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music this is or Latino on Felix

0:23

Contreras. And I'm an amateur

0:26

Yes say or let that

0:28

she's may begin to see

0:30

taxes due to the hidden

0:33

I do not have feelings.

0:37

Than I saw. It is grateful.

0:42

For everything and with. A

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friend, a sandwich, meal and time. Every

0:48

time I sang. Who things

0:50

as on. The. Hours and up I'm saying.

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Oh this. that chemical as brutal

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is very brutal toward me. That

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I'm sorry I think back I drivers neo

0:59

be insanely. Day, Felix, Virginia, Where that?

1:01

It's only because I've been listening to

1:03

the Bnc record all weekend. Oh, My

1:05

God. I've listened to like ten times already.

1:07

I like it for a whole bunch of reasons,

1:10

but I'm still trying to process everything. That it

1:12

it means that everything that's there. But one thing

1:14

a particular. even before the record came out when

1:16

that song that I just butchered came out, conversations

1:18

have been stuff the we've been talking about. who

1:20

has a right to sing? In this case, country

1:22

music. Right? Because obviously there's

1:24

been a massive contribution from black

1:27

artists country music. But. There's.

1:29

Also been like with many things and

1:31

as country a a huge Latino contribution

1:34

and in many. Ways and there

1:36

are and have been many, many

1:38

Latino artist singing country music, straight

1:40

out country music, In

1:42

a lot of those artists, either African

1:45

American or Latino musicians. Didn't.

1:47

Get the recognition. They. Haven't been

1:49

getting the recognition for not just a

1:51

contribution to the history of country music

1:53

but also the state that it's in

1:55

now at were country music is today

1:57

and hobbies musicians are contributing to the.

2:00

Tradition. It's like this thing we I

2:02

talk about about and Sean are just

2:04

being this construct. Some labels that to

2:06

sell me as against is widely known

2:08

that you know country was made to

2:10

be seen as this white genre because

2:12

that's what labels wanted when in reality

2:14

than actually tons lucky non black artists

2:16

who have contributed. but. Thought

2:18

recognition goes down to Lilly who's

2:20

getting radio play. In fact, in

2:22

Twenty Twenty One, there was a

2:24

study by Data Watson, the principal

2:26

investigator of song data. They sound

2:28

that in over eleven thousand songs

2:30

played on country format radio from

2:32

two thousand two to Twenty Twenty,

2:34

that only point six percent of

2:36

those songs were from black artists,

2:39

but also. That. Only point

2:41

four percent of those songs were

2:43

from latino are. So.

2:46

We. Can trace it record straight this week

2:48

like we love to do. Okay, we're good

2:51

of feature latino artist who are playing country

2:53

music. Can talk a little bit about that

2:55

history as well. And. To do that

2:57

we went to but about out of an hour at

2:59

where. We this week Felix, Austin, Texas You

3:01

finally came with me. Guess he says

3:04

him to join your the

3:06

trip. We went to Austin

3:08

specifically to talk to Carry

3:10

Rodrigues, a Latina who's been

3:12

performing country and Bluegrass music

3:14

for her entire career. And

3:16

see such a delight! With. Go

3:19

back a few weeks the we we were in Austin,

3:21

Texas with carry Rodrigo. Carry.

3:24

Rodriguez Welcome back to Or Latino.

3:26

Ah thanks so much Until the the there.

3:28

Is good to see again. Carry This

3:30

is also our first time meeting and for

3:33

I've heard a lot about you so when

3:35

I've heard you and your beautiful voice but

3:37

yes the decided to be sitting next why

3:39

aren't you had heard your beautiful voice in

3:41

a coincidence with is amazing. For

3:45

the how that works out assisting

3:47

other one is is we wanted

3:49

to talk about miss episode was

3:51

the idea that you can be

3:53

latino and you can sing country

3:56

music and it to the have

3:58

to be affected or. Breathing or

4:00

anything like that. We as a present

4:02

as carry by saying he likes and I

4:05

had a lot of arguments a little really

4:07

on all over the about. I think what

4:09

excites us about Latin Country in what we

4:11

think like our conceptions of it might be

4:13

slightly very is what I think it is.

