In this episode we visit host Andrés' beloved motherland: Colombia! We travel all the way to South America to talk about Cumbia! This rhythm, child of the Colombian Caribbean, has expanded to many countries including Mexico, Argentina, and Perú. Its diffusion has been so widespread that cumbia enthusiasts are sometimes unaware of where the rhythm is from and which cultures created it.In our journey to Colombia we explore the Black and Amerindian roots of cumbia, how it's danced and its original instruments, its relation with the bullerengue rhythm, and cumbia's whitening and expansion outside of Colombia.  For this track we have a battery of great guests: Nelda Piña is a bullerengue cantaora (singer) and lead voice of folkloric ensemble Nelda Piña y Sus Tambores; Rosita Lozano is a former dancer of Totó la Momposina's and Delia Zapata's ensembles and is currently a cultural manager and the director of the Foundation Rosa Agustina Medina Pérez;  Edelmira Massa Zapata is a folklorist, choreographer, visual artist, and director of El Palenque de Delia; Héctor Fernández L'Hoeste is a Professor in the Department of World Languages in Georgia State University and author of the book Cumbia! Scenes of a Migrant Latin American Music Genre; Carmen Dence is a retired professor and the founder and choreographer of folkloric dance company Grupo Atlántico in St. Louis MO; and Santiago Andrés Rojas Lozano is a connoisseur of of the traditional music of the Colombian Caribbean and vice-president of the Foundation Rosa Agustina Medina Pérez.For more info and resources check our website  here and our YouTube channel here.Contact us at: [email protected] you liked the music we used check our playlists here.Host/Producers: Andrés Hincapié, PhD; Melissa Villodas, PhD Candidate Graphic Content Creator: Susan Mykalcio

En Rebelión, la canción más famosa de Joe Arroyo, el Joe nos lleva en un viaje desde la tristeza sin nombre de la esclavitud en general, al dolor específico de una pareja negra esclavizada, y en últimas a la rebelión  del hombre negro suscitada por el deseo de proteger a su pareja.¿Estábamos escuchando? Con este episodio, el último de este año 2021, estamos celebrando que nuestra Mix(ed)tape Playlist de Canciones Afro-Latinas tiene ahora más de 1000 canciones!!!! Las canciones de esta playlist hablan de la negritud en América, del orgullo y la belleza, pero también de las dificultades y el racismo. ¿No les parece esto algo digno de celebración? Ayúdanos a celebrar escuchando la playlist, dejándonos un like en Spotify, y recomendando la playlist a aquellas personas que creas que puedan disfrutarla.Para más información sobre nuestras fuentes échale un vistazo a nuestro sitio web aquí y a nuestro canal de Youtube aquí.Contáctanos en: [email protected] te gustó la música que utilizamos, encuéntrala en nuestros playlists aquí.Host/Director de la serie: Andrés Hincapié, PhDProductora: Melissa Villodas, PhD CandidateCreadora de contenido gráfico: Susan Mykalcio

In Rebelión, Joe Arroyo's most famous song, El Joe take us from the nameless sorrow of slavery in general, to the specific pain and ultimate rebellion of a black, enslaved man sparked by the desire to protect his partner.Were we listening?With this last episode of 2021 we are celebrating that our Mix(ed)tape Playlist of Afro-Latin songs has now more than 1000 songs!!! The songs in this playlist talk about blackness in the Americas, both the beauty and the pride, but also the perils and the racism. Ain't that something special? Help us celebrate and spread the word by checking out the playlist, giving it a like, and recommending it to those who you think might like it.For more info and resources check our website  here and our YouTube channel here.Contact us at: [email protected] you like the music we use check our playlists here.Host/Director of Series: Andrés Hincapié, PhDProducer: Melissa Villodas, PhD CandidateGraphic Content Creator: Susan Mykalcio

