Latin American Music as a Cultural Export
Latin American music is a melting pot of many cultures. Its history is also as rich and complex as its dynamic sound, which is widely listened to all over the world. Featuring a variety of instruments and rhythms, styles like reggaeton are quickly growing in popular and influence. As with any export, music is an in-demand product that many want to buy. Yet, there is a rift forming between the traditional styles of government in countries like Cuba, and the popular, yet aggressively obscene music that is becoming so prevalent among the people inside and outside of the country. To what extent can an export be micromanaged by authority, when the world is demanding more? And does music, as an artistic expression, have the ability to be commoditized at the expense of cultural tradition? These questions are relevant to the study of Latin America, which is known for producing some of the most popular dances and musical styles in the world. As one delves deeper in understanding the cultural depth of Latin America, it becomes apparent that the music is one a small facet of a deeper international yearning to capture an energy that is inherent to the people of this continent.
Defining Cultural Exportation
Cultural exportation is becoming increasingly prevalent as economies become more globalized. There is an ever-increasing ability for consumers to access cultures and products they otherwise would not have been able to had they not had access through social media sources like Instagram or Facebook — or even online marketplaces like Amazon. Exploring the facets of other cultures allows the public to get out of their comfort zones and try new food, look for unique fashion items, or even discover new genres of music (Brown, 2017).
For example, according the US News, Brazil ranks in the top 10 countries with the most cultural influence internationally. Brazil is also one of the top tourist destinations in the world, providing a rich mix of music, cuisine, and architectural feats. Brazil’s culture stems from Portuguese, indigenous and African influences (USN, 2018). Samba is one of the most popular Brazilian musical genres. It is derived from African roots, and at one time was banned in Brazil because of negative stigmas surrounding it (Brown, 2017). Now, samba is synonymous with the Brazilian Carnival, which is a national festival that happens once a year. Because of this affiliation, people from all over the world associate samba music with fun gatherings and a party-like atmosphere (News, 2018).
Samba is just one example of a Latin American tradition that has been shaped by external influences to fit a mold of how others portray a country and its culture in their minds. Reggaeton, a topic that will be discussed more in-depth later in the paper, is a popular dance-hall genre that is sweeping the world. While it started as a combination of electronic and hip-hop music, it has turned into a hybrid of Spanish dancehall and American obscenity. This strikes up a larger conversation regarding external influence and how it can encourage musical artists to amp up a particular characteristic of their music that the public wants them to. To some authorities in parts of Latin America, reggaeton is a modern-day invention that brings disgrace upon the culture of the land (Corbett, 2006). To what extent is this a part of the music being a cultural export, thus a tangible product that is consumed by an audience for a price? And are artists making the music more perverse to rack up sales?
The Tango
As the samba is closely affiliated with European colonization and the slave trade with Africa, other styles of Latin American music and dance, including the tango, have similar roots. For example, Moorish music, which features Spanish guitars, is a traditional style that has translated into modern Latin American music. The tango is a popular dance that is widely regarded as one of the most technical and beautiful forms of ballroom dance. The tango originated in Argentina and specifically amongst the poor that lived there (Denniston, 2016).
In its beginning stages, tango bands consisted of a variety of guitar and flute, perhaps some piano, played in brothels and on the street. “Around the turn of the Century massive European immigration brought huge numbers of Italians to Buenos Aires, a great many of them from Naples. (In Lunfardo, the dialect of Buenos Aires, the word for Italian is tano, shortened from neapolitano, Neapolitan.) They brought with them a more lyrical style of violin playing, and the melodic influence of Neapolitan song, a key factor in the melodic beauty characteristic of Tango” (Denniston, 2016). When German sailors began traveling to Buenos Aires, they brought with them instruments like the hybrid organ and accordion, which were simple to make on the road. The combined form of these instruments was called a bandoneón, and it became an integral instrument in tango bands (Denniston, 2016).
So, as the sound began to evolve and grow in relation to a smattering of cultural influences, it eventually all came together in Buenos Aires about the same time the accompanying tango dance did as well. The dance formed in the poor barrios of the city, spiking in popularity in African American dance venues. “It was in these tenements where the African rhythms met the Argentine milonga music (a fast-paced polka). Soon new steps were invented and took hold as a new form of dance that combined traditions from many cultures” (Brown, 2017). As dance troupes from Buenos Aires began to travel Europe, the dance caught on and many of the Argentinian elite began to accept the dance as their own, touting it with pride as part of the culture of the land (Denniston, 2016).
