of Diamanté Blackmon, also known as Carnage. He is a producer from Guatemala City, and his background is rooted in both Guatemala and the United States. Born in 1991, he works in trap EDM as well as house and techno.

Career and alias

Blackmon launches Gordo as a new house music alias after performing under the name Carnage. The project grows out of a period of reflection during the pandemic and marks a deliberate shift away from the harder-edged sound associated with his earlier work. Under this name, he focuses on house music and presents it as both a musical change and a personal reset.

Releases and collaborations

As Gordo, Blackmon releases tracks including

'KTM'

, which reaches the Top 10 on the Beatport Main Chart,

TARAKA

, named after his event series, and the techno-influenced

Leaving Earth

, a collaboration with KAS:ST. He also releases

RIZZLA

, his first release with The Martinez Brothers, which receives strong attention from DJs, media and radio. He is also credited with production on Drake’s dance-focused album

Honestly, Nevermind

.

Live work and events

Gordo tours internationally and plays venues and festivals including Hï Ibiza, So Track Boa, Shalvata Tel Aviv, Lollapalooza, Fiction Canberra and Savaya Bali. He also curates TARAKA, an event series that appears in cities including San Francisco, Miami, Tulum, Mykonos, Amsterdam, New York, Bulgaria and Detroit. These events feature extended sets, surprise guests, handpicked line-ups and minimal production.

Background and wider work

Blackmon grows up in Guatemala with his mother and aunt, then moves back to the United States at the age of 10 with little English and almost no money. He later moves to Hawaii during the pandemic and lives with his grandmother. He says his early experiences motivate him to build schools in Nicaragua. He also speaks about learning the roots of house and techno through clubs in Ibiza and using Gordo to educate younger listeners about those traditions.

Recognition

Blackmon is identified as a widely recognisable figure in electronic music and is described as the number one producer on Billboard’s Hot 100 producers list.