Sociedad Como Música: El Talento de Calle 13 (p1)

     If you were to randomly and without cause be asked to name the movers and shakers of social change hailing from the Spanish speaking world, your mind would probably go right into high school/liberal arts college mode, naming off Che Guevara, Simón Bolívar, César Chávez, etc. The names, or musicians, that may not come to your mind are René Pérez Joglar and Eduardo Cabra Martínez, better known as Residente y Visitante, and even more well known as Calle 13.

  

   These half brothers, hailing from la isla de Puerto Rico, started ripping our rhymes in about 2005, and have been growing bigger by the month ever since. While some of their hip hop sound may be linked in with reggaeton, Calle 13 has got a beat all its own. Mixing electronica, traditional latin rhythms, y más moves them past the reggaeton scene, distancing themselves from the crowd. Residente's letras are inventive and showcase a sharp sense of sarcasm and humor, while also having the ability to reach intense heights of passion, both sharp and cutting, and proudly soulful. Frequent collaborations along with the backing vocals of the duo's stepsister Ileana Cabra Joglar, aka PG-13, complete la banda. S

    Aside from the mastery of their music (the band has won a highly impressive number of both U.S. Grammys and Latin Grammys) , Calle 13 is significant for its message. While some artists take a backseat to speaking out, Calle 13 has made it their art, becoming over time more politically and socially conscious. Their song "Querido F.B.I." was a direct hit at the U.S. bureau after the 2004 killing of Filiberto Ojeda Rios, a 72 year old Puerto Rican activist who called for the island's independence. Other songs, like Calma Pueblo, La Perla, Gringo Latin Funk, Latinoamérica, Pa'l Norte, y Tango del Pecado give stunning portraits of truths of Latin America and of all people, really. For instance, watch the music video for "Prepárame La Cena", and you'll see for yourself the message translated.

    

     Most recently, Calle 13 has taken the world by storm with their last single, "Multi_Viral", a song about how the media changes and uses information for its own agenda, featuring a voice over by Julian Assange. Yeah...that Julian Assange. René Pérez Joglar, in an interview with NPR, explained how the song shows that "the media controls everything....it's important to have the right information. You have to look for that. Otherwise you'll find yourself in a war that you think is a good idea, but it's not for a good reason. The lyrics of the song are explosively democratic, with lines like "Nuestras ideas son libres y están libres despiertas/Porque pensamos con las puertas abiertas" (Our ideas are free and they are awake/because we are thinking with open doors), "Si la prensa no habla /Nosotros damos los detalles/Pitando las paredes/Con aerosol en las calles" (If the press doesn't talk, we give the details, painting the walls with spray paint in the streets", and "Con solo una persona que la lea/Ya empieza a cambiar el mundo" (With each person who reads, already the world begins to change).

     I think we can agree that those words hit their message home and back.

    While the many events of the world continue to unfold and create confusion and beauty, problemas, y respuestas, one thing is for sure: Calle 13 is here to stay. Fans worldwide have been tuning into the mensajes of this duo, and each song only increases their listeners. Their next album, to be released in March, will be produced independently, and may even be given out freely. This group is breaking ground and busting walls, upsetting ideas and promoting free thinking wherever and whenever they are heard.

Escucha...y despierta.