The tango is an example of a Latin American music and dance genre that reached a level of international notoriety because of the unique, rich sounds of the instruments mixed with a catchy, rhythmic dance. It became so popular that the term “tangomania” was coined to describe the sheer madness that ensued during the early 20th century. “There are records of Tango being danced in Paris as early as 1907, but the passion for Tango shook the elite of Paris in 1912, and until the outbreak of the First World War the Tango was a powerful cultural force, catalyzing changes in fashion and in the mechanisms of social interaction, and influencing powerfully the birth of Modern Ballroom dancing” (Denniston, 2014). Thus, the tango is a true example of how a Latin American musical style can become a cultural export.
Reggaeton
Reggaeton, a bass heavy, dance hall style music style is primarily a Latin American genre that developed from hip hop influences. Having started being popularized in the 1990’s in Puerto Rico and Mexico, the genre has since spread all over the continent (and the world.) Daddy Yankee, a Puerto Rican hip hop artist first coined the phrase “reggaeton” to describe an underground genre that was emerging. This new genre combined reggae beats and hip hop’s lyricism, primarily in Spanish (Corbett, 2006).
Yankee had begun listening to hip hop music from an early age on MTV and BET, and he admired Rakim and Dr. Dre. Despite the fact that he was a Spanish speaking kid in the slums of San Juan, he had a drive to make similar music to these artists, but with a unique twist that was all his own. “At 13, he rechristened himself Daddy Yankee. In street slang, it means ‘powerful man.; The next year, he started rapping in Spanish, using a friend's four-track recorder, spitting out unrefined lyrics over a speeded-up beat borrowed from Jamaican dancehall reggae” (Corbett, 2006). It is through these roots that reggaeton flourished in Puerto Rico. Reggaeton is a hybrid of Caribbean music, namely the reggae that is the root of the name, and Puerto Rican hip hop beats. The lyrics are often raunchy with heavy sexual innuendos (or blatant sexual references), and the music videos often feature scantily dressed women dancing in provocative ways.
Recently in the media, one of Daddy Yankee’s 2004 hit reggaeton song was dissected for the meaning of the lyrics. “Gasolina,” considered one of the gateway songs for reggaeton that popularized the genre amongst audiences in the United States, was thought to have been about drinking alcohol and having a good time. Yet, audiences on the popular lyric website “Rap Genius” were striking up the debate again with some members saying the song had another, sexually explicit meaning. When Daddy Yankee had supported John McCain in the 2008 presidential election, even John McCain made a comment about the song, “These days, [‘Gasolina’] is usually understood as a double entendre that has little to do with fossil fuels… Asked on the plane what ‘Gasolina’ is about, [McCain] smiled and said, ‘Energy independence’” (Mench, 2017). Thus, this reggaeton song clearly impacted American culture and even American politics in a variety of ways.
Reggaeton lyrics, while similar in content to American hip hop music, can also discuss real political and human issues. “And reggaetón lyrics, even when laced with social consciousness about race and class and life in the ghetto, are often a call, specifically addressed to female clubgoers, for more dancing and less clothing” (Corbett, 2006). The lyrics become an extension of the cultural exportation and they end up leaving an impression on listeners. While the beats, rhythm, and “lifestyle” that reggaeton represents is part of the product, it is merely an entryway to get interested listeners to hear more than just shallow lyrics.
Ultimately, Daddy Yankee is continuing to cause discourse today both in Puerto Rico and in the United States. His music marked the beginning of a cultural phenomenon, one that integrated Puerto Rican rappers into the industry making way for popular musicians today like Pitbull or even 6ix9ine. What also follows is the controversy surrounding the music. Tekashi 6ix9ine, one of the more flagrant modern rappers on the scene, is a Puerto Rican musician living in New York City. He often raps about violence and makes sexual references. He debuted a reggaeton record to his music execs in May 2018, and it was reported that he made a “half-hearted” attempt at creating a Latin song in which he raps entirely in Spanish (Ch, 2018). Considering that he is now in jail on serious weapons charges, it could be that he is simply exemplifying an existing stereotype that surrounds musicians in both hip hop and reggaeton. This type of negative perception only further complicates views on the musical genre, and authorities in areas around Latin America are not pleased with the popularity of the genre.
Government Reaction to Reggaeton
While Reggaeton is slowly becoming more accepted by more traditional sects of Latin America, it is not without a battle. In a 2008 article published in the North American Congress on Latin America “Reggaeton Nation,” author(s) Frances Negrón-Muntaner and Raquel Z. Rivera discuss the growing acceptance of the previously condemned music in Puerto Rico. “Onstage in 2003 at San Juan’s Hiram Bithorn Stadium, five-time senator Velda González—former actress, grandmother of 11, and beloved public figure—was doing the unthinkable. Flanked by reggaeton stars Hector and Tito (a.k.a. the Bambinos), the senator…was lightly swinging her hips and tilting her head from side to side to a raucous reggaeton beat” (Negrón-Muntaner, 2008). The Senator had just been condemning the genre of reggaeton a year before, citing the popular “doggy style” dance as a source of hyper-sexualization against females, and also accused the genre of stirring up a flux in criminal activity (Negrón-Muntaner, 2008).
