Hip-hop reigns in Spain
By Howell Llewellyn
Reuters
MADRID (Billboard) - Spain's hip-hop scene came of age as 2006 neared its close.
In November, Zaragoza-based quartet Violadores del Verso's fifth release "Vivir Para Contar" became the first rap album to top the Media Control chart here.
"To use the cliche, Spanish hip-hop is leaving the ghetto," says Sergio Garcia, director of cultural programming at leading music retailer FNAC's three Madrid outlets.
Garcia said FNAC staged five days of hip-hop shows by local acts in its central Madrid store last October "and the lines went way down the street."
While their sound generally draws on U.S. hip-hop, which does chart in Spain, local rappers' lyrics tend to avoid references to "bling" or disparaging views of women and take a general anti-violence stance.
With little mainstream exposure until recently -- the only regular national radio outlet for hip-hop is a weekly show on a public radio network -- the local scene has largely been built by live shows and, increasingly, promotion via the Internet.
Violadores, widely considered the most important hip-hop act in Spain, saw "Vivir Para Contar" ship gold (40,000 units) within 10 days of release, according to Inma Grass, an executive at the group's Boa Music label.
"It was their first album since 2001," she adds, "but the band had not stopped working, so interest was high. We prepared the release with a two-month online campaign using MySpace, YouTube and other sites."
Boa Music, where hip-hop acts comprise about half of its 20-strong roster, is seeking partners in the United States and Latin America. Violadores headlined a Dec. 10 Santiago, Chile, concert featuring labelmate Tote King and local rappers.
"More than 5,000 people went, and knew all the words by heart," Grass says. "We haven't sold records there; this interest all came through the Internet."
Other acts making waves include ground-breaking rapper Mala Rodriguez, whose albums "Lujo Iberico" (2001) and "Alevosia" (2003) have respectively shipped 60,000 and 70,000 units domestically, her Universal label says. Her single "Por la Noche" topped the Spanish chart one week before Violadores' album hit No. 1.
Rodriguez's third album "Malamarismo" is due in April, ahead of a U.S. release. It will feature material recorded during an imminent U.S. trip, when Universal says collaborations are planned with pop singer Julieta Venegas, and reggaeton acts Calle 13 and Tego Calderon.
Reuters/Billboard
In November, Zaragoza-based quartet Violadores del Verso's fifth release "Vivir Para Contar" became the first rap album to top the Media Control chart here.
"To use the cliche, Spanish hip-hop is leaving the ghetto," says Sergio Garcia, director of cultural programming at leading music retailer FNAC's three Madrid outlets.
Garcia said FNAC staged five days of hip-hop shows by local acts in its central Madrid store last October "and the lines went way down the street."
While their sound generally draws on U.S. hip-hop, which does chart in Spain, local rappers' lyrics tend to avoid references to "bling" or disparaging views of women and take a general anti-violence stance.
With little mainstream exposure until recently -- the only regular national radio outlet for hip-hop is a weekly show on a public radio network -- the local scene has largely been built by live shows and, increasingly, promotion via the Internet.
Violadores, widely considered the most important hip-hop act in Spain, saw "Vivir Para Contar" ship gold (40,000 units) within 10 days of release, according to Inma Grass, an executive at the group's Boa Music label.
"It was their first album since 2001," she adds, "but the band had not stopped working, so interest was high. We prepared the release with a two-month online campaign using MySpace, YouTube and other sites."
Boa Music, where hip-hop acts comprise about half of its 20-strong roster, is seeking partners in the United States and Latin America. Violadores headlined a Dec. 10 Santiago, Chile, concert featuring labelmate Tote King and local rappers.
"More than 5,000 people went, and knew all the words by heart," Grass says. "We haven't sold records there; this interest all came through the Internet."
Other acts making waves include ground-breaking rapper Mala Rodriguez, whose albums "Lujo Iberico" (2001) and "Alevosia" (2003) have respectively shipped 60,000 and 70,000 units domestically, her Universal label says. Her single "Por la Noche" topped the Spanish chart one week before Violadores' album hit No. 1.
Rodriguez's third album "Malamarismo" is due in April, ahead of a U.S. release. It will feature material recorded during an imminent U.S. trip, when Universal says collaborations are planned with pop singer Julieta Venegas, and reggaeton acts Calle 13 and Tego Calderon.
Reuters/Billboard
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