4:16

Fundamentally. Right off the bat. It's.

4:19

It's because it's the way you label it is

4:21

not. Latin Country is for me is looking as

4:24

as in country. So

4:26

that's that. Is that. the idea

4:28

that was a concept behind the

4:30

show? Yeah, and so. Am

4:32

I actually don't disagree with that? Like I

4:34

think to me I was confused by the

4:36

label Latin Country because I was like, well,

4:39

what makes carry Latin country besides the fact

4:41

that she's Latina that doesn't really make it

4:43

one country There's there's But I'm curious as

4:45

Kerry Wood herself, Able herself as I

4:47

had. I'm

4:50

shaking my head know it's gonna

4:52

be thinking ahead, but I mean

4:54

who I am doesn't form my

4:56

music in the way I write

4:58

a song. So I guess in

5:00

that sense I I've never even

5:02

heard the term latin country but

5:04

ah. But the

5:06

sound of what comes out of

5:08

my mouth or how I play

5:10

the violin Settle his country. It

5:12

is country and I don't differentiate.

5:15

Yeah. Cultures

5:17

When I think about company that necessarily because

5:19

I see it as a blend of so

5:21

many thing. Also

5:24

that makes me curious and I'm jumping

5:26

here but straight to kind of the

5:28

conversation that felix my hand. It makes

5:30

me curious where you stand on what

5:33

is maybe more accurately Latin Country or

5:35

something that could be consider Latin country

5:37

which is an actual like fusion or

5:39

blend of London sounds and country music

5:42

or in the case of some lot

5:44

nearness like most recently obviously cutting my

5:46

own has I'm sure you heard the

5:48

single that came out. He is obviously

5:51

like a straight ahead Latin artist who

5:53

is. Now releasing a country

5:55

song. It

6:07

feels like baby, baby,

6:10

it's just... Where do you

6:12

feel like that fits? Do you

6:14

and Carine Leon in this world exist in

6:16

the same universe or is that just an

6:18

independent thing from anything that you're doing? Yes.

6:21

I think there is a

6:24

place for him

6:27

to be labeled as country because

6:30

in my mind, so much

6:32

of Mexican music is country

6:34

music. So like

6:37

Rancheira music, for example, ranch

6:40

music. That music came

6:42

out of people who had to leave the

6:45

countryside and leave their homes and go work

6:47

in the cities. That they had this nostalgia

6:49

for home and for being out in nature.

6:53

It's so much thematically of what country

6:56

music, and I'm using air quotes, but what we think of

6:58

as country music is. So I've

7:00

always seen that connection and felt

7:02

like Mexican music

7:05

and Texan

7:07

country music are super linked and really

7:09

kind of the same. When

7:12

I hear, for example, songwriter like, like,

7:16

or like, To

7:47

me, that's So similar to a

7:49

Merle Haggard. And

8:02

he know play. Consensus

8:05

seen me. The songs are so freaking

8:07

sad and they make you cry you

8:09

tears in your beer or your tequila.

8:11

whatever, right? But it's it's. at the

8:13

height of like, the same to me,

8:15

so I don't necessarily think yeah, you

8:17

have to separate. Music leaders that differed

8:19

Yeah it's a medically have to say this

8:22

with their summer mother. Loved my mother Love

8:24

country music. yeah to this is where it

8:26

when we're kids record you would continue to

8:28

see was mix your music. Do you tell

8:30

stories about sadness about love? Scuba. But.

8:33

You'd have that but mariachi obviously the

8:35

my get you some structure honky tonks

8:37

on structure the cannot do some structure

8:39

is difference was dramatically this this thing

8:41

of of thing so he. Know it's

8:43

so funny to see my mom also

8:46

love country. See. The always had many.

8:48

I know my family does have some. My mom said.

