music

The Feminist Anthems of Trap Latino's Leading Ladies

5 Latina Trap Artists That Are Killing The Game Nicki Nicole Cazzu Villano Antillano Snow Tha Product Young Miko

Trap Latino is a hip-hop subgenre that has been gaining traction worldwide for the past few years. Originating in Puerto Rico during the late 2000s, this genre comes directly from southern U.S. hip-hop and rap music and is heavily influenced by reggaeton and dembow. It has been slowly taking over the charts, with many Latina singer-songwriters taking the scene by storm.

With their unapologetic lyrics, these badass Latinas also lend their voices to the Latin American feminist movement, using their platforms to lift each other up any chance they get, creating new feminist anthems, constantly advocating for more women in the urban scene, and offering a fresh take on urban music, lyrics, and imagery from a woman’s perspective.

Nicki Nicole

Nicki Nicole

Source: Instagram

As a teenager, Nicole Cucco spent her time spitting bars at freestyle rap battles with her friends around the plazas in Rosario, Argentina. Then, at just 19 years old, she released her first single “Wapo Traketero,” a song that would end up trending on YouTube and taking a spot on Billboard Argentina’s Hot 100, as well as Spotify’s Global Top 50. She’s 21 now, and despite having entered the scene only two years ago, rapper/singer/songwriter Nicki is blowing up fast. She has collaborated with many top artists and became the first Argentinian singer to visit The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

A self-proclaimed feminist, Nicki constantly speaks up about the presence of women in trap and rap genres and the need to support each other. She has said, “lo más bonito que está sucediendo en el mundo de la música en estos momentos es la sororidad que hay entre mujeres.”

Nicki pinpoints two core influences in her music style: Amy Winehouse and freestyle rap, which reflects in her soulful voice and R&B rhythms matched with candid lyrics derived from her reality as an Argentinian woman, which can go from championing female empowerment to referencing her country’s femicide epidemic.

Add To Your Playlist:Nicki Nicole - Colocao (Video Oficial)

Villano Antillano

Villano Antillano

Source: Instagram

Villano Santiago Pacheco is a 27-year-old rapper, singer, and songwriter from Bayamon, Puerto Rico. She describes herself as non-binary, transfeminine, and bisexual. She is the first transgender and non-binary artist to enter Spotify’s Global Top 50 list with her song “BZRP Music Sessions Vol. 51”, a collaboration with popular Argentinian producer Bizarrap.

Her lyrics revolve around sexual liberation, women’s empowerment, and fighting against transphobic rhetoric. Her beats are aggressive and catchy, with a touch of reggaeton and house music here and there. Villano interchanges male and female pronouns in her songs, plays around with gender, and always shows her authentic self, completely uninterested in fitting into boring, conventional standards, which is part of why she calls herself a “villain.”

“No me considero activista ni nada por el estilo, yo existo y ya. Mi existencia acaba siendo activismo,” she has said regarding her being seen as a pioneer of the Latino LGBTQIA+ movement. Villano’s been very clear about being more interested in making music that reflects her life and experiences and resonates with other queer people, rather than being embraced by cis-hetero people. She's also said she’s not striving for people's tolerance, she demands their respect.

Add To Your Playlist: VILLANO ANTILLANO || BZRP Music Sessions #51

Cazzu

Cazzu

Source: Instagram

After finishing middle school, Argentine rapper, singer, and songwriter Julieta Cazzuchelli started working and saving up to pay for her first recordings and video clips. “Fuí mi primer inversora, plata que hice, plata que invertí en videos y canciones” she states. Starting off as a cumbia artist under the artistic name “Juli-K” and then venturing into the rock genre without much success, she eventually began making trap music in 2017, which at the time wasn’t nearly as popular as it is today, and adopted the stage name “Cazzu.”

After hitting the charts for the first time with her song collab “Loca” along with Khea, Duki, and Bad Bunny in 2018, Cazzu has steadily risen to the top. With her distinctive goth e-girl aesthetic and sweet, unique voice, she has established herself as one of Argentina’s most prominent urban artists.

She has spoken out about women being more harshly criticized as urban artists, despite the majority of them being badass rappers, amazing singers, and also writing their own songs, something that many male urban artists don’t necessarily do. “Los espacios para las mujeres en el trap siguen siendo criticados desde un punto más hostil,” she said, “la crítica siempre va a ser más minuciosa cuando se trata de la mujer, aunque lo esté rompiendo y haga muy buen trap."

Add To Your Playlist:Cazzu - Mucha Data (Video Oficial)

Snow Tha Product

Snow Tha Product

Source: Instagram

The daughter of Mexican immigrants, 35-year-old Claudia Madriz became involved with music as young as 6 years old, participating in school talent shows and performing with her grandfather’s mariachi band. As a teen, Claudia started freestyling with her friends and eventually decided to go head-on into the urban music scene, releasing her first collab in 2007 and becoming an independent artist in 2018.

Another rapper/singer/songwriter (you know us girls, we like doing our own thing), Snow is known for her rapid-fire rapping style and is influenced by artists from Missy Elliot and Aaliyah to Selena Quintanilla and Lupita D’Alessio. She is bilingual and records in both languages, has had several acting roles, and even has a podcast show and a YouTube channel.

