I had a friend from Nigeria who was a Yoruba. She moved into a predominantly latino area of Brooklyn. One hot summer night she heard the distinct sound of drums. She was startled by the sound of her own traditional Yoruba rhythms. She immediately went outside and followed the sound of the drums to a nearby park. When she arrived at the park she was taken aback by the sight of a group of "white" Puerto Ricans playing the drums. She was instantly confused as she had just arrived in NYC.Who are these "White Africans"? How did they learn my culture?
She called me on the telephone and told me how confused she was by this group of "White Africans" who spoke Spanish. I could only laugh.
Listen to: Africano and Africa Occidental
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Haha!
ReplyDeleteI always listen to the drums more carefully. Any time I listen to up-beat dance-y Latin music I dance to the drums. When I hear the drums I hear the AFRICA in it!
I want latinos to come to Naija fest and hear what I hear when I play thier music. I don't know if they know how much Africa is in that music. I once told a white cuban girl that Latin music has so much African influence and she said--- "girl stop trying to have Africa take all the credit for everything good in the world"
I thought because she was CUBAN she'd understand and we'd get into a deep and enlightening conversation sharing personal experiences!