8:50

I just love the story. That's

8:52

like. You know that's

8:54

the constant thread, but do you

8:56

do you hear anything And in

8:58

the music was outside of the

9:00

lyrics like stylistically instrumental in like

9:02

actually musically. That feel similar. Between that and.

9:05

I'll totally do. I mean I love

9:07

I think. Well first of all like

9:09

so many country some there and three.

9:11

And have that feel like I'm

9:14

in i'm I am referencing granted

9:16

I music and I'm thinking about

9:18

the similarities but like these like

9:21

had a behind the beat Seung

9:23

Hoon three the violence of the

9:25

melodies has like to me one

9:27

of the greatest things about country

9:30

music and Mexican music in general.

9:32

Or melodies like we got melodies

9:34

you know any sticking your head.

9:38

So yeah I do hear a lot of

9:40

similarities and then also like you. That this

9:42

summer said his influence. Country music

9:44

here in Texas. I've

9:48

heard. that like a lot of bob

9:51

wills on the touch with playboys in

9:53

a lot of the like melodies and

9:55

tunes were actually sounds he learned from

9:57

like mexican people working and feel that

9:59

he There are

10:06

fiddle tunes that he

10:09

does that sound like

10:12

mariachi music to me.

10:28

I think one of the best ways to at

10:30

least identify how this worked is talk to us

10:32

a little bit about how you grew up and

10:35

what kind of influences you were hearing when

10:37

you were growing up in your household. Okay,

10:40

well I come from, you know,

10:42

bi-cultural parents. My mom was white,

10:44

born in Houston. My dad was Mexican American,

10:46

also born in Houston. And I

10:49

mostly grew up with my mom in the house. Didn't

10:53

see my dad that much, although the place where

10:55

we connected was music. So his music did have

10:57

a big impact on me. When

10:59

you say his music, what did he play? So

11:02

he was a folk singer, songwriter. He

11:05

came up in the 70s with artists

11:07

like Towne Van Zandt. Like they shared

11:09

stages all the time. And his style

11:11

of music was very much in that

11:13

vein of telling a story, finger picking.

11:16

It's a little bit country. It's a little bit folk. But

11:20

he also sang in Spanish too. And

11:22

I have memories of him singing like

11:25

Ivo Vere or Los L'Aureles, for example.

11:27

And every time he would sing those

11:29

songs, like, I would want

11:33

to cry. And I hated

11:35

that. So

11:37

musically, that's what I was hearing from

11:39

him. And my mom, though, had such

11:41

eclectic taste in music. And she would

11:43

blast opera in the house, folk

11:46

singers, everything. The Beatles and, you know,

11:49

the gamut. It's a lot of things.

11:51

And then at what point did that inspire

11:53

you to pick up the violin? Well,

11:56

that came pretty early. I was five.

11:58

And they were offering... Suzuki violin lessons

12:00

in my elementary school. And

12:03

for whatever reason, I'm like, that

12:05

squawky, high-pitched thing sounds so fun.

12:07

So I started

12:09

taking in kindergarten and just

12:12

was fish in water, like I never wanted to

12:14

do anything else. But this was classical music that

12:16

I was studying. And now

12:19

growing up and often, I was exposed to

12:21

country music everywhere. I

12:24

would go see shows. My mom took me to

12:26

see Itzhak Perlman, but she also took me to

12:28

see Uncle Waltz Band. Donna Waterloo, who, you know,

12:31

like, so I saw

12:33

fiddle players and songwriters and

12:35

everything. And, but it

12:38

was pretty serious about my classical studies.

12:40

I even got into a

12:42

conservatory over lunch for my

12:44

first year of college. And I was there like

12:46

on a full scholarship, supposed to be

12:48

practicing my Tchaikovsky every day or whatever.