Reggaeton is also similar to the history of the tango in that it was thought up in the projects of a Latin American city. Additionally, both music styles became popularized through dance halls and interested tourists, who then ended up taking the music and associated dances back to their home countries. Reggaeton, though, posed a problem for the people who are actually living in the areas that source it. The music was unlike anything previously heard, and many felt that it was too depraved to be accepted as a culturally significant genre. “In 1995, the Vice Control Division of the Puerto Rican police, assisted by the National Guard, took the unprecedented action of confiscating tapes and CDs from music stores, maintaining that the music’s lyrics were obscene and promoted drug use and violence. The island’s Department of Education joined in and banned underground music and baggy clothes in an effort to remove the scourge of hip-hop culture from the schools” (Negrón-Muntaner, 2008). Despite these negative opinions surrounding the genre, it has caused a resurgence of interest in Latin American music. Additionally, commercial success was inevitable for the genre, and ultimately it reached a point of popularity where it could no longer be banned from being sold in stores– especially as digital music became increasingly popular because it is difficult for authorities to track down those that are streaming reggaeton music (Negrón-Muntaner, 2008).
While things are changing in Puerto Rico, reggaeton is still evolving in Cuba. In 2013, it was announced that authorities would be placing broadcasting restrictions on reggaeton music because they had questionable lyrics. Public performances featuring reggaeton music were also banned as well. “Legislators are also studying a bill to regulate the airwaves and performance spaces. Artists would face potential sanctions for lyrics and performances deemed too racy, although it's not yet clear who would be the official arbiters of taste or what penalties may be imposed” (Rodriguez, 2013). These regulations stir controversy because music is an art form, and the question of how far the government can go to restrict art comes into focus. In response, the government believes that although it cannot limit the music that people listen to privately, it can restrict public performances. “The Decree 349 ruling is backed by legislation that is hard to work around, allowing governments to shut down concerts, performances, galleries, and art and book sales if they do not comply with the strict list of prohibited subject matter. It also restricts artists from commercializing their work without government approval” (Weber, 2018).
Legislation like this can be frightening, but it does not put a damper on music that is streamed online. As the consumer music market is driven through applications like Apple Music and SoundCloud, hopefully reggaeton can reach mainstream success and reach the level of being unrestricted in nightclubs and ticket-required events. Thus despite government interventions, reggaeton continues to be an example of Latin American music that is also a key cultural export.
Conclusions
Spanning the generations, Latin American music has always been a source of joy and entertainment on an international scale. From dancing the tango to bumping reggaeton at a nightclub, these popular genres only scratch the surface of the deeply dynamic and rich musical history that Latin America has to offer. As the internet becomes more and more globalized, it is likely that Latin American music will only further be commodified and bought/sold in the mainstream market. While countries like Cuba are placing restrictions on artistic freedom, perhaps it will drive reggaeton artists to consider the cultural influence they have and the great amount of power they have over the public. Choosing lyrics carefully can make a big impression on future generations, so as Latin American music continues to grow in importance as a cultural export; it will be the responsibility of the Latin American artists to also elevate their respective musical art forms as well.
References
Brown, S. A. (2017). Argentine Tango — A Brief History. Retrieved December 5, 2018, from https://www.tejastango.com/tango_history.html
Ch, D. (2018, May 03). Tekashi 6ix9ine Previews "Reggaeton" Song for Label Executives. Retrieved December 5, 2018, from https://www.hotnewhiphop.com/tekashi-6ix9ine-previews-reggaeton-song-for-label-executives-news.49301.html
Corbett, S. (2006, February 05). The King of Reggaetón. Retrieved December 5, 2018, from https://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/05/magazine/the-king-of-reggaeton.html
Denniston, C. (2014, December 8). The Meaning of Tango: The Story of the Argentinian Dance. Retrieved December 5, 2018, from http://www.totaltango.com/acatalog/tango_brief_intro_91.html
Mench, C. (2017, September 27). Twitter Debate About The True Meaning Of Daddy Yankee's "Gasolina" Caused A Surge In Genius Popularity. Retrieved December 5, 2018, from https://genius.com/a/twitter-debate-about-the-true-meaning-of-daddy-yankee-s-gasolina-caused-a-surge-in-genius-popularity
News, U.S. (2018). Brazil Ranks Among the World's Best Countries. Retrieved December 5, 2018, from https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/brazil
Weber, J. (2018, August 15). As Criminalization of the Arts Intensifies in Cuba, Activists Organize. Retrieved December 5, 2018, from https://hyperallergic.com/453423/cuba-decree-349-censorship-arts/