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From Brazil With Love: All About Tropicalia

Bebel Gilberto is one of many new artists re-interpreting the songs of Tropicalia on<em> Red Hot   Rio 2</em>.
courtesy of the artist
Bebel Gilberto is one of many new artists re-interpreting the songs of Tropicalia on Red Hot Rio 2.

English / Spanish

Back in the '60s, Brazil's music scene exploded with tropicalia — a mix of blues, jazz, folk and psychedelic rock with a distinct local flavor. And tropicalia was more than just music. It was also literature, poetry and visual art, often with commentary on the tumultuous political situation brewing in Brazil at the time.

Tropicalia gave birth to Brazilian musical icons like Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil and the band Os Mutantes. It also has inspired generations of American musicians. David Byrne has professed his love for the tropicalistas. Beck penned an ode to the movement on his 1998 album Mutations. And Kurt Cobain once publicly asked that Os Mutantes regroup.

We here at Alt.Latino are huge fans of tropicalia, so when we got an advance copy of a new tropicalia tribute from the HIV charity Red Hot Organization, we were beyond excited. Red Hot + Rio 2 pairs iconic artists like Veloso, Gil and Rita Lee of Os Mutantes with such younger Brazilian musicans as Emicida and Seu Jorge and American indie rockers Beirut and Of Montreal. They cover tropicalia classics, and the result is breathtaking.

We were so taken with the record we invited Red Hot producer Beco Dranoff to join us and give our listeners a crash course in tropicalia 101 and play new songs from the compilation. It's one groovy, sun-drenched show, so slip on some flip-flops, put on your shades and get ready for tropicalia!

Starting June 20th, we'll also be carrying an exclusive First Listen of the entire Red Hot + Rio 2 album, so make sure to stay tuned!

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English / Spanish

Muito Legal: Todo Sobre Tropicalia

En la década de 1960 floreció en Brasil un movimiento conocido como Tropicalia - una mezcla de blues, jazz, música folclórica, y rock psicodélico, con un verdadero sabor brasilero. No se trataba únicamente de un estilo musical; en su época tropicalia fue mucho mas que eso: también era literatura, poesía y arte visual. En todos sus medios, los tropicalistas producían criticas políticas hacia la situación turbulenta que se desarrollaba en Brasil durante esta época.

La explosión de tropicalia creó un espacio en donde muchos iconos de la música brasileña - Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, y la banda Os Mutantes - pudieron empezar como artistas. También el genero inspiró a generaciones de músicos estadounidenses. David Byrne proclamó su amor por los tropicalistas. Beck compuso una oda al movimiento musical en su disco, Mutations. Kurt Cobain pidió públicamente que se volviera a juntar el grupo Os Mutantes.


Aquí en Alt. Latino somos grandes fanáticos de la música tropicalia. Hace poco tuvimos la suerte de recibir una copia avanzada de un homenaje al movimiento tropicalista, un compilado creado por la Red Hot Organization, un grupo benéfico que se enfoca en la lucha contra el VIH. Red Hot + Rio 2 junta artistas como Veloso, Gil y Rita Lee de Os Mutantes con músicos brasileños más jóvenes como Emicida y Seu Jorge y los rockers estadounidenses Beirut y Of Montreal. Interpretan clásicos del movimiento tropicalista, y el resultado es increíble.

El disco nos gustó tanto que invitamos a su productor Beco Dranoff a que venga a Alt. Latino y nos de una clase sobre la música tropicalia. Como dicen los brasileros, esta semana tenemos un show "muito legal", lleno de sol y de buena onda. ¡Así que pónganse los lentes de sol y prepárense para lo mejor de la música tropicalia!

¡A partir del 20 de Junio, estrenaremos en exclusivo el álbum entero!

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Jasmine Garsd is an Argentine-American journalist living in New York. She is currently NPR's Criminal Justice correspondent and the host of The Last Cup. She started her career as the co-host of Alt.Latino, an NPR show about Latin music. Throughout her reporting career she's focused extensively on women's issues and immigrant communities in America. She's currently writing a book of stories about women she's met throughout her travels.
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