For this island. Sugar, spices, gold, just a few of the perks the spanish enjoyed for over 400 years. That is, until the u. S. Was happy to help, you know, liberate the island from the spanish and make it a u. S. Commonwealth. That means puerto rico is neither an independent country nor an official state. And its people dont have a vote in the u. S. Congress or in president ial elections. Despite all of that, Puerto Ricans are unstoppable. And their Cultural Impact on the u. S. And the world . Massive. To really get to the bottom of how puerto rico has not only survived but thrived requires an understanding of the cultural history of the island. So thats what were going to do now. And in case youre new to this show, thats like our whole mo here. [upbeat latintinged music] [upbeat latintinged music] music has become the love language between the u. S. And puerto rico. From the time of the tainos to the Enslaved Africans who were brought here later on to modern day, music has been an outlet and a voice of the people. Even the great jazz pioneer Jelly Roll Morton once said, you cant make jazz without certain elements of latin music. Well, let me let me translate that for you. If it aint got that latin swing, it aint a thing, all right . And in todays political climate, puerto rico continues that tradition of artists using their voices to bring awareness and make change. [daddy yankees gasolina] oh oh oh [singing in spanish] listen, yall, this is reggaeton. And im sure by now youve heard of it. Back in 2004, daddy yankee made it a Household Name with his global hit gasolina. Reggaeton originated in panama. But puerto rico became known for the genre when afrolatino artists like Tego Calderon and ivy queen used the platform to tackle racism and political issues. [singing in spanish] now, the number one artist in the world is bad bunny, whos taken the genre to the next level with hits like i like it, featuring cardi b and j balvin. In 2022 alone, his music had well over 10 billion streams. [upbeat music] this art form has become the voice of the next generation, including puerto rican artist Villano Antillano [singing in spanish] who bad bunny himself showcased as the next big thing to come out of the reggaeton world. [singing in spanish] oh my god. Thats hot. Hey. Thats so hot. You like this . How are you . How are you . How you doing . How are you doing . [laughs] that beat is hot. Oh, yeah. Isnt it . Yeah. I love reggaeton. Me too. Yeah. I thought itd be over by now though. I thought, ok. Yeah. [laughs] because i was like, oh, its not going to last. I didnt really start in reggaeton. I feel like now, i found, like, a space. Like, i, sort of, like, dipped my feet in reggaeton. And then i was like, ooh, the waters nice. And i stayed there. [laughs] so play a little bit. Play i want to hear it some more. [singing in spanish] pa pa. Its hot. [laughter] so so how did you get your start . Well, basically, i started making music with a collective thats called la maldad. And theyre basically, like, a cultural project. And they socially conscious. Yeah, yeah, theyre very proud of our roots. And theyre doing a lot specifically for the queer community. They knew that i made music. And they saw something in me, Mitxhell De Leon specifically. Thats my baby. And he was like, yo, i really like what you do. And i think that i want to, like, give you the space for you to perfect it, and, like, i have a studio so i can just record you. Yeah, oh, amazing. Amazing. Unheard of. And thats how i got my start. And has your work changed since then to now . Entirely. Yeah, yeah . Like, everything. Its been a lot of growing, you know, because, like, when i started releasing music with la maldad, i was malepresenting. I still go by the same name, which is Villano Antillano. The music Collective La Maldad helped launch villanos career with early hits like pajara. [singing in spanish] and my gender changed. My Gender Expression changed. I grew sonically. And, like, when i medically transitioned, like, how i understood music changed. Changed as well. Because your brain changes. And the way you process data and information changes. Oh, wow. Being true to herself paid off when her hit bzrp music sessions, number 51 Found International success. [singing in spanish] now youre a a huge star. Can i say that . Yeah, i think so. Like, blew up. [laughs] congratulations. Thanks. Thanks. Thats really nice. And its pretty amazing. Yeah, it is. For you to be this Big A Star In in puerto rico in the world. I mean, its its incredible what youre doing. Youre a pioneer. Thank you. And her fame keeps growing. She recently became the first trans artist to crack spotifys global top 50. And check out her tiktok likes, over 6 million strong. And what do you attribute your your success . I just think that as a human being, ive had to work, like, ten times harder than anyone just to be, like, granted. Not even then, because i was never granted a seat at the table. I grabbed the seat. And i put it at the table. And i sat there. [laughs] and now what . Exactly. Im at the table. What . And im and im here. Villano is