The ongoing focus of Beats of All-Nations Radio is finding a common denominator through music from around the world, while continuing to feature known veterans and new artists/producers/djs alike from the cultured community. The past guest roster of Beats of All-Nations Radio show has included live studio sessions by the likes of Lealani, Buyepongo, Beat Cinema, Sumohair & Yanga as well as feature sets/interviews from respected legends like Seun Kuti, B+, Mixmaster Wolf, Danny Holloway. Though we have joined dublab several times on past shows, including a few guest feature broadcasts we have hosted, we’re excited to join the station and look forward to casting out a wider net of sounds, guests, and listeners.

Alejandro Ayala is a curator, organizer, educator, and dedicated Chicagoan. Known to many by his DJ name ‘King Hippo,’ Ayala hosted a monthly show on the globally-distributed QC Radio program on Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide FM. For two decades he’s been an active event producer and promoter, responsible for the long-standing Fresh Roasted series at The Whistler, the annual Preservation of Fire series, the legendary CHICAGOxLONDON showcase at London’s Total Refreshment Centre, the DALLASxCHICAGO interstate artist exchange at Sleeping Village in 2018, the Chicago debut of Grammy-winning Australian prog-soul band Hiatus Kaiyote at The Double Door in 2014, and innumerable one-off events for myriad artists across Chicago’s diverse landscape of venues (including Elastic Arts, Co-Prosperity, Transition East, Empty Bottle, and many more). Between 2020 and 2022 he worked as an instructor for After School Matters, for whom he designed a unique ‘Event Planning & Production’ curriculum. Currently, Ayala works as Head of Marketing for the International Anthem record label, where he’s been a creative engineer behind album campaigns for Damon Locks’ Black Monument Ensemble, Jaimie Branch, and Junius Paul, in addition to acting as photographer-in-residence (his photographs of Angel Bat Dawid have been published by The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Rolling Stone), and co-producing three albums by Makaya McCraven. In 2021 the Chicago Reader profiled Ayala as a Chicagoan of Note.

Photo credit: Lori Mendoza