Latin rap

Latin rap is not a homogeneous musical style but rather a term that covers all hip-hop music recorded by Latinos, as in Chicano Rap, Hip Hop Latino, and Hip Hop en espanol.

The first bilingual ("Spanglish") rappers were a group from Bronx, New York by the name of Mean Machine. They put out the very first bilingual rap song in 1981 on Sugarhill Records. The record was called "Disco Dream". The emcees were Mr. Schick, DJ Julio, Mr. Nice, and Jimmy Mac. Nuyorican DJ and producer Tony Touch also mentions (in an interview on blackmagazine.it) the track "Spanglish" by Spanish Fly & The Terrible 2, which came out in the same year on Enjoy Records. Other early Puerto Rican rap pioneers from NY include Rubie Dee and Prince Whipper Whip of the Fantastic Five, DJ Charlie Chase of the Cold Crush Brothers, Master OC and Devastating Tito of the Fearless Four.

Later in the decade came L.A.'s Kid Frost (Mexican-American) and Mellow Man Ace (Cuban-American), followed by Cypress Hill featuring Mellow's brother Sen Dog. On the East Coast, Puerto Rican rappers Big Pun, Hurricane G and Fat Joe followed. The Beatnuts first appeared as producers but soon recorded their own material. Their track "Off tha Books", which featured Big Pun, was also included on Big Pun's second posthumous album. Their song "Watch out Now" was also used by Jennifer Lopez for her song "Jenny from the Block". Proyecto Uno, also from NY, started mixing hip hop with merengue.

In the course of the 1990s, rappers from Latin America and Spain dropped their first records, e.g. Control Machete from Mexico, DJ Kun from Argentina and 7 Notas 7 Colores from Spain. In Texas and Miami, bass rappers DJ Laz and Jonny Z created a new style (Latin bass); Jonny Z also teamed up with Mexican gangster rapper Carlos Coy AKA South Park Mexican from Texas, on the track "Puro Latin Bass" (itself based on Rodney O & Joe Cooley's West Coast classic "Everlasting Bass"). SPM also managed Dope House Records, a conduit for other upcoming artists.

It is also important to remember a big movement that is going on in Puerto Rico with Latin rappers, and a new kind of "Latin rap" is gaining popularity. While big time Puerto Rican rappers like Big Pun and Fat Joe made their mark in the American industry of hip hop, many talented rappers are hidden under the language barrier and produce great Spanish lyrics in the Puerto Rican hip hop movement. Some of these are Mc Ceja, Lito Mc Cassidy, Polaco, Tempo, and a new rapper who is reintroducing some of the old school and so called "real" hip hop, Tego Calderon. These are some of the many rappers that hold respect among hip hop fans, but there are a bunch of others that produce a rather "new style" invented in PR. This is called "reggaeton", in other words a mix of very tropical tracks, combined with some sort of "techno" music and heavy bass and fast drums. The singers specialize in topics such as women, sex, and parties and dancing.

This very popular movement have caused a lot of controversy in PR for the explicit lyrics of the aforementioned topics and the very explicit music videos produced. Among the most famous "rap singers" of this genre are Og Black and Master Joe, Nicky Jam, Ranking Stone, Don Omar, Ivy Queen, Plan B and Wisin y Yandel. Actually, reggaeton music has reached international acclaim and some videos and parties are actually made in US. However, because of the popularity of this new genre, some really talented rappers are faded. Some day perhaps, track masters like Dj Black, Dj Ecko and Dj Dicky will reach international status and credit.

Latin Rap is a type of music that has been influential to youngsters of Latin American countries as well as those of Hispanic background who reside in the United States, since the middle to late 1980s and the early 1990s.

Latin Rap has been a hit specially in countries with a large number of migrators to the United States. In Puerto Rico, for example, where many of its residents have moved to New York, Miami and Chicago over the years, Latin rap was jumpstarted by a wave of singers that included Ruben DJ and Vico C. Ruben DJ's hit, La Escuela, (The School) and Vico C's hit, La Recta Final, (The way to the End) received considerable radio time during the late 1980s.

Italian rappers such as Sa Razza, La Fossa, Rookie and even Articolo 31 were inspired by Latin rap. Italy's first and most important hip hop magazine was called Alleanza Latina, the Italian translation of Latin Alliance.

Noted Latino rappers and hip hop DJs

• 7 Notas 7 Colores
• Actitud María y Marta
• A.D.O.R.
• Afro-Rican
• Beatnuts
• Big Pun
• CPV (Club de los Poetas Violentos)
• Cypress Hill
• Darkroom Familia
• DJ Kun
• DJ Laz
• DJ Yulian
• El General
• Fat Joe
• Frankie Cutlass
• Gerardo
• Hip Hop Hoodíos
• Hurricane G
• Jazzy Mel
• Joe Bataan
• Jonny Z
• JV
• Kid Frost aka Frost
• Kurious
• Latin Alliance
• Latin Empire
• Lil Rob
• Mangu
• The Mean Machine
• Mellow Man Ace
• Mesanjarz of Funk
• Mexiclan
• Orishas
• Proyecto Uno
• The Real Roxanne
• Rhyme Poetic Mafia
• Ruben DJ
• Sindicato Argentino del Hip Hop
• Terror Squad
• Tiro de Gracia
• Tony Touch
• Vico C
• VKR (Verdaderos Kreyentes de la Religión de Hip Hop)
• Zona 7

External links

• Source for Latin rap news and interviews (http://www.latinrapper.com)
• A collection of texts and links about Latin rap (http://www.brownpride.com/latinrap/default.asp)

See also

• Chicano rap
• Hip Hop Latino
• Hip Hop en espanol

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