ABOUT

VANESSA SOFIA SOLARI ESPINOZA A Venezuelan-American female artist and educator residing in the Bay Area. She received her Bachelors in Animation and Visual Effects at Ex’pression College for Digital Arts to visually create moving stories and leave a lasting impression on an audience. Vanessa has combined her visual and musical skills together and is focusing on music video production, film, animation, game design and 3D visual effects. She is “DJ AGANA”, Rapping in English and Spanish and spinning a fusion of politically conscious revolutionary vynil. Her genres include a fusion of salsa, timba, samba, merengue, reggaeton, cumbia, reggae, dancehall, hip hop, soul and a classic collection of music from the Americas.  She has been DJing since she was 14 and was a host and DJ for the “Eclipse Show” an underground hip hop youth radio show. She began singing back up salsa coros with her sister, “Heather Rosa Licini” a composer and producer for “Oddua Records” where she recorded vocals for songs in English and Spanish. She has performed for the SF carnival parade rhyming for for “Fogo No Roupa” over bateria for 5 consecutive years. She has shared the stage with such performers as “Mystic”, “Les Nubians”, “Akil Amar”, “Brown Buffalo Project”, “Los Rakas” and “Las Bomberas de la Bahia”. Agana was the official bay area “Poetry Slam” DJ for the entire Oakland Berkeley and San Francisco area for seven consecutive years. She has been a DJ for “Youth Together’s Unity Week” and La “Clinica’s Health Fair” events at every high school in Oakland. “Agana” was the resident DJ for “Oaklandish and is currently the resident DJ for “Reload” events at “East Side Arts Alliance”. She has spun music in Puerto Rico, Spain, Hawaii, Venezuela and is a local Bay area DJ. Vanessa has taught music recording and beat production with youth and created music videos that were broadcasted with the best songs that were recorded. Music is her first love because it teaches our community skills by bringing us closer together through a common connection of struggle.