Hip-Hop and R&B mix from The Mayor | Carbon Sound

The Mayor, also known as Awa Mally, is a community-forward DJ and creative. Although she’s relatively new to the world of DJing, she has made a name for herself in the Twin Cities, performing at high-energy parties like Samambo, inMotion, and more. She recommends the same process for new or aspiring DJs — get out there and perform, learn, and listen to as much diverse music as possible. If you're not familiar with Awa as a DJ, her all-time favorites mix for Carbon Sound is a perfect introduction.

We chatted with The Mayor about her background and her mix. Read a transcript of the interview edited for length and clarity below:

Who are you and where did your DJ name come from?

I'm Awa Mally, also known as The Mayor. My DJ name came from just being out and about in the city, community events, art events, and then also just repping Minneapolis. People just randomly started calling me The Mayor, and I ran with it. And then when I became a DJ, I was like, "I need a name." And it just kind of made sense.

You've had your hands in different art spaces. What made you want to become a DJ? How'd that start?

Proximity and access, I would say. I've been around DJing my whole life because my dad is a DJ, and then in high school we had a DJ group, and then I also took some DJ classes. And with 

, we also hosted a DJ workshop. So I've always just been around DJs and DJing, but I've never had interest until, I think it was two years ago, when I just had the free time and the interest to pick up a hobby and learn a new skill. It just made sense.

How's it been going so far? What have the learning experiences looked like?

It's been really great. I mean, I'm here now. It's one of those things where I think of it as, always just do your hobby. I had no intentions to do a lot of things I've been able to do with DJing, at all. I just really wanted to give my brain some exercise. And I've been able to do some really cool things, and it just makes me happy to fulfill something that I had on my list, but also just to see how many avenues and outlets you're able to access just by trying something out.

Do you have any specific moments or memories that have stood out?

Okay, this is gonna be one — after I do this, this will be one. And in November, I DJed outside in the Red Bull Jeep for their event, so that was really cool. DJing Samambo was really cool, because that was my first public DJing event, and so just having to kind of beg Kwey and set up a date, because I started DJing, and I was like, "Kwey, we need to set a date so I have something to work towards." So that was really cool, because I feel like that was my DJ introduction.

How does this differ from your other artistic practices?

There's no breaks when you're DJing. You're performing in front of people, like there is no break. Usually with photography, maybe I could catch like a little 5 minute, 10 minute break, but it's really ongoing. And obviously people are attentive the whole time. That's kind of the thing — with everything else, there's so many different ways where it's about you, but it's not about you at the same time, whereas DJing, I feel like you and the crowd or whatever you're doing, it's a constant interaction the whole time. But also, I've realized there's a lot of connection between DJing and so many art forms. You learn buttons, you learn how things work together, and you kind of just bring in your own taste to it.

Is that relationship with the audience exciting or daunting?

Okay, as someone who is a big audience advocate, I am pro-audience over the DJ. Being on the other side of, I guess the stage or the DJ booth, I love it. I feel like parties need to be an interaction and conversation between the dance floor, the DJs, everybody involved. So I like it because I'm playing music and you're responding to it, but you're also dancing or not dancing, and I'm also responding to that. And I feel like it needs to be an active engagement. So I like the friction, but also I like the fun when we're all singing songs together and we're all dancing together, when we're all noticing. I played a gig for the design camp, and I was playing some Mk.gee and some other stuff. And obviously people were at a conference, so they couldn't respond, but when they had breaks, they'd come up to me and be like, "Oh my God, were you playing Mk.gee? Oh my God, I think I heard that song. Oh my God, I know this song." I love things like that. I feel like it's a conversation, versus we're all just kind of being forced to be here with each other. I think more interaction is necessary.

What kind of conversation are you planning to have with the Carbon Sound audience today?

Today, the music I've decided to pick are songs that I feel like, throughout my whole lifetime, these are my favorite songs. I can't fit everything in there, so I'm probably not gonna be able to play everything. But these are songs that no matter what day it is, no matter the weather, I want to hear this song. So I hope maybe other people can relate.

So we're getting The Mayor's all-time favorites in a set.

