About this artist
Sega Bodega is a London-based producer, songwriter, vocalist, and co-founder of the NUXXE collective. Inspired by cinema as well as contemporary club culture, he began making complex, sometimes abrasive tracks during the early 2010s, releasing several EPs and two mixtapes of deconstructed soundtrack music. Later in the decade, he became highly active as a producer, collaborating with label co-founders Shygirl, Coucou Chloe, and Oklou as well as singers and rappers such as Brooke Candy and Zebra Katz. His debut album, Salvador, entirely produced and sung by Bodega himself, appeared in 2020. The inward-looking concept LP Romeo followed in 2021.
Salvador Navarrete was born in Galway, Ireland, to Chilean and Irish parents. Raised in Glasgow, he briefly studied at the Royal Conservatory of Scotland, but largely taught himself to produce music using online tutorials. He started creating tracks using the name Peace in 2010, but he settled on Sega Bodega in 2012. He began releasing EPs in 2013, and relocated to London the following year. Reflecting his cinematic influences, he issued a mixtape of reworked movie themes, SS (2015), and started a monthly program on NTS Radio called Sega Bodega’s Soundtrack Series. Also in 2015, his EP Sportswear was released by Slugabed’s Activia Benz label, in conjunction with a tracksuit designed by Bodega. He collaborated with online collective WWWINGS and Chicago rapper Mikey Dollaz, in addition to forming a project with Coucou Chloe titled Y1640.
In 2017, Bristol-based grime label Crazylegs released Sega Bodega’s Ess B EP, including the attention-grabbing single “CC” (featuring Shygirl). An additional single for the label, “Nivea,” followed later in the year. Bodega also issued a second cinematic mixtape, SS (2017), and co-founded the NUXXE label/collective, producing numerous tracks by his labelmates. A solo EP titled self*care appeared in 2018, signaling a move toward more vocal-heavy tracks. After producing Shygirl’s acclaimed 2019 single “BB” and releasing two more solo singles, Bodega issued his first full-length, Salvador, in 2020. The intense, deeply personal album focused on Bodega’s struggles with mental health, relationships, and alcoholism. “Make U Stay,” a collaboration with British singer/songwriter Låpsley, appeared later in the year. 2021 saw the release of the concept LP Romeo, which included collaborations with Charlotte Gainsbourg (“Naturopathe”) and Arca (“Cicada”). ~ Paul Simpson