Soulico

Individually established figures within Israel’s music community long before uniting, the four DJs who would become Soulico each brought distinct credentials to the table. Eyal Rob, performing as DJ Rob, had already earned recognition as a music journalist and blogger. Michael Emet, known onstage as Shimmy Sonic or Shimi Sonic, instructed sound design at the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, the country’s premier art institution. Ido Saar, working as DJ Wido, contributed writing before joining VP Records early in the 2000s, while Ronen Sabbo, under the name Sabbo, served as Mad Decent’s Tel Aviv liaison and spent time in Jamaica assisting Stephen and Damien Marley. Once operating collectively as Soulico, the quartet launched weekly Tel Aviv parties that expanded rapidly, prompting the 2004 release of their mixtape Masabacha. The project fused hip-hop with traditional Israeli melodies, drawing regional notice across the Middle East and attracting Aaron Bisman, co-founder of New York’s JDub Records, who located the group and offered them a deal. Their first full-length album, Exotic on the Speaker, appeared in fall 2009 and included guest vocals from Rye Rye, Pigeon John, Del tha Funky Homosapien, Ceci Bastide, and Wu-Tang Clan’s Ghostface.