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'''Matthew Urango''' (February 14, 1990 – March 17, 2024), known professionally as '''Cola Boyy''', was an American musician and activist<ref name=":3" /> based in [[Oxnard, California]]. His music has been described as belonging to the [[disco]] genre. ''NME'' compared his sound to "a disco ball melting or the after-effects of some particularly potent [[hallucinogen]]ics".<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=2021-04-29|title=Listen to Cola Boyy and MGMT's dreamy new collaboration, 'Kid Born in Space'|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/mgmt-cola-boyy-single-kid-born-in-space-listen-2930663|access-date=2021-06-28|website=NME|language=en-GB}}</ref>
'''Matthew Joseph Urango'''<ref name="nytimes">{{cite web|url = https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/20/arts/music/cola-boyy-dead.html|title = Cola Boyy, Indie Singer and Disability Activist, Dies at 34|last = Mayorquín|first = Orlando|date = March 20, 2024|accessdate = March 20, 2024 |work = [[New York Times]] |archive-url = https://archive.ph/qFIQv |archive-date = March 20, 2024 |url-status = live}}</ref> (February 14, 1990 – March 17, 2024), known professionally as '''Cola Boyy''', was an American musician and activist<ref name=":3" /> based in [[Oxnard, California]]. His music has been described as belonging to the [[disco]] genre. ''NME'' compared his sound to "a disco ball melting or the after-effects of some particularly potent [[hallucinogen]]ics".<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=2021-04-29|title=Listen to Cola Boyy and MGMT's dreamy new collaboration, 'Kid Born in Space'|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/mgmt-cola-boyy-single-kid-born-in-space-listen-2930663|access-date=2021-06-28|website=NME|language=en-GB}}</ref>


His debut EP, ''Black Boogie Neon'', was released in 2018. His debut album, ''Prosthetic Boombox'', was released in 2021. Urango toured and collaborated with [[MGMT]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|date=2019-01-14|title=This is our Culture|url=https://www.tmrwmagazine.com/features/culture/this-is-our-culture-cola-boyy|access-date=2021-06-28|website=today was so yesterday {{!}} tmrw|language=en}}</ref>
His debut EP, ''Black Boogie Neon'', was released in 2018. His debut album, ''Prosthetic Boombox'', was released in 2021. Urango toured and collaborated with [[MGMT]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|date=2019-01-14|title=This is our Culture|url=https://www.tmrwmagazine.com/features/culture/this-is-our-culture-cola-boyy|access-date=2021-06-28|website=today was so yesterday {{!}} tmrw|language=en}}</ref>
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==Death==
==Death==
Urango died on March 17, 2024, at his Oxnard home at the age of 34.<ref name="Strauss 2024">{{cite news |last1=Strauss |first1=Matthew |title=Cola Boyy, Pop Singer-Songwriter and Activist, Dies at 34 |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/cola-boyy-pop-singer-songwriter-and-disability-activist-dies-at-34/ |access-date=19 March 2024 |work=Pitchfork |date=18 March 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Rettig |first1=James |title=Cola Boyy Dead At 34 |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2256149/cola-boyy-dead-at-34/news/ |website=Stereogum |access-date=18 March 2024 |language=en |date=18 March 2024}}</ref>
Urango died on March 17, 2024, at his Oxnard home at the age of 34.<ref name="nytimes"/><ref name="Strauss 2024">{{cite news |last1=Strauss |first1=Matthew |title=Cola Boyy, Pop Singer-Songwriter and Activist, Dies at 34 |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/cola-boyy-pop-singer-songwriter-and-disability-activist-dies-at-34/ |access-date=19 March 2024 |work=Pitchfork |date=18 March 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Rettig |first1=James |title=Cola Boyy Dead At 34 |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2256149/cola-boyy-dead-at-34/news/ |website=Stereogum |access-date=18 March 2024 |language=en |date=18 March 2024}}</ref>


== References ==
== References ==

Revision as of 11:51, 20 March 2024

"Cola Boy" redirects here. For the 1990s pop group, see Saint Etienne (band).

Cola Boyy
Birth nameMatthew Joseph Urango
Also known as
  • Cola Boyy
  • The Disabled Disco Innovator
Born(1990-02-14)February 14, 1990
OriginOxnard, California
DiedMarch 17, 2024(2024-03-17) (aged 34)
Genres
LabelsRecord Makers
Websitehttps://colaboyy.bandcamp.com/

Matthew Joseph Urango[1] (February 14, 1990 – March 17, 2024), known professionally as Cola Boyy, was an American musician and activist[2] based in Oxnard, California. His music has been described as belonging to the disco genre. NME compared his sound to "a disco ball melting or the after-effects of some particularly potent hallucinogenics".[3]

His debut EP, Black Boogie Neon, was released in 2018. His debut album, Prosthetic Boombox, was released in 2021. Urango toured and collaborated with MGMT.[4]