Snow has called out the blatant gender wage gap not only in the urban music scene but in all jobs, stating “yo rapeo mejor que el 90% de los raperos que están pegando ahorita, pero me pagan mucho menos. Si somos cocineras, doctoras o maids, no importa, quiero que los hombres tomen en cuenta nuestro talento, no nuestro género.”

Add To Your Playlist:Snow Tha Product - Bilingue (Official Music Video)

Young Miko

Young Miko

Source: Instagram

A Puerto Rican star on the rise, María Ramírez, known by her stage name Young Miko, strives to give voice to feminism and the LGBTQIA+ community with her music. Her music videos are filled with women and queer people having fun, owning their sexuality, and enjoying each other’s presence. Once again a successful rapper, singer, songwriter, and a talented tattoo artist on top of that, Young Miko points to Ivy Queen as being one of her biggest influences. She is good friends with Cazzu and Villano Antillano, having stated that women in the trap scene don’t compete, they support each other. “Es un orgullo ser parte del crecimiento que estamos presenciando ahora mismo. Gracias a Dios son muchas más las nenas que estamos en el spotlight, aunque siempre hubo mujeres dándole,” Miko has commented.

At just 25 years old and with only a couple of singles out, Miko has taken the world by storm with her low, breathy voice and moody trap beats, recently appearing alongside Bad Bunny on stage at his latest tour and launching her very first EP, “Trap Kitty.”

Add To Your Playlist:Young Miko - Riri

Trap and Reggaeton have been constantly dominated by male artists and plagued with misogynistic lyrics, so having these Latinas come and change up the game is certainly a breath of fresh air, especially when they bring with them this sense of sorority and a shared vision of spotlighting other up-and-coming female artists with the platforms they’ve built for themselves so more and more women can find their place in the scene. Add these Latina baddies to your Chingona playlist and bring this can’t-be-bothered attitude into 2023!

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impact

Six Latin American Indigenous Women Activists You Probably Didn't Know About

From left to right: Berta Cáceres, Comandanta Ramona, Rigoberta Menchú, Aura Lolita Chávez Ixcaquic, Guadalupe Vázquez Luna, and Leydy Pech

The world has seen countless inspiring women rise to fight for justice and equality, particularly for marginalized and oppressed communities. Their tireless advocacy has brought much-needed attention to issues such as women's and Indigenous rights, environmental justice, and preserving Indigenous knowledge and culture.

Despite their challenges and obstacles, these Latin American Indigenous women serve as powerful role models and reminders of the transformative potential of grassroots activism. Let’s take a closer look at their extraordinary lives and legacies:
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politics

This Viral Video Game Is Changing the Face of Voter Outreach

This Viral Video Game Is Changing the Face of Voter Outreach

In 2024, voting campaigns have evolved greatly, to say the least. Creativity is now the name of the game and tongue-in-cheek humor is expertly leveraged to drive action. One example of that is Bop the Bigot, a revival of a viral game created in 2016 by Bazta Arpaio, an Arizona activist group, as part of a campaign to unseat Maricopa County’s Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Arpaio lost his re-election to Paul Penzone that year.

The game has now been updated for the current election cycle and relaunched by On Point Studios, with new features added to enable players to find out what’s on their ballot, confirm voter status, and register to vote.

Much like its former 2016 version, the game allows users to take out their political frustrations by virtually “bopping” GOP candidates in the head. It’s very similar to whack-a-mole, except the mole is replaced by former President Donald Trump, Ohio’s Senator J. D. Vance, and Kevin Roberts, President of the Heritage Foundation, which is spearheading Project 2025.

cartoon renditions of Donald Trump and J.D. Vance around a Bop the Bigot logoPromotional image provided by On Point Studios.

B. Loewe, Director of On Point Studios, came up with the concept for this game when working as the Communications Director at Bazta Arpaio in 2016, and is the executive producer of this revamped version. In the first version of the game, Bop the Bigot players used a chancla (flip flop) to “bop” the characters, tapping into Latino culture by leaning on the childhood experience of being set right by a flying chancla from a fed-up mother or grandmother.

This year, the chancla is replaced by a more current element, a green coconut, referencing Kamala Harris’ coconut tree meme. There are also side characters like “the couch,” cat ladies, and more coconuts. All references to jokes about Vice-Presidential candidate Vance, or insults Vance has made about women on the campaign trail.

Another new addition is that Harris’ laugh is immortalized as the game-over sound effect, an unexpected detail that adds even more humor and levity to the game.

cartoon renditions of Donald Trump, Kevin Roberts, and J.D. Vance around a Bop the Bigot logoPromotional image provided by On Point Studios.

Bop the Bigot, which is playable on desktop and mobile, is intended not just as a way to vent political frustrations, but also as a tool for activism and securing voter engagement.

For example, the game supports the work of Mexican Neidi Dominguez Zamorano, Founding Executive Director of the non-profit organization Organized Power in Numbers by using the “game over” screen to prompt players to donate to it and support their efforts.

