Meet DJ Padre Guilherme, the Portuguese priest who’s livestreaming his way through lockdown
Pope Francis may have broken tradition by broadcasting his traditional Easter address online last weekend, but that’s not the Bishop of Rome’s only contribution to the current livestreaming craze.
Last autumn in Vatican City, his Holiness blessed the headphones of a Portuguese priest called Guilherme Peixoto – now better known as DJ Padre Guilherme. Ever since the covid-19 pandemic forced his parish church to close, the crossfading cleric has been streaming live DJ sets to fans worldwide every weekend.
While Peixoto has been DJing in his parish of Laundos, near Porto, ever since taking a course several years ago, like many people unable to perform live while under lockdown he’s discovered a whole new audience thanks to the suddenly booming world of livestreaming.
“Right now it’s so important to use social media to bring a bit of joy into people’s lives,” he told Reuters last week. “And people seem happy when they see a priest playing music online.”