12:52

But I realized as soon as I left Texas,

12:55

I was like sitting in my dorm

12:57

room, playing country music records, CDs,

13:00

okay. And trying

13:02

to learn the fiddle part and missing

13:04

that music, which is so

13:07

crazy. I don't think I'd ever thought about

13:09

it much, you know, and I'm listening to

13:11

Towns and I'm listening to Robert Earl Keene

13:13

and Lyle Lovett albums. Just, that's

13:15

what I wanted to play, even though I

13:17

had this amazing, I was at this amazing

13:19

school with this big opportunity, but I

13:22

realized that wasn't for me. Like, I

13:25

miss the music of Texas. Then

13:28

they all made a dream across

13:30

the Mr. Blay's. I faded

13:32

leather jacket, my weather

13:34

broke as shit. But you

13:36

know, it's been a while. Let

13:39

the rain come in, I'm watching

13:41

myself. Just how I'm

13:43

having all the time through the

13:45

cross the main street. Walked out

13:47

of my space, stepped

13:50

into the house. All my

13:52

friends were there. The

13:54

odds I'm splashing, welcome on

13:56

in. Feels Good,

13:59

feeling good. The

14:02

it is that when the violin became

14:04

settle. Yeah. Flag that

14:06

it strains. That

14:08

have nothing like that. What

14:12

are we will? Have a always go

14:14

violin and the federal an ego

14:16

up the violinist strings, fiddles, got.

14:18

Trying. Will

14:21

be back to our conversation with Carry

14:23

Rodrigues right after this. This

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npr app today And

16:03

we're back to our conversation with Carrie Rodriguez.

16:07

You were born and raised in Texas and

16:09

because of that, this sound, it was in

16:11

you and it came back to you at

16:13

a time in your life when you needed

16:16

it. So there is something to be said

16:18

about the authenticity of you creating within this

16:20

genre in that sense. It's

16:23

true and it has taken me a

16:25

long time to find my most authentic,

16:28

well I'm still researching, but to really

16:30

find my most authentic self within that

16:32

sound and you know, that's maybe a

16:34

lifelong journey. Having

16:37

followed your career, I think we

16:39

first met in 2005 when you were in

16:42

the duo at Pailar and Carrie Rodriguez. I'm

16:45

so sorry, she hurt me. You

16:50

didn't hurt me. What's

16:53

been fascinating to me, and you and I have talked

16:55

about this before, is how you, it

16:59

almost felt like when you released

17:01

Lola, you were looking

17:03

for something within yourself. You were going back

17:05

to the Spanish speaking,

17:07

the Mexican part of your history.

17:10

You based it on, I think your

17:12

aunt. My great aunt. Your great aunt.

17:15

Eva Garza. Yeah. So talk to

17:17

us a little bit about going from classical

17:20

violin, then playing fiddle and

17:22

then trying to understand a

17:24

little bit more about the Mexican side of that. Yeah,

17:26

I mean, yes, I guess I started

17:28

singing with Chip Taylor and playing fiddle

17:31

with him in 2001. I

17:33

was so young. Baby. And

17:37

yeah, those early years, I mean, the way

17:39

I sang and used my fiddle was very

17:41

much straight up country.

