“Nadie Te Tira” by Ozomatli
Vanessa: I was introduced to Ozomatli by a coworker in Minnesota. I didn’t listen to much Spanish language music before this, but I liked the mix of Spanish, English, and hip-hop, and social justice. Their music sounded like home.
I didn’t realize how big the Chicano/Latino community was in Minneapolis. I learned a lot about my culture in Minnesota. I hadn’t really learned the language at all until working there and had to. I didn’t celebrate or know about traditions such as Día de Los Muertos or Día de los Niños. It was the first time seeing Aztec dances, being exposed to Chicano/Latino art, and what it meant to be Chicano/Latino. Despite being raised in L.A. I learned a lot about my culture in Minnesota.
I also realized how young we were when we were running La Escuelita. We were twenty-five and the director was twenty-seven. How did we not screw everything up?
5songpjct: Was there something about this song in particular?
Vanessa: I guess what I was saying earlier, This particular song has a mixture hip hop and salsa so that caught my attention. I have loved Hip-Hop for a very very long time. I hadn’t been exposed to a group that has this type of mix before listening to Ozomatli. The infusion of those two styles stood out.
WE are going to venture out of Los Angeles for a while and head first to the Pacific Northwest before making our way east. Next week I talk to Vanessa’s sister Amanda, who was mentioned in a couple of the posts this week.
Thank you Vanessa for this walk down memory lane.