From the Promoter

In their eighteen years together as a band, celebrated Los Angeles culture-mashers Ozomatli have gone from hometown heroes to being named U.S. State Department Cultural Ambassadors.

Ozomatli has always juggled two key identities: they are the voice of their city and they are citizens of the world.

Their music - a notorious urban-Latino-and-beyond collision of hip hop and salsa, dancehall and cumbia, samba and funk, merengue and comparsa, East LA R&B and New Orleans second line, Jamaican ragga and Indian raga - has long followed a key mantra: it will take you around the world by taking you around L.A.

Originally formed to play at a Los Angeles labor protest, Ozomatli spent their early days participating in everything from earthquake prep “hip hop ghetto plays” at inner-city elementary schools to community activist events, protests, and city fundraisers. Since then, they have been synonymous with their city: their music has been taken up by MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers and the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers, they recorded the travelogue “City of Angels” as a new urban anthem, and they were featured as part of the prominent L.A. figures imaging campaign “We Are 4 L.A.” on NBC-TV. Ozomatli also have the distinction of headlining the Hollywood Bowl three times, in 2008, 2010 and 2012. In recognition of their efforts, the City of Los Angeles has officially declared every April 23rd in perpetuity as “Ozomatli Day”.