In this World Cafe session, Josh Norek and David Dye explore the cultural roots of Latin funk, a mixing of Latin grooves and Afro-American funk. It's been evolving for over forty years now, arising out of urban centers and the earlier salsa + R&B mixes such as boogaloo. Given the melting pot that is New York, the exposure of young musicians to variants of jazz, soul, funk, and the diversity of Latin rhythms and instrumentation created an environment of experimentation. Norek describes the ties of Latin funk to the Latino pride movement, and plays a song from the famous Latin percussionist Ray Barretto that expresses this pride. Then Norek describes the diversification of Latin funk over the last few decades, and spins a track from the latest retro Latin funk release by Venezuelan outfit Los Amigos.
Check out the Latin Funk Spotify playlist. And, Listen to the archived session at WorldCafe.NPR.org.
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