Breathe
By Brenda Macías, Head of Dissemination at CIEG, UNAM.
La Rosalía offered a massive and free concert in Mexico City's Zócalo on April 28, 2023 and, no, she did not do pre-electoral proselytism, nor did she fill as many people as Grupo Firme. Her presentation did not mean that we forgot about socio-economic problems or that the essential problems that must be solved in our city and in our nation were magically stopped. They are still here, with or without her.
The voices against the concert demanded that fewer resources be invested, or even that it should not be invested in a mass/popular concert and that the money should be injected into more urgent and important things. And shouldn't public investment to provide us with access to culture be essential for reflection and the resolution of basic problems? Not everything is electoral democracy.
The presence of La Rosalía, the author of "Malamente", in one of the most important public stages of Our America overflowed the subjectivities and diversities that inhabit the most transparent region of the air. I personally vibrated when she sang this verse: "And although they curse me behind my back, from every stab I draw my rage".
During the concert I noticed that La Rosalía, the singer and songwriter who fuses flamenco with hip hop, pop and reggaeton, with dissimilar rhythms and sounds, easily connects with the audience. "Chica qué dices, saoko, papi, saoko." And the Zócalo reverberated.
Between the lines I could hear the influence of Björk and Arca, without leaving out Niño de Elche, C. Tangana, J. Balvin and Bad Bunny. La Rosalía's style is innovative because she takes risks in the middle of the music industry, popular and global. It is a delight to listen to her three albums. I think her longest song is 4 minutes long. No longer. Our retention is short and she makes the most of every second.
His musical evolution has taken emotional leaps marked by melancholy, flamenco guitar and cante jondo. Always in the background: his sonorous roots. Maybe that's why he criticizes his diction. It is not understood at first listen. But in linguistics, fortunately, there is no correct speech and even less so in music.
With a free, open-air concert in the heart of the city, La Rosalía allowed people of all ages and backgrounds to come together to enjoy music full of daring and rehearsed choreography, without musicians on stage. This event was not only an exciting cultural experience, but also became a symbol of inclusion and diversity.
Their concert made possible the right to culture for those who wanted and were able to attend. However, not everyone who should have been there was in the Zócalo because, in order to get to the heart of the city, certain economic and mobility resources are required, which not everyone has access to. Children, adolescents, all kinds of families, fans, Motomamis, unicorns, sex-generic diversities, mothers, fathers, entire families, people who did not know her... took to the streets.
In these times when we carry heavy chains of bitterness, when political polarization prevails, or rather, pure grilla without truly transforming debates, I celebrated the presence of La Rosalía in the Zócalo. At a time when the living arts have been affected by the pandemic and by the lack, always, of economic resources and will for the creation of new audiences. So, any initiative that makes us retake the street makes me vibrate as the serious sounds of the concert did.
I hope that all social and solidarity economies, street commerce and tourism have benefited from this festival, this coven and mass/soul gathering.
The opinions expressed are the responsibility of the authors and are absolutely independent of the position and editorial line of Opinion 51.
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