17:44

The way I sang, if you go back and listen to

17:46

those records, so much twang. Because

17:48

I was singing country music. I don't know, it just came out

17:50

that way. But after time, it

17:53

did start to feel like I was just

17:55

leaving out so much of me. And

17:58

around that same time, my grandma. This is

18:01

so cool that she did this. She'd always talked

18:03

about my great aunt Eva and said, oh, you

18:05

have this famous great aunt and she sang with

18:07

all the big stars and she

18:09

was in Mexican films. And I mean,

18:11

I, I believed her, but

18:13

I also thought maybe she was exaggerating a little

18:16

bit because that's what grandmas do, you know. You

18:20

know, so, but one day

18:23

she sent me a stack of CDs

18:25

that she had burned from all of Eva Gold's

18:27

album. She was so much music

18:30

and I just remember putting on the first one. This

18:32

is when I was living in New York and

18:35

hearing her voice with like a full

18:37

mariachi band, you know, and just crying,

18:40

like sitting down on the couch and crying

18:42

and realizing that

18:44

this was awful. And

19:02

the way that music

19:04

made me feel, I

19:06

could say it's so much

19:10

of the way

19:17

I felt when I heard

19:27

my dad sing in Spanish, those songs. So

19:29

that was the beginning of my journey of,

19:31

okay, well, maybe I'll sing one song in

19:33

Spanish at the end of my set. Let's

19:35

see what happened. And then,

19:37

oh, maybe I'll add another. And so little

19:39

by little, I started

19:42

incorporating that into my music and then that

19:44

came into how I wrote a song. So

19:47

even now today, like I just wrote a song

19:50

the other day and it's totally Spanglish. So

19:54

yeah, it has been a lot. This

19:56

is over like 20 years, you know?

19:58

Yeah, it's been a long journey. So

20:00

where do you feel like you're at now

20:03

on that journey? Is it are

20:05

you equally comfortable?

20:07

Like not not taking ginger steps,

20:10

but actually like striding into the musical

20:12

room if we can imagine Music

20:15

is this big parlor right speaking in

20:17

Texas terms. Are you striding in there

20:19

with? Parlor

20:22

I don't think I think dance-hall Like

20:26

1800s Parlors

20:30

okay dance-hall so striding into

20:32

the dance-hall just equally

20:35

confident in both Yeah,

20:37

I'm gonna use the example of the gig I

20:39

did the other day I did a gig for

20:42

our laboratory a series which it's a

20:45

musical celebration and exploration of

20:47

Latinx culture So

20:51

our two guests that we featured were

20:53

Richard Vino Latino country singer And

21:01

Ruben Ramos who is the king

21:04

of Tejano music He's

21:11

a legend he's a pioneer and he actually

21:13

helped shape the sound of Tejano music bringing

21:15

the big horns into

21:17

it and He's 84 now,

21:20

I believe so in the

21:22

same show we had Rick singing country

21:24

songs and Ruben singing

21:26

Tejano songs, right and

21:29

I was accompanying them both and playing

21:31

fiddle with Rick and violin

21:33

on a ray with Ruben

21:36

and Jim and on

21:38

his blues like Chicana soul kind of

21:40

numbers and honestly, I I

21:43

felt so much joy being on that stage

21:46

and being able to jump around with

21:48

those genres and also feeling that

21:50

it's all connected like Tejano music

21:53

is So

21:55

American right? It's so

21:57

and so it's like everything we were doing on that stage

22:00

felt like it was rooted in Texas

22:02

and it was authentic and

22:04

soulful. One of the first

22:06

big bluegrass festivals that we played, MurlFest, and

22:08

it was it's a big one. It's in

22:10

North Carolina, I don't know, it's 20,000 people

22:12

there or something, right? And I'm

22:15

playing on stage with Chip and

22:17

all of a sudden it

22:20

dawned on me. I'm like looking out at the

22:22

audience and I only see white faces and

22:25

then I'm thinking about who's playing, who's on

22:27

the bill, and I realized in that moment

22:29

oh my god I'm like the only

22:33

Latina, Latino, at

22:35

all in this whole place. I really

22:37

felt that and it was a kind of a

22:40

shocking discovery. You'd think I would have noticed

22:42

before that, right? But it took being at

22:44

a place with a bunch of people to

22:48

to realize, oh right, okay,

22:50

no I am different in this setting

22:52

at least, right? I don't even

22:54

know what I did with that at the moment. I just have this vivid

22:57

memory of the realization that

23:00

I was alone there in that

23:02

sense. When I met you guys

23:04

in 2004, 2005,

23:07

you were firmly in the whole Americana

23:09

scene, which is, as you

23:12

described earlier, a little bit of country,

23:14

a little bit of folk. Is that how

23:16

you would describe Americana? I

23:18

don't know, it's so vague. It's very vague. It

23:21

really should, should, well I don't know what

23:23

it should, but Americana you would

23:25

think would encompass all

23:27

roots music from this country. So

23:30

technically I

23:32

think Americana should be just as much

23:35

like conjunto and tejano music as it

23:37

is the blues, you know, as it

23:39

is bluegrass. Now is it?

