In 2010, Alesso was 19 years old, and his first record had just made him a breakout star. In the following years, the Swedish DJ produced dance hits that soared to the top of international charts, from “Heroes (we could be)” with Tove Lo and “If I Lose Myself (remix)” with OneRepublic. Twelve years after his first collaboration with the group, Alesso reunited with OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder at a Venice Beach pop-up show with L.A. Times’ Katerina Portela to reflect on over a decade of DJing and what it’s like to finally make music for himself.
Katerina Portela is a reporter and associate podcast producer for De Los covering music, culture and beyond. She previously wrote about L.A. arts and events for Image, the style magazine from the Los Angeles Times. Portela is a graduate of San Diego State University, where she was co- founder and editor in chief of college music publication Dead Air Zine. Prior to The Times, she was an investigative and digital news assistant with San Diego PBS and NPR station KPBS and a reporting fellow at the Pulitzer Center. Her feature writing has garnered several awards from both San Diego and L.A. Press Club. Born in Florida and raised in Oahu, Hawaii, she can predictably be found by the beach with a book in hand.