Organized Power in Numbers is focused on empowering workers in the South and Southwest of the U.S. through collective action and comprehensive campaigns. Their mission is to create a large-scale movement that challenges the status quo and advocates for workers' rights, and racial and economic justice.

Currently, Dominguez Zamorano is leading worker outreach to 2 million working-class voters in the South and Southwest through doorknocking, texting, and calls with the help of local groups in North Carolina, Arizona, New Mexico, and more.

“We have been blown away by the enthusiastic reception for the video game. We knew we wanted to be part of its creative approach because our movement needs more fun and laughter. We need more ways to connect with nuestra gente so we can feel joy among all the absurdity we witness every day,” Dominguez Zamorano shared with Luz Media via email.

“Our people are gente trabajadora and we deserve to feel uplifted even in our toughest moments. We are deeply involved in the South and Southwest so we know what’s at stake in this election and we’re happy this can be a resource to mobilize, raise spirits, and get out the vote," she concluded.

Dominguez Zamorano is a committed activist for immigrants and workers' rights, known for her strategist skills and expertise. She played a key role in the campaign to win DACA and has also held roles in major campaigns, including as Deputy National States Director for Bernie Sanders' 2020 presidential campaign. In addition to her work with Organized Power in Numbers, Dominguez Zamorano is serving as a Senior Advisor to Mijente’s Fuera Trump Initiative.

Grassroots efforts like these have taken on new life in 2024, with Bop the Bigot adding to the larger, ongoing fight against political apathy and disinformation. Just as it did during the 2016 race, the video game uses humor to soften the serious task at hand—getting people to the polls.

"We want the game to be a fun and comical outlet for anyone who’s been insulted, frustrated, or harmed by Trump in the past and everyone who is ready to move forward as a country after election day," explained Loewe in a press release. "The proposals in Project 2025 and the beliefs of Trump and Vance aren’t just weird, they’re truly harmful. We wanted to give people a humorous and peaceful way to smack down their racism and sexism. We hope it makes people laugh and also feel empowered and motivated to get to the polls on or before election day."

With a mix of satire, sharp political critique, and nostalgia, the game is a call to action. The upcoming election, which is getting closer by the minute, has sparked fierce activism and creative yet grounded initiatives like these aim to ensure voters are engaged, especially young Latinos and disenfranchised groups.

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opinion

Latinos Are Ready to Vote for Abortion Rights This November

hands holding up yellow protest signs that say Hands Off Our Bodies
Photo Credit: Gayatri Malhotra via Unsplash

Originally published in Common Dreams. Reprinted with permission.

The Latino electorate will prove decisive in securing reproductive freedom and abortion access through ballot measures around the country, particularly in states where Latinos are a significant portion of the electorate.

In November, abortion rights measures will appear on ballots across ten states, including Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Nevada, and New York, where Latinos make up a significant portion of the electorate. For decades, pundits and politicians have recycled long-held misconceptions about Latino voters and abortion access, citing our conservative and religious beliefs.

Anti-abortion extremists have long fueled these misconceptions through misinformation and disinformation campaigns targeting Latino communities with egregious lies and inflammatory rhetoric about abortion. Yet, polling, focus groups, and direct interactions with Latino communities have debunked these outdated tropes.

The Latino electorate will prove decisive in securing reproductive freedom and abortion access through ballot measures around the country, particularly in states where Latinos are a significant portion of the electorate.

For Latinos, the freedom to decide, a pillar of our American democracy, is critical. Meanwhile, Latinos are being hit directly with anti-abortion efforts that take away that freedom such as the six-week abortion ban put into effect by the Florida Supreme Court and the 1864 abortion ban upheld by the Arizona Supreme Court. In the wake of the Dobbs decision, people of color and Latinas have felt the impact of a lack of abortion access, an element of basic healthcare.

A 2023 report by the National Partnership for Women and Families estimated that nearly 6.5 million Latinas, or 42% of all Latinas of reproductive age in the country, live in a state that either had or was likely to ban abortion. Ironically, it will be abortion access and anti-choice efforts to restrict freedom of choice that will mobilize Latino voters this election.

In a poll conducted by three national reproductive justice organizations, 87% of Latinas named abortion and women’s rights as one of their top priorities as they head to the polls. Another battleground poll conducted by Somos PAC and BSP Research found that 61% of Latino registered voters expressed a more positive/favorable view of Kamala Harris after hearing that she will protect abortion rights, versus only 19% of Latinos who said they had a more negative view of Harris after hearing that.

In key states to secure the White House and both chambers, Latinos make up large chunks of the electorate: Arizona (25%), Colorado (15%), Florida (20%), Nevada (20%), and New York (12%). In the face of unprecedented attacks on basic healthcare access and targeted attempts by extremists to mislead and divide our community on this issue, this November Latinos will be key deciders on abortion access across the country.

Mari Urbina, Managing Director of Indivisible, Battleground Arizona Lead and former Harry Reid advisor.

Héctor Sánchez Barba is president and CEO of Mi Familia Vota (MFV).

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