print:Music of Calle 13 - "Latinoamérica" | Puerto Rico |Axisoflogic.com

Calle 13 Performing in Venezuela on the
Anniversary of Ali Primera on October 31, 2009

Calle 13 is a revolutionary Puerto Rican band formed by stepbrothers René Pérez Joglar (aka "Residente"), Eduardo José Cabra Martínez (aka "Visitante") and their sister, Ileana Cabra Joglar (aka PG-13)

Visitante

PG-13

Residente

Residente and Visitante knew each other from the age of 2 when Residente's mother married Visitante's father. Their family had close ties to the Puerto Rican arts community with Residente's mother, Flor Joglar de Gracia, an actress in Teatro del Sesenta and Visitante's father, a musician and lawyer. After studying to become an accountant, Visitante turned musician and after Residente earned a masters degree in fine arts in the US he returned to Puerto Rico to join his brother to work on music together and form the band. Their younger sister, PG-13 (name refers to the US movie rating system), joined the band later, performing as a vocalist and their backup singer.

Querido F.B.I.

It's difficult for most people in the US and Europe to understand why anniversary dates are so important to Latin Americans. In the US for example, the average person on the street might be able to tell you the meaning of the 4th of July or with luck, the year 1776. Latin Americans celebrate many anniversaries of historical events such as when independence was won, specific battles fought, dates of rebellions and revolutions and the birth and death dates of martyred independence heroes. Latin American people go on vacation on many of these anniversaries, have cities, streets and barrios named after them, songs and poetry written about them and recite the details with national pride. One such anniversary date for Puerto Ricans is September 23, 1868, the anniversary of Grito de Lares, ("Cry of Lares"). Grito de Lares, lies deep in the background of "Querido F.B.I.", a song that launched Calle 13 into international recognition and it is an interesting story indeed.

Filiberto Ojeda Ríos

While they were mixing their very first album, the FBI assassinated Filiberto Ojeda Ríos, leader of the Puerto Rican revolutionary group known as Los Macheteros, a group committed to Puerto Rican independence from US control. The timing of the FBI raid of Ojeda's home and murder, September 23, 2005, was an important element in the response by those in the independence movement and gave rise to Calle 13's protest song, Querido F.B.I. The FBI killed Ojeda on the anniversary of Grito de Lares which refers to the 1865 Lares Rebellion that spread to independence cells throughout the country during a time of many uprisings in Latin America against Spanish rule.

Forced to respond, the Spanish government formed a junta in 1868 to decide on whether or not to grant autonomy to Puerto Rico and other of its colonies. Of course the vote was rigged as the junta was comprised of white landowners for the Puerto Rico vote. Seguno Ruiz Belvis and Ramón Emeterio Betances were leaders of the Lares Rebellion and Betances, a medical doctor and surgeon in Puerto Rico, attended after being twice exhiled from Spain. As the white landowners summarily voted down Puerto Rican autonomy, Betances stood up and declared, "Nadie puede dar lo que no tiene" (You can't give away what you don't own), a phrase well known among Puerto Rican revolutionaries who are fighting for independence today. It is out of this region of history that Calle 13 wrote and performed the song that more than any other, defined them as a revolutionary, anti-imperialist band.

Calle 13 responded to Ojeda's murder by writing "Querido F.B.I." (e.g. Dear F.B.I.) and released it within 30 hours of the assassination. Querido F.B.I. begins by stating that Ojeda's murder was a humiliation to Puerto Ricans of all classes, ("Nuestra bandera la han llena'o de mea'o", meaning "Our flag has been pissed upon") It also alludes to 9/11, the US direct backing of the Ponce Massacre (In Ponce, Puerto Rico on Palm Sunday, March 21, 1937) and the 1978 Cerro Maravilla assassination by US-backed police of two members of the Puerto Rican independence movement. Calle 13's "Querido F.B.I." goes on to call for an end to U.S. military and police oppression in Puerto Rico, defining the band's character and their view against the US colonization of their country.

An excerpt from Querido F.B.I.