not only here, but she is making puerto rico and the world Pay Attention to the things that matter to her. Why is it that im 27 years old and ive never sought it with a trans doctor, you know, like a woman who was a trans woman who was a doctor . Why do you make my life and the life of my collective so difficult . Now i have a lot of, like, more resources and things that i didnt have before to tell my story and our stories better. What do you want to do with your story . How do you want to move it forward . I think it just does that by itself. I feel like now, i can just focus on being a superstar. And people are going to, like, naturally be like, oh, this person had overcome so many of these things to get to where they are. And theyre going to look into that and be like, you know, why is it so hard for these people . At the end of the day, im like, thats for the public to look into and think about. Were doing it. Yeah, no, i mean the mo for the most part. Society may be slowing catching up to trans issues. But villano is not waiting. Shes living her life on her terms and saying the things that need to be said. The obstacles are so many. Puerto rico is one of the most violent places to live in as a woman on this hemisphere also. Its horrible, like, horrible. We have death rates that are, like, just ridiculous. That ties into a social revolution. Literally is fighting against patriarchy and machismo and misogyny and all these things that are expected of women and that are imposed usually by men because most of the perceptions of what society thinks a woman has to do are ideas that a man came up with. I feel like machismo and patriarchy is like, yall are fucked up. Is is part of the problem also that puerto rico is a commonwealth . Is that part of the problem . I think the commonwealth is a farce. And its just a fancy term that is employed to hide the fact that were a colony. I feel like when you take a nation and you impoverish them, and you, like, destroy their education system, theres a lot of poverty. Theres a lot of, like, hunger. And so, like, were we get violent. All of that ties back to the fact that were not an educated population. Im, like, giving you a crash course of, like yeah, no, i know. And i love it. I love it. Why puerto rico is so fucked up. Please do. Puerto rico for dummies. You know, it doesnt get to, like, if we were our own country. Sadly, were never going to know because weve never been our own country. Right. So i cant hypothesize. Yeah. But its going to take years for us to become a more conscious people. Its a lot. Its a lot of things that theres a lot going on in puerto rico, the devastation from maria, irma, the earthquake. And yet, youre creating great music. I mean, i thats what i see walk going through the island, yeah. But i feel like, historically, thats also weve also been very inclined into the arts because its theyve been a diversion from our problems. And thats where great art comes from. It it is, sort of, a release valve. Sadly. [chuckles] yeah, you know, an escapist. Yeah, it is a lot of escapism. Yeah. Thats the precise word. Yeah. I feel like what we do in our music and a lot of Puerto Ricans do regardless is just, we make the story prettier and more attractive. Yeah. And, like, theres this magic to it. Magical realism. Or artist, yeah. Making life a little more fun, more exciting than it really was. Yeah. Art is what helps us survive everything. Yeah, yeah, yeah, like, why not . [chuckles] why not, right . Well, thank you for having me here. What a pleasure. Thank you for sharing. Sure thing. Thank you for coming. Yeah. Thank you for stopping by. Villano is a great example of how Puerto RicansCombat Obstacles with art and beauty. [singing in spanish] and shes far from being alone. [singing in spanish] im javi, im 31, and im a fitness instructor. I saw myself in a photograph. And we were all smiling, and i looked closer, and i was like that thats what everybody sees . Im back, and i got botox® cosmetic. The lines were so prominent its all i saw in the photograph, so now when i take photos, and i see myself in photos, its its me, i just have fewer lines. Botox® cosmetic is fdaapproved to temporarily make frown lines, crows feet, and Forehead Lines look better. 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[upbeat latintinged music] outside the fortress walls of el viejo san juan, youll find the colorful and very private community of la perla. The settlement was created in the 18th century when the spanish ruled puerto rico and forced Enslaved Africans and nonwhite servants to live apart from the rest of the community. It was a rough existence. [suspenseful music] but the people had a secret [percussive music] that allowed them to express themselves, communicate, and preserve their culture. Bomba. [laughs] shit is hot. What are you playing thats so hot . Bomba, man. Bomba. Thats bomba. What is bomba . Basically, bomba was developed mostly around the 1500s to 1600s. That early on. Wow. Yes, by the enslaved people that were brought during the slave trade and the colonization of puerto rico. And also, before the