In África Terra Querida (Africa Beloved Motherland) singer and songwriter Paulo Flores  displays his poetic lyricism with a candid, melancholic description of various situations that depict life in the African continent and in Angola in particular, ranging from the relationship with elders, to interactions between neighbors, to the extremely popular game of soccer, the sport of the masses.Were we listening?This episode accompanies the “Dança Kizomba” episode of the second season of our podcast  devoted to the kizomba rhythm and dance, check that one out because it is fire! In this episode we are fortunate to have Rui Djassi Moracén as a co-host to fix Andrés’ broken Portuguese translation and to contextualize the song. Rui is an Angolan project manager, and the founder of the University of Kizomba, a non-profit educational initiative that aims to promote Angola at large, preserving its culture and the essence of its dances.For more info and resources check our website  here and our YouTube channel here.Contact us at: [email protected] you like the music we use check our playlists here.Host/Director of Series: Andrés Hincapié, PhDProducer: Melissa Villodas, PhD CandidateGraphic Content Creator: Susan Mykalcio

En África Terra Querida (África Tierra Querida), el cantante y compositor Paulo Flores @paulofloresmusic demuestra su lírica poética con una cándida y melancólica descripción de varias situaciones que ejemplifican la vida en el continente africano y en Angola en particular, que van desde la relación con los mayores, a las interacciones entre vecinos, a el extremadamente popular juego de fútbol, el deporte de las masas.¿Estábamos escuchando?Este episodio de la serie acompaña al episodio Dança Kizomba, dedicado al rite y baile de kizomba, de la segunda temporada de nuestro podcast.  Chequen ese episodio porque está buenísimo! En este episodio tenemos el honor de tener a Rui Djassi Moracén como co-presentador para que arregle la traducción del portugués de Andrés y para que contextualice la canción. Rui es un administrador de proyectos en la industria del gas y petróleo, y es también el fundador de la University de la Kizomba, una iniciativa educacional sin ánimo de lucro cuyo objetivo es promover Angola en general, preservando su cultura y la esencia de sus bailes. Para más información sobre nuestras fuentes échale un vistazo a nuestro sitio web aquí y a nuestro canal de Youtube aquí.Contáctanos en: [email protected] te gustó la música que utilizamos, encuéntrala en nuestros playlists aquí.Host/Director de la serie: Andrés Hincapié, PhDProductora: Melissa Villodas, PhD CandidateCreadora de contenido gráfico: Susan Mykalcio

Our season so far has consisted of Afro-Latin rhythms. This month we are taking a trip across the ocean, away from the Americas all the way to Africa, because the rhythm we are talking about today is… Kizomba!!! We travel to Angola  to talk about the history of Kizomba and the socio-political and cultural context in which it developed. We talk about Kizomba’s musical influences and about how the dance came to be, and we discuss its international reach.Our guests are Rui Djassi Moracén, an Angolan project manager, and the founder of the “University of Kizomba”, a non-profit educational initiative that aims to promote Angola at large, preserving its culture and the essence of its dances; and Kimberly Nicole , a marketing and communication professional who is also the owner of Kizomba RDU in the Triangle area in North Carolina, where she teaches kizomba and semba.As part of this episode we also created the Spotify playlist 🎧 “Kizomba Black Pride” which consists of Kizomba songs celebrating blackness. You can find in it here.For more info and resources check our website  here and our YouTube channel here.Contact us at: [email protected] you liked the music we used check our playlists here.Host/Producers: Andrés Hincapié, PhD; Melissa Villodas, PhD Candidate Graphic Content Creator: Susan Mykalcio