Dear compatriots ...
Lawyers, teachers, mayors and cops
Doctors, Bichot, firefighters, nurses
Accountants, traqueteros*, Piragüero, to the world
For my mother that I dress up as machetero today
And tonight I'm going to hang ten sailors
Today I hand aniquela and hand-peeled
Vo'a give them a fight pa to see that the gas pela

Our flag have llena'o of SMEA
Desangra'o died, my people, who died desangra'o
Never arrodilla'o, they're going to have to bury Para'o
With the machete the La'o
To activate the Pearl, Lloren, Barbosa
Manuela Caimito, Vista Hermosa
Covadonga, Shrimp, Alturas, Torres Sheets
Villa Esperanza, Sabana Abajo, Villa Fontana
Gladiolas, Villa Carolina, the town of Trujillo
The plots, Saint John, Monte Hatillo
Canales, San José, Rio Grande, Luquillo
Puerta de Tierra, Santurce, Monasillo
Housing estates, country houses, the FBI is in trouble
They are screwed, the White House's fucked
Now I'm going to explode with style
In the name of Filiberto Ojeda Rios

*traqueteros - drug traffickers

"Latinoamérica"

The following Calle 13 song, Latinoamérica speaks of the struggle of Latin Americans against imperialism, neo-colonialism, theft of their national resources, contamination of their lands and describes beautifully the cultures and power of the Latin American people. Calle 13 performs this song rapidly in their reggaetone style but the song can be followed in the lyrics provided in subtitles and reviewed below the video.

- Les Blough in Venezuela

Note: Six versions of these lyrics are known to be recorded. The following lines are an amalgam of 2 of the versions. - Axis of Logic

I am
I am what that they left behind,
I’m the remaining of what was stolen.
A village hidden on the peak.
My skin is leather that's why it stands any weather.
I'm a factory of smoke,
a peasant working hand for your consumption

A cold front in the middle of summer,
Love in the Time of Cholera, My Brother!.
The sun that is born and the day that dies,
with the best evening sunsets.
I am raw development,
a political speech without saliva.

The most beautiful faces that I have met,
I'm the photograph of a missing person.
I'm the blood in your veins,
I'm a piece of land that is worth it.
I'm a basket with beans,
I'm Maradona against England scoring 2 goals.

I'm what that holds my flag,
the backbone of the planet is my Andes.

I'm what that my father taught me,
the one who doesn't love his fatherland
doesn’t love his mother.
I am Latin America,
people without legs that keep on walking.

You can't buy the wind.
You can't buy the sun.
You can't buy the rain.
You can't buy the heat.
You can't buy the clouds.
You can't buy the colors.
You can't buy my happiness.
You can't buy my pains.

I have the lakes, I have the rivers.
I have my teeth for when I smile.
The snow that puts makeup on my mountains.
I have the sun that dries me and
the rain that showers me,
a desert drink with peyote, a sip of Pulque
to sing with the coyotes,
Every thing I need.

I have my lungs breathing clear blue.
High altitudes that suffocate,
I'm my molar teeth chewing coca leaves..
Autumn with its fainted leaves,
verses written under a shattered night,
A wineyard filled with grapes,
A sugar cane plantation under the Cuban sun.

I'm the caribbean sea watching over the little houses,
making rituals of holy water,
the wind that combs my hair.
I'm all the saints that hang from my neck.
The juice of my struggle is not artificial,
because the fertilizer of my soil is natural.

You can't buy the wind.
You can't buy the sun.
You can't buy the rain.
You can't buy the heat.
You can't buy the clouds.
You can't buy the colors.
You can't buy my happiness.
You can't buy my pains.
(from purtuguese)
You can't buy the wind.
You can't buy the sun.
You can't buy the rain.
You can't buy the heat.
You can't buy the clouds.
You can't buy the colors.
You can't buy my happiness.
You can't buy my sadness.
You can't buy the sun.
You can't buy the rain.

Let’s keep walking, let’s keep drawing the way!
You can't buy my life.
MY LAND IS NOT FOR SALE.
I work hard and with pride,
Here we share, what's mine is yours.

These people can't drown with big waves
and if it collapsed I will rebuild it.
I will not blink when I see you,
so you will remember my last name.
Operation Condor is invading my nest.
I forgive but I'll never forget!

Let’s keep walking, here we breath struggle.
Let’s keep walking, here we stand firm.
Long live Latin America

You can’t buy my life.

Recording Members

Residente (René Pérez Joglar) — lead vocals

Visitante (Eduardo Cabra Martínez) — guitar, melodica, harmonica, piano, synthesizer, cuatro, accordion, keyboard, banjo, ukulele, violin, organ, theremin, kalimba & other instruments

PG-13 (Ileana Cabra Joglar) — backup vocals

Touring members

    Andrés Cruz — drum set
    Héctor Pérez — congas
    Arturo Verjes — trombone
    Víctor Vázquez — saxophone
    Ismael Cancel — drums
    Jonathan González — bass
    Jerry D Medina — trumpet
    Michael Santana - clarinette

Related: Puerto Rico’s Fight for Independence

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