In a sense, but I will say the set is kind of influenced by the world currently, but it's still my favorite songs. And it's because I usually DJ high-energy parties. And for someone who likes melancholy music, sometimes there's really no place for some of the music I listen to, so I feel like this is also my way of being able to play music that I really, really want to listen, that I just feel like I can't play at midnight.

 A lot of people say they want to DJ, and they don't know how. I always tell people just do it. It's way more intimidating visually than it actually is. If you type on a keyboard, if you scroll on TikTok, if you have a Nintendo, if you can order from the McDonald's menu, I don't know, you can literally DJ. So I think just go for it. Do it, either get a board or just learn how to DJ on your computer. And then, I think it's important for people to listen to more music, listen to diverse music. Use your freedom, and listen to all the music in the world.

Hand-picked favorites from our true Mayor of Minneapolis.


The Mayor (2/4/26)

John Kueppers | MPR

Sara Fish for MPR

Tish Jones stopped by to talk to Carbon Sound’s host Sanni about all things TruArtSpeaks: from their origin story to all the ways they’re celebrating 20 years of their service in 2026.


The Message - Tish Jones

The Children Are Watching x Tish Jones

29:11 International Exchange: Angiwanaki - YourClassical MPR sessions

Interview: Tish Jones

Every 1st of the month, we’re creating a roundup of our favorite tracks, projects, and music videos that were released by Minnesota artists from that previous month. 

Keep our favorite tracks in one place with “Carbon Sound’s 1st of the Month” Spotify playlist. Expect an updated 1st of the Month Playlist on……every 1st of the Month.  Mark your calendars accordingly.

k3ko - stay with me (Official Music Video)

Juice Lord - MA FORGIVE ME (Official Video)

14HunnitVon -EUPHORI (Official Visualizer)

MMYYKK - Craft Synth Bass That Makes Faces Scrunch & Cheeks Jump | Sound Alchemy Vol. 2

Craft Synth Bass That Makes Faces Scrunch & Cheeks Jump | Sound Alchemy Vol. 2

Melly Mike’s Young Black & Rich in Fortnite

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Author

John Kueppers

Natalia Toledo

Highlighting Carbon Sound’s Favorite Minnesota made tracks, projects, and music videos released over the month of November, 2025.


Carbon Sound's Best Minnesota Music from November graphic

Natalia Toledo | MPR

CLOSER

Afro Jagger

Carbon Sound's 1st of the Month

Figments E.P

I CAN'T STFU

sahn - harmar mall

Minnesota Music Releases to check out from November 2025

BdotCroc sat down with Carbon Sound’s host Sanni and talked about her experience as the In-Arena Host for the Minnesota Lynx this season, finding her voice in music, learning from her losses, and more.


BdotCroc sat down with Carbon Sound’s host Sanni and talked about her experience as the In-Arena Host for the Minnesota Lynx this season, finding her voice in music, learning from her losses, and more.

The Message - BdotCroc

Interview: BdotCroc

R&B, Pop, and Hip-Hop mix from Sophia Eris | Carbon Sound

 joins us back in the Carbon Sound studio for a set spanning different eras of R&B, Pop, Hip-Hop, and more. Since moving to the Twin Cities in 2008, Sophia’s music knowledge and artistry have allowed her opportunities to collaborate and share stages with artists like Lizzo, Prince, and other legends. Her robust creative career, paired with her innate love and curiosity for music, makes this Carbon Sound set one that will keep you moving and guessing. 

Red Bull Directions with DJ PEE .WEE (Anderson .Paak) at First Avenue

 on Saturday, Nov. 8. In other news, the first full-length album from 

, is currently in the mixing and mastering process and is on the way.

We chatted with Sophia about her background and her mix. Read a transcript of the interview edited for length and clarity below:

My name is Sophia Eris, I'm an artist, DJ, and producer. I am a transplant of the Twin Cities; I moved here in 2008. And I basically became an artist here, and I love the cities because of that reason.

So did you start out with your music artistry, or did you come here pursuing DJ efforts?