El Negrito del Batey composición de Hector J. Díaz y Medardo Guzmán, en la voz de Alberto Beltrán con La Sonora Matancera, es un clásico del merengue que mucha gente en América Latina identifica fácilmente. La canción nos ofrece una combinación intoxicante de ritmo y letra que inicialmente da la impresión de caer en la trampa de estereotipar a la gente negra solamente para luego arrojar el estereotipo por la ventana. Es por eso que la canción es perfecta para nuestra serie Were You Listening por su mensaje sutil y no tan sutil.Estábamos escuchando?Este episodio de la serie acompaña al episodio Yo Soy Merengue de la segunda temporada de nuestro podcast. En este episodio tenemos dos invitados afro-dominicanos:  Edwin Ferreras quien es un educador de baile y música, compositor, arreglista, productor, y uno de los fundadores de Areíto Arts; y Socrates Garcia quien es un profesor de la universidad de Northern Colorado, productor, ingeniero de mezclas y grabación, arreglista, compositor, y líder de grupos musicales. Y también escuchamos en el episodio a la mamá de nuestro host Andrés Hincapié!Para más información sobre nuestras fuentes échale un vistazo a nuestro sitio web aquí y a nuestro canal de Youtube aquí.Contáctanos en: [email protected] te gustó la música que utilizamos, encuéntrala en nuestros playlists aquí.Host/Director de la serie: Andrés Hincapié, PhDProductora: Melissa Villodas, PhD CandidateCreadora de contenido gráfico: Susan Mykalcio

El Negrito del Batey (The Black Man from the Batey) composed by Hector J. Díaz and Medardo Guzmán, in the voice of Alberto Beltrán with La Sonora Matancera, is a signature merengue song that many people in Latin America easily recognize. The song presents us with an intoxicating combination of rhythm and lyrics, which appear to walk right into the trap of stereotyping black people only to later throw the stereotype out of the window. It is hence perfect for our Were You Listening series for its subtle and not so subtle message. Were we listening?This episode accompanies the Yo Soy Merengue episode of the second season of our podcast. In this episode we hear from two Afro-Dominican guests: music and dance educator, composer, arranger, producer, and co-founder of Areíto Arts, Edwin Ferreras,  and University of Northern Colorado Professor, music producer, recording and mixing engineer, arranger, composer, and bandleader Socrates Garcia. And we also hear from host Andrés Hincapié’s mom Margarita Noreña!For more info and resources check our website  here and our YouTube channel here.Contact us at: [email protected] you like the music we use check our playlists here.Host/Director of Series: Andrés Hincapié, PhDProducer: Melissa Villodas, PhD CandidateGraphic Content Creator: Susan Mykalcio

This episode is named after the song Yo Soy El Merengue in honor of the late Johnny Ventura who died July 2021. But, who is the merengue? What is it? How is it danced? What is the Black contribution to this contagious rhythm, staple of house parties not only in its birthplace the Dominican Republic, but also in other Latin American countries such as Puerto Rico and Colombia.In this episode we talk about the origins and history of merengue, its role as the national rhythm of the Dominican Republic under dictator Rafael Trujillo, and its diffusion all over the Latin American and Latino markets in the U.S. including its mixtures with Hip Hop. Of course, since we're dancers, we also explore how the Black roots of merengue informed how the rhythm is danced.Our guests are Dominican music and dance educator, composer, arranger and producer Edwin Manuel Ferreras Madrigal, Dominican music professor, arranger, recording engineer, composer and band leader Socrates Garcia, and doctoral student in ethnomusicology, teacher and musician John Bimbiras. For more info and resources check our website  here and our YouTube channel here.Contact us at: [email protected] you liked the music we used check our playlists here.Host/Producers: Andrés Hincapié, PhD; Melissa Villodas, PhD Candidate Graphic Content Creator: Susan Mykalcio

In this single we celebrate the first anniversary of our podcast and reflect on the knowledge that all of our incredible guests have generously shared with us. We talk about our mission to advance anti-racism in the Afro-Latin dance community and we also reflect on our work in season one, Were You Listening?, our singles and our ongoing second season. Kick back and listen at the coziest most relaxing plant corner in your home (you’ll know what we mean when you watch on Ig, Facebook or YouTube 😉)For more info and resources check our website  here and our YouTube channel here.Contact us at: [email protected] you liked the music we used check our playlists here.Host/Producers: Andrés Hincapié, PhD; Melissa Villodas, PhD Candidate Graphic Content Creator: Susan Mykalcio