A ready reference for Colombian culture. Do not assume all Hispanic and Latin American peoples are the same. There are many different countries and cultures across Central and South America that vary in many aspects of life. Avoid homogenizing Colombians with people from other areas of the continent.
Afro-Colombian Hip-Hop: Globalization, Transcultural Music, and Ethnic Identities, by Christopher Dennis, explores the impact that globalization and the transnational spread of U.S. popular culture--specifically hip-hop and rap--are having on the social identities of younger generations of black Colombians. Along with addressing why and how hip-hop has migrated so effectively to Colombia's black communities, Dennis introduces readers to some of the country's most renowned Afro-Colombian hip-hop artists, their musical innovations, and production and distribution practices.
Cumbia is a musical form that originated in northern Colombia and then spread throughout Latin America and wherever Latin Americans travel and settle. It has become one of the most popular musical genre in the Americas. Its popularity is largely due to its stylistic flexibility. Cumbia absorbs and mixes with the local musical styles it encounters. Known for its appeal to workers, the music takes on different styles and meanings from place to place, and even, as the contributors to this collection show, from person to person. Cumbia is a different music among the working classes of northern Mexico, Latin American immigrants in New York City, Andean migrants to Lima, and upper-class Colombians, who now see the music that they once disdained as a source of national prestige.
Colombia is a South American country that shares borders with Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and Brazil. The majority of the Colombian population lives in the valleys and tablelands of the north and west, while the southeastern side of the country is dominated by the Amazon rainforest. Colombian society is quite provincial; a person’s region/city of origin can often be determined by their dress, diet and accent. Approximately 76.2% of people live in urban areas, which are very cosmopolitan and European in their design.