I was actually a college athlete. I played soccer, but I had three concussions, and that wasn't fun anymore, so I decided to pursue music business. So I moved here to go to school at IPR for a music business degree in 2008, I graduated a year and a half later, and I've been here ever since. I started getting acclimated to the scene in a business sense, but then I kind of got pushed into artistry based off of just people encouraging me to do it, so here I am.

That was actually Lizzo's fault. We were in like two groups together and once she put out her solo mixtape, I was a feature on it called "Batches & Cookies." When she got offered her first tour, she was like, "You have to come with me. Just be my DJ." And I was like, "Okay!" I never had DJed before, and so that's how it happened. And I made a lot of mistakes for a lot of people, but that's how you learn. Now I've been a DJ for like, 11 years I would say.

What made you want to stick with it? I'm sure that was kind of hard or embarrassing, not necessarily knowing how to DJ at first.

I've always just been in love with music, you know? These days, whenever people want to reach out to kind of get tools or advice on how to start DJing, I just say taste and timing are two things you can't teach, you know? And if you have those two things, you're good. Everything else you can learn as you go. But as long as you have taste and you have a good playlist, you're good. And I've always just had an innate love and curiosity for music that will never die. So I think that's a good thing to have when you're a DJ. I'm still learning more things about DJing and how to expand and stay inspired. I think that's the main job as an artist.

What's been the most gratifying experience when it comes to being a DJ?

The thing about DJing compared to other forms of artistry that I do, it definitely gave me that — I never felt like I was ever an anxious person — but I felt anxiety for the first time as a DJ because it's so apparent when you mess up. You're like a captain of the boat, and you don't want to rock the ship. And they'll stay on the boat, and they'll follow you wherever you want to go, but just don't make the ship rock. And when I say the ship rock, I mean when you see the floor stop moving, and you feel it so much. So definitely test your strength and skill and patience with yourself and grace with yourself, and it's not about the mistakes you make, it's what you do after. Once I got a hold of that part of it, then I was able to move forward more confidently. So I get really excited when I can just feel the wave and that energy, and I know it was a good set because people are just like, smiling and sweaty.

Well, speaking of good energy, you're gonna be opening up for DJ PEE .WEE, AKA Anderson .Paak. How does that feel?

He's got the craziest energy ever, he just like a walking smile, you know? I'm so excited. As an artist, as Anderson (.Paak), he's someone that, when I first heard him, he was such a good North compass for me. I was like, "This is exactly what I need to hear at this time" because I felt like he was kind of ranging in places that I wanted to go with myself, personally, artistically, and just being able to open him up as a DJ, I'm so excited.

Man, I'm still figuring it out, too. I was lowkey like, "Kwey, what are you gonna do?" I know Kwey was just here, he's amazing, Samambo's amazing. So I'm still kind of scaling out my set for there, but maybe this will be a little taste of it too. I just wanted to stay fresh and innovative, that's the goal. So I'm just meshing sounds that may not be mashed before, so we'll see how it goes.

What can people expect from this Carbon Sound set?

It's just really fun, I think it's a really fun set. I feel like I got a lot of it carved, and I feel like I'm going to kind of freestyle the end of it. But I'm having fun, so I hope you guys have fun too!

Time-bending R&B, Pop, and Hip-Hop from Twin Cities star Sophia Eris.  


Sophia Eris (11/7/25)

JAKI BLUE - September Rain (Official Video)

PR3TTY CHR0M3 LI3S (Official Music Video) Shot by Dylan Depa

Anthony Edwards and bdifferent’s curated album

Janet Jackson posting about Andrea Swensson’s book Deeper Blues: The Life, Songs, and Salvation of Cornbread Harris

Kyle reacting to Essjay TheAfrocentricRatchet

Abraham Westlund performing at Vikings game

abraham westlund performing at vikings game

Highlighting Carbon Sound’s Favorite Minnesota made tracks, projects, and music videos released over the month of October, 2025.


