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, Reggaeton, Hip Hop Latino, and Hip Hop en espanol.
The first bilingual ("
Spanglish") rappers were a group from the Bronx, New York called the
Mean Machine. They put out the very first bilingual rap song in 1981 on Sugarhill Records. The record was called "Disco Dream". The group members 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.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, most Latin rap came from the West Coast of the United States. Cuban-American artist
Mellow Man Ace was the first Latino artist to have a major bilingual single attached to his 1989 debut. Mellow Man, referred to as the "Godfather of Latin rap" and a Hip Hop Hall of Fame inductee, brought mainstream attention to Spanglish rhyming with his 1989 platinum single "Mentirosa". In 1990, fellow West Coast artist
Kid Frost further brought Latinos to the rap forefront with his single "La Raza."
Cypress Hill, of which Mellow Man Ace was a member before going solo, would become the first Latino rap group to reach platinum status in 1991. The group has since continued to release other gold and platinum albums. Ecuadorian born rapper
Gerardo received heavy rotation on video and radio for his single "Rico, Suave", while commercially watered-down, the album enjoyed a status of being one of the first mainstream Spanglish CDs on the market.
On the East Coast, Latin artists such as the
Beatnuts emerged in the early '90s, with New Jersey native
Chino XL earning recognition for his lyricism and equal controversy for his subject matter. In the late '90s, Puerto Rican rapper
Big Pun became the first Latino solo artist to reach platinum sales for an LP with his debut album Capital Punishment. Other Latin artists on the East Coast would follow and receive a great deal of support from Latino consumers including rappers such as
Cuban Link and
Immortal Technique. In Miami artists such as
Don Dinero and
Pitbull have been successful with rhymes in Spanish and English.
Latin rap (as well as its subgenre of
Chicano rap) has thrived along the West Coast, Southwest and Midwestern states with little promotion due to the large Latino populations of those regions. Texas artists such as
Chingo Bling,
Juan Gotti and
South Park Mexican have enjoyed steady sales, and have headlined a number of successful Southwest tours. San Diego artist
Lil Rob opened doors for Chicano Rap by receiving mainstream attention for his singles "Summer Nights", and "Bring Out The Freak In You".
Baby Bash also had a huge impact with his singles "Suga Suga" and "Baby I'm Back". Artists Sinful of Tha Mexicanz, and
Kemo the Blaxican have continued to improve the popularity of Spanglish rap on the West Coast.
In recent years the term "Urban Regional" was coined to refer to Spanish rap performed over beats infused with the sounds and melodies from popular Mexican music styles such as Banda, Norteno and others.
Akwid,
Jae-P,
Crooked Stilo and David Rolas are among the most popular Urban Regional Artists.
In Panama and Puerto Rico a new style was created, inspired by Hip-Hop:
Reggaeton. While Puerto Rican rappers from the US like Big Pun made their mark in the American industry of Hip-Hop, Hip-Hop was merged with Latin, and Reggae into a new style. Popular Reggaeton artists include
Tego Calderon,
Daddy Yankee,
Voltio,
Calle 13, and
Don Omar.
Latin rap has been a hit especially 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 rappers 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. Mexico has a growing Hip-Hop scene with groups such as
Control Machete,
Cartel De Santa, and
Molotov.
Latin rap has also surfaced in the UK with a group called
Cultura Londres who list
Eric Bobo of
Cypress Hill as one of their members.
It should also be noted that a number of East Coast rappers usually identified as
African American have Latin ancestry as well, usually from the
Dominican Republic or
Puerto Rico. This list includes
N.O.R.E.,
Lloyd Banks,
Kane & Abel,
Joe Budden,
J.R. Writer,
Peedi Crakk,
AZ,
Juelz Santana, and
Fabolous.
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7 Notas 7 Colores*
Afro-Rican*
Akwid*
Aztek*
Baby Bash*
Beatnuts*
Big Pun*
Calle 13*
Capone*
Cartel De Santa*
Chingo Bling*
Chino XL*
Control Machete*
Crooked Stilo*
Cypress Hill*
Cuban Link*
Cultura Londres*
Daddy Yankee*
Darkroom Familia*
Delinquent Habits*
DJ Laz*
Don Dinero*
Don Omar*
El General*
Fat Joe *
Gerardo *
Hip Hop HoodÃos*
Hurricane G*
Immortal Technique*
Jae-P*
Jonny Z*
Juan Gotti*
JV*
Kemo the Blaxican*
Kid Frost aka Frost
*
Latin Alliance*
Latin Empire*
Lighter Shade of Brown*
Lil Rob*
Los Nativos*
Mangu*
Mean Machine*
Mellow Man Ace*
Molotov*
Mr. Capone-E*
Mr. Shadow*
Orishas*
Ozomatli*
Pescozada*
Pitbull*
Play-N-Skillz*
Ruben DJ*
South Park Mexican*
Tego Calderon*
Triple Seis*
Tony Touch*
Vico C*
Voltio*
Chicano rap*
Reggaeton*
Freestyle music*
LatinRapper.com - Source for Latin rap news and interviews.
*
BrownPride.com at BrownPride.com - A collection of texts and links about Latin rap.
*
Allmusic - Guide to Latin rap genre.
