Hip hop from the ghetto

M1 + UMI + Bocafloja + Akil Ammar + Redencion

@ el ghetto

19/09/06

The title suggests an investigation in the origins of the musical genre but in fact this was an evening that encapsulated where hip hop in Mexico has arrived to rather than came from. 

El ghetto is an impressive venue located slightly north of the city centre.  With a spacious stage, large area in front for the viewer and a separate “chill out” zone behind, it represents one of the few places in the city that feels like it was designed to hold live music events. 

The crème of Mexico’s hip hop crop was on show with Redencion, Akil Ammar and Bocafloja all on stage during the evening. 

Redencion, from Leon Guanajuanto, was celebrating the release of his debut album “antidepresivo”, while Bocafloja and Ammar (both from Mexico City) are very much veterans for the cause with 7 and 12 years behind them respectively. 

The US hip hop scene provided M1 from Dead Prez and UMI from POW. This balance between US and Mexican artists gave an opportunity to compare styles and attitudes.

Ammar provided the highlight of the evening by lifting the crowd to a ‘rappers delight’ as his more simple but engaging approach fell easily on the ear.   

In comparison Bocafloja’s method seemed far more complicated, providing the ability to convey a more sophisticated message.  However, it left many behind as they desperately fought to rap along.

The complex musical platforms created by the Mexican artists lean heavily on the Latin influences.  This was in stark contrast to the basic structures created by M1 and UMI. 

The rapping style also provided a point of contrast as the basic, direct and aggressive style of M1 contrasted sharply with the, at times beautiful lyricism of the Mexican rappers.

In many ways the question seems to be should there be a distinction between Latin and Black American hip hop, when the origins of the music are very much the same.

The frustrations facing a young Chicano in the barrio are very much the same as those growing out in the ghetto. Also one can imagine the parallels between urban life north and south of the border. 

In fact the roots of hip hop in the 1970s are as much influenced by Latin as black culture.  Puerto Ricans especially, like Rock Steady Crew, had important contributions in the early development of the main areas of the genre.

Hip hop is more than the music; it takes on a 3 dimensional form with the addition of graffiti art and break dancing.  This provides the perfect context for the artists collective in order to develop the urban art form.

In Mexico the hip hop collective approach is also in evidence as Voltronmx and Quilomboarte represent the skill sharing culture that exists in this area. The cross border extension of the collective exists in the form of the Urban Poets Crew, a Los Angeles based community with strong Mexican connections.

Finally it is interesting that the hip hop movement is based on a counter-culture concept.  Fucking the police, fighting the power and general revolutionary rhetoric was strongly in evidence on the evening. 

It is strange that for a movement focused on the concept of anti-establishment, hip-hop artists are generally the most business focused. 

The commercialisation of the music has particularly affected hip hop in the US.  With the shift towards conspicuous consumption and the birth of “bling” hip-hop has moved away from its origins.

Many of the topics that are sung about, such as misogyny, guns and drugs seem almost an effect of rather than a cause of the musical style.  This provides the conditions for a self perpetuating cycle, rather than a manual for change as true hip-hop would advocate.

Perhaps in this context Mexican hip hop seems almost purer and closer to its radical roots in that its focus is still on the inequality and exclusion from basic rights that exist for many in society.