spanish came here, there were a native Indigenous People, tainos. Right. Right. And so bomba is actually a mixture of the different ethnicities that came to the island. Its a Fingerprint OfFingerprint Of puerto rico. Enslaved africans created bomba more than 400 years ago, not only as a form of music, but as a way to share secret messages. Certain moves or beats became codes and could be a protest or even a shoutout that they were plans to do Something Like open up a can of whoop ass and rebel. Now when the colonizers finally got a clue about subversive messages buried in the beats, the ongoing battle to silence movements of independence began and have continued into modern times. It was gag laws. It is, yeah. Implemented, like, in the 50s. In the 50 1950s . Yeah, yeah. That late. Not that long ago. Yeah, yeah. To break it up. Police would come, arrest people, you know. It it wasnt permitted. Yep. Bomba represents that resistance to oppression by governments or other countries as well. The families just held onto it to it. So they they kept it together. And they kept the bomba going, but in private spaces and family spaces. Right, right, right. In secret. Puerto ricans have been Fighting Colonialism for five centuries. The u. S. Took the reins from spain in 1898. Since then, whenever theres been a push to become an independent nation, both the u. S. And puerto rican governments have said, not so fast. I mean, get this. You see this flag . Pretty, right . But as recently as the 1950s, it was against the law to fly it anywhere in the country. Why . Because it was a symbol of independence. The ban is gone now. But so is the original flag. The shade of blue was changed to match the good old stars and stripes. But through it all, bomba has survived. [percussive music] its incredible how, sometimes, culture can disappear. But a few people can bring it back to life. And then, it has a whole new existence. We lost a lot. When we talk about bombas, we have the drums. Yeah, yeah. And they actually have two roles. We have one that keeps the groove going. [percussive music] we call that. Buleador. And we also have. Hes the one who actually provides notes on the drum. Theres also the. The space where we play, which is batey. Batey, yes. Batey is basically the center of the community. Anybody from the community can come learn and play. Right. Its not so its open. Its open to everyone. Yeah, its very open, batey. Yeah, yeah. So its every friday, we play our hearts out and and so youre going to do that tonight. Youre going to play your hearts out. Of course. We are. We can take you there. Oh, i cant wait. But i would like to show you some steps so you can yeah, please. So i dont show up, like, you know yeah, man. [chuckles] so you can have some unarmed. But ok. Lets do it. If i were to be dancing, i say hello to the drummer. And i would move. Yo, this is totally off the chain. Theres a call and response between dancer and drummer. Youre not dancing to their beats. The drummer plays the beats that go with your steps. So he has to keep up with you . Yeah. Exactly. Youre setting the tone of the beat. I need to be aware of what hes doing. Right, right. Come on. Every rhythm has a step. This one is the basic step for sica. You put your point, side, point, side. Now quick, point, side, point. There you go. Thats a basic step. And now were just going to move through the space. We call this el paseo. Its like taking a stroll. Right. So when youre ready to start, you look for the primo. You salute. And lets start carrerita. There you go. Quicker now. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. And now jump. Say goodbye. Well, that was hot. That was hot, man. Yeah. Looking good. Really good. That was good. That was nice. So youre good . Yeah, yeah, real good. Thats so do you want to go to the batey . Yeah, lets go to the batey. Lets go. [chuckles] [gentle music] now youll see all the people gathering here. And theyll theyll sing their heart out all night. It already sounds incredible. Yeah, man. [all singing in spanish] walking towards the batey, the ceremonial space, is an emotional experience. And its easy to see how this community has kept bomba alive. [all singing in spanish] by continuing to pass it down to future generations. [all singing in spanish] but its when you join in that you really start to get it. [singing in spanish] with every slap on the drums, you start to feel the heartbeat of this place. Through dance, song, and music the people here both tell stories and experience them. They become a part of them. [singing in spanish] even this space, the batey, connects them directly to the indigenous taino roots of this island, reminded to never forget the past. [all singing in spanish] [gentle music] [singing in spanish] when i was diagnosed with hiv, i didnt know who i would be. But here i am. Being me. Keep being you. And ask your Healthcare Provider about the number one prescribed Hiv Treatment, biktarvy. Biktarvy is a complete, onepill, onceaday treatment used for hiv in many people whether youre 18 or 80. 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