Equipo Roca

School-Age D.J.’s, Old-School Style

Here is an example of Latino youth exerting a "personality" on pop culture. The Martinez Brothers  demonstrate the meaningful and lasting influence of introducing successive generations to new things.

After discovering his sons’ interest in online mixing programs like VirtualDJ but disapproving of the profanity of the hip-hop songs they were playing, Mr. Martinez bought them their own equipment — and some music.

“My dad comes from where D.J. culture began,” Stevie Jr. said. “So he’s like, ‘Let me show these guys where D.J.ing comes from.’ We gravitated to disco because everything was live. The musical aspect of it was something that hip-hop didn’t have.”

It wasn’t long before the boys made their father a mixtape, and its quality made him pull over his car while he was driving on Interstate 95. “I called Stevie on my cell, and I say: ‘You guys did not do this cassette. Stop playing around with me,’ ” Mr. Martinez recalled. “Stevie was really good with the deep house, and Christian was good with the disco. My head started to spin. One was 14, and one was 12.” - Via NYTimes

PlayMovil Project

 

PlayMovil Project se forma en el año del 2001 con la intención de hacer música que play y móvil componían en sus tardes libres..el primer trabajo que realizan como banda es la música para la exposición de arte “El color locura” del artista Xavier de Maria y Campos….mas adelante playmovil sigue trabajando en canciones y experimentando mas con la voz…esto da pie a concentrarse en grabar su primer material discográfico…

Nuevos Ricos - The New Wealth

"Working class today....tomorrow Nuevos Ricos!"

Clap Your Brains Off Video - No Somos Machos

Posting this video clip cause I just like it...

No Somos Machos

Hispanic Listeners Embraced

God gave us music so that we, first and foremost, will be guided upward by it. All qualities are united in music: it can lift us up, it can be capricious, it can cheer us up and delight us, nay, with its soft, melancholy tunes, it can even break the resistance of the toughest character. Its main purpose, however, is to lead our thoughts upward, so that it elevates us, even deeply moves us. ... Music also provides pleasant entertainment and saves everyone who is interested in it from boredom. All humans who despise it should be considered mindless, animal-like creatures. Ever be this most glorious gift of God my companion on my life's journey, and I can consider myself fortunate to have come to love it. Let us sing out in eternal praise to God who is offering us this beautiful enjoyment. - Friedrich Niezsche

See everything and everyone is being confronted with the realities of changing demographics...

'Not everyone will like classical music, he said. Then again, some first-time listeners will be forever changed, as Sierra was when he heard The Nutcracker in elementary school.

''Let the people know the doors are open,'' Sierra suggested.

In five years, there's no telling who the big names will be in classical music. But it'll be interesting to see if more of their fans speak Spanish.'

What I liked about this article was the fact that it displays the role music plays. I also liked how the connection to Latin American heritage is playing helping orchestra's find a new audience.

Lucha Libra and the Warped Tour

While having coffee this morning I came across this article in the Rocky Mountain News discussing efforts to introduce the Warpred Tour crowd to Mexican Lucha Libra...it got me thinking about cultural context again. I wonder if the marketing folks for the tour are using it as a means for capturing the attention of more young Latino teens by making it a bicultural affair...They say it's to introduce it to non-Latinos, but it seems to be more relevant to capturing the attention of young U.S. born Latinos.

Mexican wrestling is being featured on the 2007 Vans Warped Tour, which is a combination of hard-core musical acts and extreme sports showcases. Bouts are featured three times daily, most of which draw a young audience unfamiliar with the genre, besides those who saw actor Jack Black don the mask and tights Nacho Libre.

Mexico's RBD Bid for Bilingual Audience

A week ago I posted a NYT article about how countries are viewing music as intellecual properties. Bands are being viewed as tools to help promote cultural understandings. Well, take a look at this article about the Mexican group RBD.

Since releasing a first album in late 2004, RBD mania spread from Mexico to the U.S. Latin market to the rest of Latin America and Brazil, where the group topped sales charts with albums in Spanish and Portuguese.

Now RBD plans to release two new studio albums: the Spanish-language "Celestial," due November 24 on EMI Televisa, and "Rebels," in English, due December 19 on Virgin.

This marks the first time a major act is releasing completely different Spanish and English albums (usually one is a translation of the other) in the United States within such a short period of time. The setup is the prelude for the European release of "Rebels," slated for March 2007.

The New Ambassadors

Here is something to think about...el nuevo embajador.

In a global economy that is blurring geographic borders, more and more nations view intellectual property — films, software and the like — as valuable commodities, easily transferred exports that can sell in previously inaccessible markets.

The key it seems is the ability to recognize the the characteristics of a nations intellectual property. In a country like the United States, more so than any other than perhaps Brazil, where the diversity is so great that it draws from the rest of the world. Our intellectual property involves the absorbtion of foreign culture, which in turns poises our economy to remain competitive.

“Clearly one of the more inexpensive things that we can produce that potentially has great financial rewards is our culture. For nations that have any kind of forethought into the future of their economies, it’s a no-brainer.”