Carbon Sound's Best Minnesota Music from October graphic

SO MANY FLAVORS

TRYNA KEEP MY SPIRITS HIGH

Blu Bone D.A.D

k3ko - Burn Up (Official Music Video)

Culture Jam Presents: Legend In My Hood

Minnesota Music Releases to check out from October 2025

, once again joins us for a dance-worthy set in the Carbon Sound studio. Channeling his eclectic ear and mission to connect the African Diaspora, Kwey delivered a set that seamlessly blends house, Kuduro, R&B, and more.

We chatted with Kwey about his background and his mix. Read a transcript of the interview edited for length and clarity below:

My name is Kwey; I am a producer, DJ, event curator, gentle giant.

I started DJing 2015. I remember my homie, Alec, at the time I was taking producer lessons from him, and he had a show coming up that he was gracious enough to add me on to. And he was like, "Yo, you gotta learn how to DJ." I'm like, damn. And then him and I were in his room, he's just showing me the ropes. And from that point on, I found a new love for DJing, playing music. I guess I was already kind of DJing before, without knowing it, because I'd go to house parties and play music off my phone. But yeah, that was the genesis of me DJing. And then from there, I started DJing more parties and events.

One of the questions I was going to ask was 'What made you want to become a DJ?' but it sounds like you were kind of thrown into it.

I was definitely thrown into it. I wanted to be Pharrell, because I was producing, and I thought my life would be like, "I'm gonna be in the studio every day, cranking out beats." Living that life. But DJing came, like you said I was just thrown into it. But then when I got into the technicals of it, and just doing it more frequently, I was like, "Woah. This is so much fun." So I just kept doing it over and over and over and over and over again.

For the people who aren't up to date with Carbon Sound's Gig List that features your events all the time, what is Samambo World?

Samombo World is a platform that I started 2018, it is a space to connect the African Diaspora through music. Right now, it's just a dance party where we have a bunch of fire DJs, lots of great music, and we're just trying to create a space to have people come be free, allow them to express themselves however they see fit, and enjoy good music. It's been fun over the last seven years, which is crazy.

What's been the most gratifying part of that journey and experience?

Honestly, seeing how the people are responding to the space. Even today, I'm kind of overwhelmed. I don't have words for it, but yeah, just seeing the response from the crowd, seeing how engaged people are with what we're doing. It just means a lot.

It is crazy, it feels like every event is sold out too, which is probably a lot to process.

Do you stop and cherish it or is that hard to do?

It's super hard to do. I think I need to make more time to do that. But yeah, it's been wild. Sometimes I'll be at the party, standing on the stairs looking down, like, "Oh, this is crazy."

You're also opening up for DJ PEE .WEE aka Anderson .Paak soon, what does that feel like?

I'm super excited, because he's one of my favorite artists. 2016, I think that's when Malibu dropped, I rinsed that album every day from top to bottom. That album is in my veins. So to be opening for him definitely means a lot. Him and I share the same name too, his name is Brandon. I'm excited to see what he brings as a DJ, I know he pivoted to that a couple years ago, so I'm excited to see what he has. But also I'm excited to play some good music for people. Get people dancing, get people grooving.

Is that all you can tell right now? Or what can people expect from that set?

Oh definitely, you're gonna dance. That's for sure, I'm gonna make sure people dance. And if people aren't dancing, then I haven't done my job.

Lastly, what kind of set are you giving Carbon Sound?

I'm gonna be honest, I definitely wasn't as prepared for this set. But, this was just a compilation of most of the songs that I was just feeling right now, that I've been listening to or just recently discovered. It's just a mixture of house Kudoro, which is an Angolan genre, ties between Angola and Portugal, like amapiano influence. It's not amaiano necessarily, but it's like a fusion of amapiano. Yeah, it was just good vibes, I think. So hopefully I delivered.

House, Kuduro, R&B, and more from the King of Samambo World.


Kwey (10/31/25)

D’Angelo, the Grammy-winning R&B singer recognized by his raspy yet smooth voice and for garnering mainstream attention with the 

shirtless “Untitled (How Does It Feel)” music video,

The singer, whose real name was Michael Eugene Archer, died Tuesday, according to a statement from the family.

