Pedro Montenegro is a Brazilian radio host, producer, and passionate music curator whose career has taken him from Rio de Janeiro’s vibrant cultural scene to London’s global airwaves. His love of music began with the soundtracks of childhood films and cartoons and was first shaped by MTV rather than radio. While studying journalism, Pedro discovered the creative possibilities of broadcasting and soon began spotlighting Brazilian music, both classic and contemporary.
Mentorship from legendary Rádio Globo presenter Loureiro Neto and years immersed in Brazil’s live music scene cemented his path, leading to a move to London where he now hosts ‘BarKino’ on Soho Radio and ‘Cavity Feeling’ on Worldwide FM, championing new Brazilian sounds alongside music from across the globe.
We spoke to Pedro about his approach to both of his shows, gaining Gilles Peterson’s trust and how radio has become a source of comfort.
How did your journey with music begin and lead you to radio?
Pedro Montenegro: I’ve been listening to music since an early age, especially through movie and cartoon soundtracks. The first records I ever had were soundtracks to movies and series. TV Colosso, Space Jam and The X-Files. Radio was never a big thing for me when growing up. MTV always had a bigger influence on me, to be honest.
When I had to go to college and choose what to do, I picked journalism, but halfway through I changed to Radio & TV. MTV had its own magazine in Brazil for some years, and on it I read about podcasts and doing your own ‘radio show’ from home. So in 2007 I started an online monthly short show called ‘Microondas,’ to play music from Brazil, mixing new and old releases. That lasted for almost a year.
During those college days I made a friend whose father was another legendary radio host, Loureiro Neto from Rádio Globo, one of the biggest radio stations in Brazil. He hosted a variety morning show there, ‘Manhã da Globo,’ and a variety afternoon show, ‘Botequim da Globo.’ We bonded and he was my greatest supporter in radio. He had me in the studio almost every week to show me how things worked, and sometimes he would put me on the mic, live, to talk about some Brazilian popular artists and play their songs. I’m eternally grateful to Loureiro and his team. After that I worked for a couple of months at Baratos da Ribeiro, a second hand bookshop and record store in Copacabana (now in Botafogo as Sebo Baratos), a rare space in Rio where some in-store gigs still happen, with a wide range of independent artists from Brazil and abroad.
In late March 2013 Caetano Veloso did a four day residency at Circo Voador, the most iconic music venue in Brazil and the best place I know to watch a gig. I went to all four nights, and after one of those shows I had a magical encounter with its director, Maria Juçá. Three weeks later I started as executive producer there, where I stayed for four full years. In July 2016 I came to London for the first time. Less than a year after that I left Circo Voador to move to this island, and I still don’t know how to slow down.
Not long after I got here, I interned for a few months at Far Out Recordings, and on just a few nights I worked at Total Refreshment Centre’s bar. I also promoted a couple of gigs in June 2018 from two of my heroes: Domenico Lancellotti at Cafe OTO (my favourite venue in London), when he was in town to play at the Barbican with Gilberto Gil, sharing some band members; and Kassin at Total Refreshment Centre, both super meaningful events for me. Kassin is the one that introduced me to Gilles Peterson. Since 2019 I’ve been working for Gilles and joined Worldwide FM’s crew a year later, during COVID-19 lockdown.
How did you get your radio shows on Soho Radio and Worldwide FM?
In July 2019, my dear friend Carwyn Ellis, who hosts the brilliant ‘A Word With Carwyn Ellis’ on Soho Radio, asked me if I’d like to host a show there. His show used to be weekly, but he had a very busy agenda touring with Pretenders, Edwyn Collins and his own music. So he asked if I’d like to have a fortnightly show, making his fortnightly as well – every other Monday from 10pm to midnight. That’s how ‘BarKino’ started. I’ve been working for Worldwide FM for over six years and have been doing occasional shows. I also had the chance to sit in for Gilles Peterson a few times when he was away. But it was just in January this year when the station started to build up a more consistent programme. I was then offered a regular show every Wednesday from 10am to midday.
What was it about radio that really attracted you to it later in your life?
I feel that everybody seems to love Brazilian music here, but Brazilian music here is a genre, a specific one. It’s awesome to see all the reverence. But I feel like Brazil is seen as some sort of Atlantis or lost civilization that stopped producing decades ago. It goes way beyond the whole Samba-Soul-Jazz-Funk found through the crate digging and reissue dimension. There was never a time without astonishing music being made there.
When I was offered a show on Soho Radio I knew I wanted to focus on that new Brazilian production. But also that I didn’t want to be the Brazilian music show. I live in London, where artists from all over the globe come to perform. So I didn’t want to restrict myself from playing anything I wanted to. To focus on sounds that are already highlighted on other shows. It was a chance to shine a light on artists I love and a healthy excuse to go deeper in my sleepless personal research of all that new production from Brazil. But also being just a voice, and not a face.