Action sports should be considered an intellectual property to a degree, much like music, these activities form lifestyles. When this occurs, they become part of our thought processes. For instance, board sports create a cultural space, that now transcends borders. All of this is done through mediums like films, software, and music. This is why I found the NY Times fascinating.

La Vibra Publication

Another Latino publication is being launched, both print and digital. Below is a description of La Vibra, which is going into six key Hispanic markets. Full story.

“With its original content and dedicated entertainment editorial teams across the country, La Vibra brings exclusive entertainment stories for those who want to be-in-the-know about the hottest and latest entertainment news,” said Monica Lozano, CEO and publisher of La Opinión. “La Vibra delivers to entertainment aficionados a wide array of entertainment choices in their backyard. For anyone looking to be well-informed about local and national entertainment, they need only to turn to La Vibra.”

Nike Wakeboard

I came across a Nike wakeboard commercial and it got me thinking. There are no words, but instead music is used to convey the message of adrenaline, rush, and speed. What was intriguing to me was that two genres of music were incorporated. First we hear a classic European concerto, and then the pace is picked up by Brazilian samba music. Is there a message in itself there? Not sure, but it left me pondering if Latin culture serves a roll in flavoring North American society...

"Music also provides pleasant entertainment and saves everyone who is interested in it from boredom." Nietzsche

Reggeaton

Are you curious to know more about reggaeton?

Barrio305 has a leading online presence on the genre.

Tropicalism

Ever wonder what tropicalism was all about?

"Almost instantly it gave rise to a crop of startling hybrids: American psychedelic rock cross-pollinating sambas, political resistance with the pleasure principle, Brazilian art with international art. The new growth was dense and enveloping: you looked at it, listened to it, tasted it, breathed in its perfume, lived in it."

Here is an article talking about it.

Latin American Film Festival

There will be a Latin American Film Festival in London this November.

Some of the films deal with social issues, but one that has relevancy to the action sports industry is hip hop. Below are some the one's that may be interesting to check out if the opportunity arises.

Ashes of God (As Cinzas de Deus)
Dir. Andre Semenza, Brazil, 2004, 73 mins, Colour
The first Brazilian dance-based feature film with award-winning performers and a haunting soundtrack mixed by DJ Kid Loco. A visual poem set in a world of harsh realities. Inspired by Ovid’s Metamorphoses, the film merges the languages of dance and cinema. Directed by Andre Semenza and choreographed by Fernanda Lippi, “Las Cinzas de Deus” has forged a new space for dance film.

La Fabri-K/ The Cuban Hip Hop Factory
Dir. Lisandro Perez Rey, Cuba, 2005, 65 mins, Colour
As part of the Miami Light Project (a cultural forum created to explore some of the issues that define contemporary society), Lisandro Perez-Rey’s documentary follows the Cuban hip-hop collective: La Fabri-K. The film follows them from their inception in Havana to their tour of the U.S, climaxing in the show at the Apollo Theatre, Harlem where the group perform alongside hip-hop heavyweights The Roots. Their emotional journey into the heart of hip-hop performance offers a personal insight into their infectious music and their struggle to be heard, in a film that features legendary personalities such as Grand Master Flash.

Representing (Representando)
Dir. Antonio Jose Guzman, Netherlands, 2005, 50 mins, Colour & B/W

A poetic journey into Latin American Hip-Hop. In the last decade the Hip Hop scene in Cuba has grown spectacularly, now there are over 500 bands in the Caribbean Island.
These groups are mainly formed by Afro Cubans from the capital Havana. The Cuban government initially censured rap music but with its growing importance felt obligated to approve it.
A lot of the lyrics describe the discrimination that the Afro Cuban community faces, the difficult economic situation, the police brutality, the 40 years U.S. embargo, and the history of the African Diaspora.
Cuban Hip hop has been of enormous importance for Cuba and the Latin America music scene. Its impact on other parts of the world will surly increase over the next few years.

Short Radiography of Hip-Hop in Cuba
Dir. Ricardo Bacallao, Cuba, 2005, 20 mins, Colour
Fascinating mini documentary on the Hip Hop scene in Cuba. Using improvised skits and an intriguing back story, it traces the evolution the music has undergone in the last few years. An exhilarating look at the music community fighting back.

Hispanics and Mobile Content

I've mentioned it before, but here is further evidence of how to reach young Latino consumers. Check out the site www.albordemobile.com.

From Mambo to Hip Hop

      

Music is interesting cause it always has a story to tell. Here is an article on a show being produced by PBS that tells how mambo music influenced hip hop.

Aprendí algo nuevo ayer...

I was reading a Latin music magazine yesterday and it mentioned the following:

Question: What's the music scene like in Chile? Is there a lot of hip-hop there?

"There's so much hip-hop. It has been well received by the marginal social classes. Obviously they would adopt hip-hop. Chile isn't traditionally a country where you'd see this music, as you would in Argentina, but in Argentina they're really into rock. Hip-hop has n't been able to take off there like it has here."

Bitman and Roban

This illustrates that one should never forget the cultural nuances that exist within the Latino demographic. While they share a language, each has their own interepretations of it.

For those interested in a little Chilean hip hop history check this abstract out.