{"id":9240,"date":"2013-07-18T15:08:52","date_gmt":"2013-07-18T20:08:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/seecolombia.travel\/blog\/?p=9240"},"modified":"2016-05-04T16:52:19","modified_gmt":"2016-05-04T21:52:19","slug":"hip-hop-in-colombia-where-it%c2%b4s-at","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seecolombia.travel\/blog\/2013\/07\/hip-hop-in-colombia-where-it%c2%b4s-at\/","title":{"rendered":"Hip-hop in Colombia. Where it\u00b4s at."},"content":{"rendered":"

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Whatever you happen to think of that peculiar phenomenon, Reggaeton<\/a>, I would argue that it\u00b4s done some good things for Colombia. Not only does it give rhythmless gringos such as this humble blogger respite from their Salsa embarrassments during a club \u00a8crossover\u00a8 night, but it\u00b4s also led to another, less obvious phenomenon.<\/p>\n

Reggaeton\u00b4s mercurial rise has left Colombian hip-hop a little on the sidelines. A little marginal.<\/p>\n

Let me explain. Anyone that takes a good look at me should know straight away that I\u00b4m a big hip-hop head. I mean, my appearance just screams rap. Being the massive fan I am, why would I be happy about the lack of prominence of Colombian hip-hop?<\/p>\n

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\"Some<\/a>
Some hip-hop? That sounds groovy, cat!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Let me explain before you condemn me. Although I think Kanye West\u00b4s new album is a troubling, brilliant, groundbreaking masterpiece, and that the flows of Jay-Z and Lil\u00b4 Wayne are something of a phenomenon, I do have some reservations regarding the messages these superstars are transmitting. Don\u00b4t get me wrong, the \u00a8bling bling\u00a8 facet of hip-hop has always been there: even before Ice Cube was bragging about gold and pagers, Big Bank Hank was talking about all the sexy ladies with which he was going to drive off in his big OJ. However, as hip-hop has become the Rock \u00b4n Roll of the new millenia in terms of popularity and reach, it seems to be going through the same things Rock did way back then; with popularity came lots of talk about sexy ladies and having lots of money. Fun, I suppose, but not the most stimulating subject matter, really.<\/p>\n

Luckily (I\u00b4d say) for Colombian hip-hop, Reggaeton revels in such cutting-edge subject matter, leaving hip-hop free to address other issues. Being marginalised, people involved in hip-hop in this country really care about the craft, and use it as a serious and heart-felt method of connecting culturally – something that occurs all around the hip-hop world, but that can be kind of overwhelmed by all the talk of bitches and paper coming out of the mouths of superstars.<\/p>\n

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