“Cuban authorities are wary for the same reason as authorities in other countries — reggaeton tends to be hypersexual and to glorify consumerism and fashion,” she said.
PREJUDICES AND PIRACY
Cuban reggaeton musicians say prejudices keep them off the recording labels and radio airwaves. Their music cannot be found in stores. Fans simply burn their own CDs.
“In Cuba, reggaeton moves thanks to piracy,” said El Micha.
A beginner typically records at a makeshift studio for US$2 an hour, burns as many CDs as he can afford to and spreads them around. Some became famous giving free CDs to taxi drivers.
A few have achieved local success like Gente de Zona, Baby Lores or Kola Loka, and some even dream of breaking into the US market including Elvis Manuel, a 19-year-old reggaeton star who disappeared last year while trying to cross the Florida Straits to the US.
But most just fly under the radar only to emerge during weekends for concerts at state-owned discos.
“Reggaeton is treading a fine line between official and unofficial/independent worlds,” said Geoff Baker, a lecturer at the University of London’s Royal Holloway College who has researched the topic in Cuba.
Cuban reggaeton has a distinctive rhythm from its Puerto Rican roots, local musicians say. It is also less violent in its lyrics than the imported version.
“My lyrics talk about what young people live without getting into politics, because I don’t really care about that. Reggaeton is music for people’s pleasure,” said El Micha as he got ready to go on stage.
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