I met Rafa Saavedra in 1994 at a show through mutual friends, we immediately bonded over our love for Alaska (Pegamoides, Dinarama, Fangoria), 60's Kitsh and Pop Culture, he was one of the first person who taught me in my teens more about the Spanish underground music scene, he was a lover of la movida madrileña, new wave and post-punk, he had a direct connection in Spain that always sent him current music at the time and he always shared it with us, this was before the internet and social media were invented, he was always up to date in what was happening at the moment musically back then. Many knew him as Rafa Dro. as his dj name taking it from Spain's Aviador Dro and always describing himself as "Selector de Frecuencias" after the band's song which also was the name of his weekly radio show of the same name: http://selector.podomatic.com/ http://selector.blogspot.com/ where you can see his playlists and interviews with many artists through the years.
Rafa became a big influence on my life growing up in Tijuana, his knowledge of music was impeccable, always keeping me updated on new music and how I would like it, he knew my style well and he was always right. We djed several times together at different parties, when I showed him something new to me, something I'd discovered, he already knew about it, he knew when it came out, what label was it on and the year, he had a memory vault like no one.
Rafa was also very observant of his surroundings and had a great eye for things, moments, situations which many of them he captured and posted on his Tumblr http://rafadro.tumblr.com/ and always writing the right caption for it which made you understand and think.
I became a big fan of his blog Crossfader Network, a personal diary of his experiences through out the city of Tijuana often documenting the parties he went to, music reviews, and photos with one word of sentence that explained what he was trying to transmit. He lived the moment at its fullesthttp://crossfadernetwork.wordpress.com/
Living in L.A. for the past 12 years, he was my window of what was going on in my hometown. He was the first person I know to do Fanzines in in the city.
He wrote several books "Esto no es una salida" (This is not an escape). "Postcards de ocio y odio" (Postcards of leisure and hate) (La Espina Dorsal, 1996), Buten Smileys (Yoremito, 1997), Lejos del Noise (Away from the noise) (Moho, 2003). In 2010 he won the State Prize for Literature in Cultural Journalism awarded by the Institute of Culture of Baja California. His book, “Border Pop,” won Baja California’s prize for literature in 2012.
He never strived to be a famous, he wrote from his heart, his own experiences, his enthusiasm for music and his passion for culture, he was dedicated and 100% in love with Tijuana and delivered his message clearly. He was beloved by everyone in the city and beyond the city, Rafa always had a smile on his face, he always had something interesting to talk about, always something to contribute, to many local artists and musicians, he was the John Peel of Tijuana. In my eyes, he was the ambassador of the city to the world and that's what made him famous to me. He coined the phrase "Tijuana Makes Me Happy" which became Nortec's most known song.
In the last past years, we became even closer, and since we're both born a few days apart in August we would celebrate our birthdays together sometimes. This last summer, I celebrated my birthday in Tijuana and he came to see me and hang out before the party, at that moment while talking I gave him a long hug and a kiss on the cheek, (mind you I'm not the most affectionate person) and told him he's always been the coolest friend, I felt him at that moment. I would always call him "eternal teenager" and he would call me "oldteen" because we both feel the essence of youth within us. Both being Leos, we understood each other very well.
Due to his heart condition at an early age, a few years ago he discovered his heart rate was at it's lowest of 4.0, under those conditions his only exercise was walking which he documented in the heart warming short video "Caminatas" https://vimeo.com/46787385
Three weeks after we saw each other, he went into cardiac arrest and was in intensive care, spending the past couple of weeks at the hospital, always very optimistic and with that sense of humor that characterized him, he kept documenting his life as he always did.
I knew Rafa, and I know he "knew". A day before having heart surgery, he wrote on his Facebook status: "En route with the best mood and strength possible, to all those possible Tomorrows. Love you all, pals" along with a note that read: 16/Sep/13 "This has been good for many things: our own fragility, pain, absences, the spiral echo of our memories, the power of love, friendship that lasts, all those moments that we (re)lived being alone with ourselves. Thank you for everything with love and affection. Electric hugs, Rafa Saavedra.
On the afternoon of September 17th, 2013 he passed away at the young age of 46. A lovable local hero that understood all the nuances of a complex city such as Tijuana. In fact, he may have been the city's best unofficial anthropologist.
