Vanja aka Whole Ball of Wax has been active in the music scene for nearly a decade, working as a DJ, radio host and event organizer. When behind the decks, he combines his experience and heartfelt knowledge of several shades of Black music with an intuitive and adventurous style. The American expression “the whole ball of wax” - meaning “everything”, “the whole thing” - says it all: in his sets, Vanja navigates seamlessly between old and new sounds ranging from disco, to funk, house, reggae, Latin and African music, always with a strong jazzy touch. He co-founded and ran Officina Radio (2017) and Jazz DAO (2022) and served as operations manager of iconic record label Right Tempo (2023/2024). Based in Lisbon since 2018, he currently works at Tabatô Records and hosts his monthly radio show “Roots Ahead”, live on ESR. Venues played: Musicbox, Arroz Estúdios, Lounge, Boavista, Vago, Lisa, Crew Hassan, Le Baron, Duro de Matar, Fábrica Braço de Prata, Amor Records, Desterro, Bartô, Cosmos, Núcleo A70, Nada Temple, Aposentadoria & more (Lisbon); Pérola Negra, Ferro (Porto); Kasheme (Zürich); Ronin, Clér, Lido (Milan); Sounds Resist (Brussels); NovaraJazz festival (North Italy). Radio appearances: Totally Wired Radio (London); CKUT 90.3 FM (Montreal); Rocket Radio (Milan); Rádio Nova 98.9 FM (Porto); East Side Radio, Lusophonica (Lisbon); Radio Banda Larga (Turin).