A.CHAL
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Alejandro Chal Salazar (born May 30, 1989), professionally known as A. Chal (stylized A.CHAL), is a Peruvian-American singer-songwriter, rapper, and record producer. He released his first EP, ''Ballroom Riots'', in 2013. His debut studio album, ''Welcome to GAZI'', was self-released in June 2016. His single, "Round Whippin, was premiered by
Zane Lowe Alexander Zane Reid Lowe (born 7 August 1973) is a New Zealand radio DJ, live DJ, record producer, and television presenter. After an early career in music creation, production and DJing, he moved to the UK in 1997. He came to prominence thro ...
in 2015. He has performed at the Day N Nite Fest. '' Pigeons & Planes'' named him one of the best new artists in 2015.


Early life

Alejandro Chal Salazar was born on May 30, 1989, in Trujillo, where he lived for 4 years before his family moved to
Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
, New York City. His mother was from rural northern Peru. His stage name is derived from his brother's name, Ichal who died at 2 weeks old, which in turn originated from a mountain that was named after that his father grew up near in Peru, along with being closer to large Peruvian cities. He began rapping at age 12 and later started making beats and writing songs with a friend at the Museum of Science in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 2010, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career as a songwriter and producer.


Career

A.CHAL released his debut EP, ''Ballroom Riots'', in 2013. The album found some success, which he later signed a publishing deal with
Sony/ATV Music Publishing Sony Music Publishing (formerly Sony/ATV Music Publishing) is the largest music publisher in the world, with over five million songs owned or administered as of end March 2021. US-based, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is itself owned ...
. In June 2014, he produced the song "Never Satisfied" by American singer
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Affleck (' Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series ''In Living Color'', where she rema ...
, from her eighth studio album A.K.A.


2015 – 2017

However, after this appearance A.CHAL kept low profile for two years before taking up his artistic pursuits in a highly diversified way. In 2015, he began a series of single releases, which one after another forged his community of followers. He then spent two years out of the public spotlight before beginning to release a variety of singles in 2015. One of those singles, "Round Whippin'", was debuted online on
The Fader ''The Fader'' (stylized as ''FADER'') is a magazine based in New York City that was launched in 1999 by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture. It was the first print publication to be released on iTunes. It is o ...
and then followed up with a world premiere on Zane Lowe's
Beats 1 Apple Music 1, previously branded as Beats 1, is a 24/7 music radio station owned and operated by Apple Inc. It is accessible through iTunes or the Apple Music app on a computer, smartphone or tablet, smart speaker (such as the Apple HomePod), ...
channel and supported on Canadian rapper
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's
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. As a result of this publicity, A.CHAL was named one of '' Pigeons & Planes'' best new artists of 2015. He also performed at the ''
Interview Magazine ''Interview'' is an American magazine founded in late 1969 by artist Andy Warhol and British journalist John Wilcock. The magazine, nicknamed "The Crystal Ball of Pop", features interviews with celebrities, artists, musicians, and creative thinke ...
'' event during Coachella that year. In February 2015, he released the single "GAZI", which he co-produced with Count Justice. In September 2015, A.CHAL released another a single, "Vibe W/U", which was first publicized by American rapper ASAP Rocky on his Twitter profile. In 2016, A.CHAL performed at the Day N Nite Fest. He also released a few more singles before self-releasing his debut studio album, ''Welcome to GAZI'', in June 2016. He has since premiered the official music video for "Round Whippin'" with
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and been featured on tracks by Ro James, Stwo, and Tess. On June 2, 2017, he released the single "Cuánto", featuring American rapper ASAP Nast.


2018 – 2019

On January 25, 2018, Alejandro released the remix of his single "Love N Hennessy", featuring American rapper
2 Chainz Tauheed K. Epps (born September 12, 1977), known professionally as 2 Chainz (or Tity Boi), is an American rapper. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, he initially gained recognition as one-half of the Southern hip hop duo Playaz Circle, al ...
and reggaeton singer Nicky Jam. In March 2018, A.CHAL signed a record deal with
Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...
. In November of the same year, he produced the song "
Bottled Up "Bottled Up" is the debut solo single by American singer Dinah Jane, featuring fellow American singers Ty Dolla Sign and Marc E. Bassy. It was written by A.CHAL, Ty Dolla Sign, Bassy, and Jane. It was released on September 21, 2018. The song ...
" by American singer
Dinah Jane Dinah Jane Milika Ilaisaane Hansen (; born June 22, 1997) is an American singer and a member of girl group Fifth Harmony. In October 2017, she featured in RedOne's single " Boom Boom" with Daddy Yankee and French Montana. After the group's hia ...
, with rapper Ty Dolla Sign and singer
Marc E. Bassy Marc Griffin, known professionally as Marc E. Bassy, is an American singer and songwriter from the San Francisco Bay Area. He is the former vocalist of the Los Angeles-based pop band 2AM Club. His solo works include his 2014 mixtape ''Only the Po ...
. In April 2019, A. CHAL was featured in Spanish singer Rosalía's song " Me Traicionaste", which appeared on the American TV series
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soundtrack, " For the Throne: Music Inspired by the HBO Series Game of Thrones".


2020–present

On May 6, 2020, Alejandro released the single "Hollywood Love", featuring American rapper Gunna.


Musical style

A.CHAL's music generally fits into the hip hop and R&B genres. ''
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'' has described his music as falling somewhere "in the negative space between Hip-Hop, R&B, chillwave, and pop music." A.CHAL himself has described his music's genre as
soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
. His sound has also been characterized as "sedated", "hazy", and "almost-psychedelic". ''Remezcla'' has called his voice "sultry, sparse, and desperate". Lyrically, he largely discusses anecdotal experiences. Writing about his 2016 album ''Welcome to GAZI'', Jules Muir of ''Pigeons & Planes'' noted that A.CHAL attempts to cut "to the core of many of society's ills and triumphs by tapping into a deep well of personal experiences and anecdotes."


Discography


Studio albums


EPs

*''Ballroom Riots'' (2013) *''Exotigaz'' (2018)


Singles


As lead artist


As featured artist


References


External links


Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chal, A American hip hop musicians Hispanic and Latino American musicians Musicians from Queens, New York Living people Epic Records artists Peruvian emigrants to the United States Latin trap musicians 1989 births