Early life

Urango was born with spina bifida, kyphosis, and scoliosis, as well as a club foot[5] to a white mother and a father of Chumash, African-American, and Mexican ancestry.[4] He described himself as Afro-Latino.[2] Urango had a non-disabled twin brother.[6]

Urango described himself as having "basically taught myself" to play piano at his grandmother's house as a child.[6] In high school he played in punk bands, playing his first backyard show aged 17.[4] After graduating from high school, he searched for work but experienced discrimination due to his disability.[6] He was employed for a time at Walmart until he was hospitalized with pneumonia due to being pushed to overwork by his employer.[6][7] Before Cola Boyy, Urango played second guitar for indie pop band Sea Lions.[5]

Music career

Cola Boyy released the single "Penny Girl" in July 2018. The track was ranked #72 in Fader Magazine's "100 best songs of 2018".[8]

In August 2018, "Buggy Tip" premiered on Vice's Noisey.[9]

Cola Boyy released his debut EP, Black Boogie Neon, in September 2018.[10] The EP includes earlier releases "Penny Girl" and "Buggy Tip". The name of the EP comes from an early demo track about a fictional club of the same name where disabled people can enjoy themselves free from ableist stigma.[citation needed] In the video for "Beige 70", filmed at the real-life Le Peripate club in Paris, Urango is portrayed in this club as a part of a diverse cast of club-goers.[10] Explaining the song's meaning, Urango said: "It's a love song about a girl at a club whose clothes are shabby and her friends are making fun of her, but it doesn't matter to me because she's a star. It's about being judged and accepted."[10]

In 2019, Cola Boyy performed at Pitchfork Paris.[11] In April 2021, he released the single "Kid Born in Space", featuring MGMT.[12] Urango explained that the song is about his experience growing up as a disabled person.[12]

The debut Cola Boyy album, Prosthetic Boombox, was released by the French label Record Makers in June 2021. The album features appearances from Nicolas Godin of Air and Andrew VanWyngarden. Paste gave the album a positive review, describing it as "an electrifying, catchy and colorful debut".[13] The Guardian gave the album 4 out of 5 stars, describing the record as a "delirious blast of disco, funk, house and psychedelia".[14]

Activism

Multiple features about Cola Boyy as a musician have made reference to his left-wing activism, which he became involved in around the time he began making music as Cola Boyy. Urango became politicized after participating in a radical reading group that he was invited to by a friend.[15] Since then he has organised with Todo Poder Al Pueblo, a collective that advocates for immigrants and workers[11] in Urango's home city of Oxnard.[16] He was also a member of APOC (Anarchist People of Color), which helps to organise free punk rock concerts accessible to all ages.[9]

Urango stated that he wanted to convey his anti-capitalist political views through his music, but opted to forgo the more traditional medium of punk rock in order to reach a wider audience.[7]

Death

Urango died on March 17, 2024, at his Oxnard home at the age of 34.[1][17][18]

References

  1. ^ a b Mayorquín, Orlando (March 20, 2024). "Cola Boyy, Indie Singer and Disability Activist, Dies at 34". New York Times. Archived from the original on March 20, 2024. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Cola Boyy Is Breaking the Rules of Dance Music". FLOOD. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  3. ^ "Listen to Cola Boyy and MGMT's dreamy new collaboration, 'Kid Born in Space'". NME. April 29, 2021. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c "This is our Culture". today was so yesterday | tmrw. January 14, 2019. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "ICE Raids, Socialism, Beats: How Oxnard's Disco Pop Radical Cola Boyy Is Empowered by His Disability". L.A. TACO. August 24, 2018. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d "Cola Boyy is making disco pop for the revolution". The FADER. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Cola Boyy: California disco dude wants you to fight for your rights (and party)". NME. June 28, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  8. ^ "The 100 best songs of 2018". The FADER. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Cola Boyy is Making Weird Disco That Fits 2018 Like a Glove". www.vice.com. August 15, 2018. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  10. ^ a b c "Enter the world's most inclusive club with Cola Boyy's "Beige 70" video". The FADER. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Cola Boyy is putting in the work". Crack Magazine. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  12. ^ a b "Cola Boyy - "Kid Born In Space" (Feat. MGMT)". Stereogum. April 28, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  13. ^ "Cola Boyy's Prosthetic Boombox Is a Radical Ode to the Self, Community and Power of Rhythm". Paste. June 23, 2021. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  14. ^ Hutchinson, Kate (June 20, 2021). "Cola Boyy: Prosthetic Boombox review – a joyously defiant sugar rush". The Guardian. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  15. ^ Dazed (September 24, 2018). "Cola Boyy is a disco crooner, songwriter, and Marxist organiser". Dazed. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  16. ^ Greenwood, Douglas (July 16, 2018). "meet cola boyy, california's immigration activist who's resurrecting disco". i-D. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  17. ^ Strauss, Matthew (March 18, 2024). "Cola Boyy, Pop Singer-Songwriter and Activist, Dies at 34". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  18. ^ Rettig, James (March 18, 2024). "Cola Boyy Dead At 34". Stereogum. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
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