23:42

No, I don't think so, not yet. That's

23:45

why, but this friend of mine coined the

23:47

term Amerachicana, talking about my music.

23:50

It's my favorite thing ever. I use it all the time. So

23:53

when someone asked me what kind of music I

23:55

play, you know, now I don't

23:57

have to say ten different things. I just look at them

23:59

and say, and I say, Amerachicana.

24:02

And some look confused, but

24:04

some get it. Yeah. I

24:08

love that you said that like Tejano and

24:10

Conjunta should be, should

24:13

fall under the Amerikana category, because

24:15

there's also so many people that just want to

24:18

throw it into the human. And be like, well,

24:20

that's whatever. It's like so emblematic of what these

24:22

genres are. Rhiannon

24:24

Giddens, the very well-known

24:27

banjo player, who played on the Beyonce

24:29

record, wrote a piece, an

24:32

opinion piece about the

24:34

controversy, all the conversation. But

24:36

she's, but one of her

24:38

concluding lines was that it, all

24:41

of this music, it comes

24:43

from so many different places. And as you

24:45

just said, from all of these different cultures.

24:47

So they should all be called Amerikana music.

24:50

They should all be called country music. It's

24:53

all wrapped into the same thing. Yeah.

24:56

Yeah, agreed. That was a great article. I

24:58

love that. Yeah. And I

25:00

did really like how she outlined

25:04

the fact that everything was so

25:06

much more regionally aligned, which

25:09

to me then like

25:11

gets into that conversation too, where

25:13

we're talking about Texas music, specifically

25:15

Texas's proximity to the border, like the synergy

25:18

between all of these sounds. And it's like, it's

25:21

all within this region. Get

25:24

rid of the border and it's all

25:26

within this region, right? This region that was

25:29

Mexico. Exactly. Right.

25:32

I mean, with that in mind, like I'm bringing

25:34

it back to this question that's been interesting to

25:36

me. I brought up the Carine Leon thing. I

25:38

also brought up to Felix earlier the fact that

25:40

even Huanga experienced it with country

25:42

music at a certain point. Where

25:45

is, is there an authenticity to that?

25:47

Is there a legitimacy to that given

25:50

their proximity to the border? Is there

25:52

a uniquely this side of the border American

25:54

country experience? I think there

25:56

is a legitimacy to that. Also

25:58

because... Texas

26:01

was Mexico, right? And

26:03

like we share a history that

26:05

goes back for so many generations. So

26:08

when I think about this region, I don't

26:10

necessarily see that border. And

26:13

for so many years too, the border was very fluid.

26:15

You know, it's really only like in the

26:17

last 20, 30 years that

26:20

it's been so intensely

26:22

divided. And so yeah,

26:25

I don't have any issues with an artist like

26:28

that singing a country song,

26:30

calling it country music. Because

26:32

I feel like we're all kind of from

26:34

the same place. It

26:37

is interesting to me the timing of all of this,

26:39

because as regional Mexican music

26:41

is getting more and more play, I mean,

26:44

it's always gotten play on the border, right? But in

26:46

other parts of the United States, I'm being told by

26:48

a lot of people in Mexico that country music is

26:50

actually getting more popular. Like American

26:52

country music is getting more popular in

26:55

Mexico. There's actually an intercambio in

26:58

some ways happening with this music.