The singer’s family confirmed in a statement Tuesday that he died after a prolonged battle with cancer. They called him “a shining star of our family and has dimmed his light for us in this life,” adding that they are “eternally grateful for the legacy of extraordinarily moving music he leaves behind.”

In his music, D’Angelo blended hip-hop grit, emphatic soul and gospel-rooted emotion into a sound that helped spearhead 

 of the 1990s. Earlier this year, the Virginia native celebrated the 30th anniversary of 

his debut studio album “Brown Sugar,”

 a platinum-selling offering that produced signature 

 and the title track. The 1995 album earned him multiple Grammy nominations and cemented him as one of R&B’s most original new voices.

D’Angelo’s sultry vocal style — a mix of raspy texture and church-bred fluidity — set him apart from his peers. That voice became inseparable from the striking visuals of his 2000 single “Untitled (How Does It Feel).” The minimalist, shirtless music video became a cultural touchstone, igniting conversations around artistry, sexuality and vulnerability in Black male representation. The song earned him a Grammy for best male R&B vocal performance and propelled his 

 topping the Billboard 200 chart and winning the Grammy for best R&B album.

Beyond his own catalog, D’Angelo’s artistry shined in collaborations. He memorably duetted with Lauryn Hill on the soulful ballad “Nothing Even Matters,” a highlight of her landmark 

1998 album “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.”

 He also contributed to The Roots’ 1996 album “Illadelph Halflife” and was part of the supergroup Black Men United, which yielded one song: “U Will Know,” which D’Angelo wrote and co-produced, for the film “Jason’s Lyric” in 1994.

D’Angelo was partnered to Grammy-nominated R&B singer Angie Stone in the ’90s. The pair met while he was finishing “Brown Sugar” and bonded over their similar backgrounds: Both are from the South and both grew up in the church. Stone worked on the album with D’Angelo and the pair co-wrote the song “Everyday” for her 1999 debut album, “Black Diamond.”

Stone described D’Angelo as her “musical soul mate,” to The Associated Press in 1999, adding that their working relationship was “’like milk and cereal …. Musically, it was magic. It’s something that I have not been able to do with any other producer or musician.”

They had a son together, the artist Swayvo Twain, born Michael Archer Jr.

D’Angelo also has a daughter, Imani Archer.

This Associated Press story originally published on the 

The Associated Press

D’Angelo, the Grammy-winning R&B singer recognized by his raspy yet smooth voice and for garnering mainstream attention with the shirtless “Untitled (How Does It Feel)” music video, has died. He was 51.


Rich Fury | nvision/AP

D’Angelo, Grammy-winning R&B singer who became an icon with ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel),’ dies

XINA stopped by to talk to Carbon Sound’s host Sanni about her IRON X EP, opening up for Duckwrth in Chicago, XINAVERSE, and more.


XINA stopped by to talk to Carbon Sound’s host Sanni about her ‘IRON X’ EP, opening up for Duckwrth in Chicago, XINAVERSE, and more.

The Message - XINA

XINA - Runnin Visual

Interview: XINA

Essjay TheAfrocentricRatchet - A Masterpiece

High School For Recording Arts - Tune in Speak Out

Treyson Green - JOHN WALL “Official Music Video”

Ness Nite - Tell Me (Official Music Video)

Global Broken Beat mix from Angel Beloved | Carbon Sound

Gladiator School Vol. 6: The All Star Cypher

Gladiator School Vol. 6: The All Star Cypher | Shot by Alec Baenen

Highlighting Carbon Sound’s Favorite Minnesota made tracks, projects, and music videos released over the month of September, 2025.


Carbon Sound's Best Minnesota Music from September graphic

Stories

The Mayor (2/4/26)

Interview: Tish Jones

Minnesota Music Releases to check out from November 2025

Get the Carbon Sound app

Interview: BdotCroc

Sophia Eris (11/7/25)

Minnesota Music Releases to check out from October 2025

Kwey (10/31/25)

Connect with Carbon Sound

D’Angelo, Grammy-winning R&B singer who became an icon with ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel),’ dies

Interview: XINA

Minnesota Music Releases to check out from September 2025

See more stories →