Afropop Worldwide, the popular Peabody Award-winning showcase for African and African diaspora music and stories, hosted by Cameroonian broadcast legend Georges Collinet and distributed by PRX, returns with a five-part special selection of its best Latin-focused programs. This series aims to help public radio stations in the U.S. celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, 2024. Tune in on your local public radio station's site or find additional access information at afropop.org.
DISTRIBUTION DATE: September 12, 2024
SERIES: AFROPOP WORLDWIDE'S HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH 2024
PROGRAM: "The New York Sound of Latin Music"
New York City has long been a major incubator for Latin music, thanks to its large populations of Puerto Rican, Dominican, Panamanian, Cuban, and Colombian musicians and music fans. We celebrate some of the giants of New York's Latin music scene—Ray Barretto, Larry Harlow, Jerry González—as well as lesser-known artists. Topics include the cross-pollination between Latin music and jazz, the Panama connection featuring Rubén Blades among others, the Latin-Jewish connection, and much more. Produced and co-hosted by author and Afropop veteran producer Ned Sublette with special guest Dr. Ben Lapidus, musician and author of New York and the International Sound of Latin Music, 1940 to 1990.
DISTRIBUTION DATE: September 19, 2024
SERIES: AFROPOP WORLDWIDE'S CELEBRATION OF HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH 2024
PROGRAM: "The Panama Beat"
Central America—a narrow, mountainous, and largely impoverished stretch of land spanning seven countries—is a surprising and underexposed Latin American musical hot zone. The region's tumultuous history has led to a fascinating mix of cultural influences: Spanish conquistadors, British pirates, and American banana companies have all vied for power. Adding to this mix are large indigenous enclaves, Anglo-Caribbean migrants, the Afro-Arawak Garifuna and Miskito peoples, and the many musical influences of the Caribbean, creating a fascinating musical tapestry. Salsa and merengue, soca and calypso, reggae and reggaeton—it all comes together in Central America.
In our program, we visit Panama, a little-known musical treasure trove. Here on the isthmus, music from around the Americas mixes together in a unique stew: American, Cuban, Colombian, and Jamaican influences combine to form a highly complex and unique musical culture. We'll hear interviews from Spanish reggae star Kafu Banton, Afro-Spanish linguist John Lipski, traditional Afro-Latino artist Marcia Rodriguez, dancehall duo Los Rakas, and many others. Produced by Marlon Bishop.
DISTRIBUTION DATE: September 26, 2024
SERIES: AFROPOP WORLDWIDE'S CELEBRATION OF HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH 2024
PROGRAM: "Rumba Boogie and Latin Doo-wop"
This program travels from New Orleans to Detroit to Philadelphia, celebrating the exuberant cross-pollination between R&B and Latin music styles such as the mambo and cha-cha-cha, with classic recordings mainly from the 1950s and '60s. Featured artists include Sam Cooke, Johnny Otis, Professor Longhair, Art Neville, Sugar Boy and His Cane Cutters, Billy Stewart, Bo Diddley, The Turbans, Arthur Lee Maye, and others. Produced by Ned Sublette.
DISTRIBUTION DATE: October 3, 2024
SERIES: AFROPOP WORLDWIDE'S CELEBRATION OF HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH 2024
PROGRAM: "The Other Afro-Latino: Hidden Sounds from Ecuador, Bolivia, Uruguay"
Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian musical giants have long enjoyed the spotlight, yet throughout Latin America there are other Black enclaves producing some of the New World's most vibrant music. Their stories have gone untold for far too long. In this episode, Afropop Worldwide explores these lost sounds, starting in an Ecuadorian desert valley where African and Andean traditions have mixed seamlessly into fiery dance music. Then we're off to mangrove-studded Esmeraldas to search out the last marimba legends living on the jungle waterways. We continue to Bolivia, where a tiny Black minority uses their music to fight for recognition by the indigenous government. Lastly, we'll listen to the driving carnival music of Uruguay, candombe. Tune in for exclusive interviews and recordings by everyone from marimba master Papa Roncon to candombe-jazz legend Hugo Fattoruso. Produced by Marlon Bishop.
DISTRIBUTION DATE: October 10, 2024
SERIES: AFROPOP WORLDWIDE'S CELEBRATION OF HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH 2024
PROGRAM: "The Cumbia Diaspora"
In this episode, we find out how cumbia left Colombia in the '60s and '70s and traveled to other countries. Everywhere it went, it transformed itself, adapting to its new environment. In Peru, it mixed with psychedelic guitar effects and Andean sounds to become chicha. In Argentina, it became the expression of a new generation of restless youth in the burgeoning slums of Buenos Aires. And in Mexico, it became so ingrained in the local culture that some have forgotten it came from Colombia in the first place. Produced by Marlon Bishop.
MORE ABOUT AFROPOP WORLDWIDE
Afropop Worldwide promotes understanding and enjoyment of contemporary music and stories from Africa and its global diaspora. Through its nationally distributed Peabody Award-winning public radio program launched in 1988 by NPR, the Planet Afropop podcast, and a content-rich website (afropop.org), Afropop Worldwide showcases artists and their work in cultural and historic context across the generational spectrum. In our productions, music becomes a lens for exploring contemporary and traditional perspectives on women's rights, climate change, governance, and other issues that define our shared future.
CONTACT:
Sean Barlow
Afropop Worldwide
sean@afropop.org