Radio also deals with imagination, or at least used to. We didn’t know what the hosts looked like, and loved the shows from what we listened to. With the advent of social media and the incessant need to promote ourselves as products, the pictures and videos demanded to feed the algorithm can weigh as much as the shows sometimes. I have a really hard time thinking about posing for a picture holding some vinyls and coffee in front of shelves full of vinyls and plants (and maybe a cat?). So just being a voice and making it about the music was very attractive too. Nothing to see here, but to listen.
What are some of the guiding principles of your shows?
I’ve never actually stopped to think about it, but their focus is always the music. I can mess up saying something wrong, and I do. But I want to make sure the music will be good. When I say ‘good’ I mean good for me, since personal tastes are subjective. But at least to keep it unpredictable from show to show. I want guests on both shows, whenever possible. On ‘BarKino,’ a guest for a long chat and a few live songs. On ‘Cavity Feeling,’ a guest with a selection of tunes to play. Both shows are two hours long, and to host that by myself isn’t so interesting for me. Having a guest always brings something different, and they make the shows better.
What would you say was the one turning point for you in your radio journey?
A few moments I dearly cherish are the times when I have a live guest on ‘BarKino.’ It’s amazing to invite artists I deeply admire and have them up for doing it. I’ve recorded and have been recording with a lot of artists I personally know. But to have some artists I’ve been listening to for so many years in the studio for a chat and play a few live songs is quite special. Having Glen Matlock, Letrux, The Blank Tapes (Matt Adams) and Rolando Bruno was fantastic. And to have artists at the initial stage of their careers as well, like Sophia Chablau E Uma Enorme Perda de Tempo, Ana Frango Elétrico, Silver Gore, MAY and Idlework (now Bugbear). It’s always a joy!
The moments when I sat in for Gilles Peterson on his Worldwide FM shows were really special too. Gilles is the most important and influential DJ in the world when it comes to music on the radio. To have his trust to host his four-hour live show made me feel like he sees something in me and wants to help me develop it. He’s very generous.
How do you get ready for your shows?
I do some research about what I play and about the guests I have on the shows. On ‘BarKino’ I always try to mention the artist’s name, the song title, the album it’s on, the year of release and the songwriters. Especially the songwriters – I don’t think they get enough attention on the radio. For the guests on ‘BarKino,’ I try to build up a profile going through their careers in our chat. Play songs that feature them on those shows. On ‘Cavity Feeling’ I talk way less, so there’s less preparation as well. It’s more about just playing music and my selections are very last minute.
What is one radio show from your archive that defines you?
I’ll say the most recent one. For always being up to date with the most recent version of whoever I am. I try to make each show unique, without repeating songs, so they’re usually very different from each other.
What are some of your proudest moments in radio so far?
Feedback is a pretty rare thing for me to have. A few times a ‘BarKino’ listener called Rhus Pimentel has written to me saying how much he enjoys the shows. How he never misses it, and that his mother is a fan as well. He said that listening to it inspired him to start his own show, ‘Protótipo,’ that lasted for ten editions. It warmed my heart to see that something I’ve been doing has inspired others. His feedback and initiative made it worth all the other feedback I never had.
Another thing I really enjoyed doing was a series of compilations with exclusive covers of Brazilian music recorded for ‘BarKino.’ I went to Brazil in February 2020, and there I recorded more than ten sessions for the show with Diego Medina, Rotapajos, Guilherme Lirio, Vovô Bebê and others. That gave me plenty of great material to play for some months during that endless lockdown era.
But with the impossibility of going to the studio and having guests, I thought about asking artists I adore if they could record a cover of a Brazilian song to play on the show. Any song from any time, just had to be Brazilian. The initial idea was to just have some covers to play on the show. I thought I’d get some lo-fi bedroom recordings. But their standards were so high that I decided to make them available online, apart from the radio shows. Since more and more were coming, I put them together on compilations available only on Bandcamp.
“My radio shows have been working as some sort of therapy since I started doing them.”
What have been the most satisfying parts of building your radio community?
Connecting people from different scenes (sometimes from the same) and seeing new projects being developed, new music happening from those encounters, new friendships. In a city like London with so many incredibly talented people from everywhere, sometimes I assume that most of these artists already know each other. But that’s not always the case. Since I navigate through different scenes, it’s very satisfying to at times link them. That’s one of the things that brings me more joy.
What do you think you’ve learned about yourself through your radio shows?
It takes a lot of effort to change and improve. Not that I didn’t know it, but they’re a constant reminder. I really love doing these shows. The main reason is always the music. But they’ve been working as some sort of therapy since I started doing them. They give me something to look for creatively. The shows helped me keep my centre during lockdown and other tough times. They make me listen to music in a different way. Thinking about what can fit each show, which guests could be good for them. Looking for sounds that wouldn’t be in my way if it wasn’t for them.
Follow Pedro Montenegro on Mixcloud.
Lead image feature Pedro and Mei Semones.