27:01

Yeah, that's exciting. And I think that's

27:04

great. There is

27:06

this question like I noted earlier, when you mentioned like,

27:08

oh, and these sounds they came back to me and

27:10

I felt the need to do. There is something about

27:13

what you have within you, musically,

27:17

life experience wise, you name it, genetically, I don't

27:19

know. That like, you're born

27:21

in Brad Texan at the end of the day. And

27:25

that sound lives within you. And so I

27:27

understand to a certain extent, like, oh, if

27:29

you're gonna make this type of music, there

27:31

has to be some relationship there. Where it

27:33

gets sticky to me, or where I get

27:35

kind of curious or interested is as we're

27:37

talking about the border doesn't

27:39

really exist. Like this regionally, like you

27:42

said, Texas used to be Mexico. So

27:44

there is this question of, is

27:46

there a certain level of that inheritance for

27:49

Mexican artists on the other side of

27:51

the border? Are

27:53

you looking at the border? You guys are looking at

27:55

me. I know, it's funny what's on his face. I'm

27:57

like, he used to a character. Okay. going

28:00

on is there? When you ask these questions because

28:02

I don't have an answer other than

28:04

you know history but

28:07

like why doesn't this

28:09

music exist you know in

28:12

Arizona or along the

28:14

California Mexican border right you know

28:16

what I mean it's like because

28:18

Texas is so unique that way

28:20

with the music musical influences certainly

28:22

accordions exist from you know for

28:25

all along Texas Arizona into California

28:27

accordions that's the whole thing right

28:29

but like it doesn't it

28:31

it just pops differently here in Texas the

28:35

whole country thing we have all

28:37

these conversations about like

28:40

race in this country and conflict in this country

28:42

and yes it's that's real and it's happening and

28:45

there's so much of it and especially you look

28:47

at a place like Texas and there's like you're

28:50

trying to fit all these puzzle pieces together of

28:52

people who maybe don't even want to be fit

28:54

together but then you go

28:56

to something like the Houston rodeo and

28:59

it is just like everyone enjoying music

29:01

enjoying life enjoying the same things having

29:04

the same experiences and Latinos going to

29:06

country shows and white people going to

29:08

you know see Latin artists like who

29:11

I was with Ivan Cournéjo and it's

29:13

like I'm not saying everything's

29:15

cumbaya because you pull out the guitar and

29:17

yeah but at the same time like we

29:19

all want to cry to something like everyone

29:22

wants to like sing that's like

29:24

country and rex and whatever like

29:26

it's all storytelling it's it's like

29:28

the deepest connection right to like being

29:30

a person is sharing your story through music so it's

29:32

like why wouldn't we all want to listen to that

29:35

yeah I mean it breaks down all

29:37

the barriers and the walls that we have

29:40

and it just immediately gets rid

29:43

of that when you add in the

29:45

African-American influence with the blues and and

29:48

the fiddle music fiddle music man

29:50

old-time fiddle music it

29:53

has a whole different layer which

29:55

is what the whole national conversation is

29:57

about right yeah what

30:00

we're trying to do with this show is just establish

30:03

a place in that conversation for

30:06

the reality that Latino musicians also

30:08

have a place at the table

30:10

when we're talking about who

30:12

has the right to sing country. That's

30:16

my official statement and I stand by it. I

30:19

like it. Well, I can't

30:21

argue with that. Carrie, it's interesting that

30:23

you talk about this

30:26

flow that you have with now starting to

30:28

write some songs in Spanish as well because

30:31

one of the artists I brought, his name

30:33

is Sammy Arriaga. I don't know

30:35

if you've heard of him. He's a Miami-born,

30:37

very young Cuban-American artist based in

30:39

Nashville. So did not grow up with

30:41

these sounds but very much was like attracted to

30:43

them despite the fact that he grew up with

30:46

all these kind of like various Latin,

30:48

specifically Cuban sounds in Miami. He

30:51

was attracted to the country sounds. So he moved to Nashville

30:53

and he writes these very much straight

30:56

ahead country songs. He

30:59

has some Spanish versions of certain songs.

31:01

He has some Spanglish versions.

31:03

He specifically labels them as Spanglish and

31:05

he's gotten quite the following on

31:08

TikTok by basically either

31:11

countryifying popular Latin

31:13

songs or vice versa by

31:15

doing certain Latin songs or the country twang.

31:17

So it's really interesting what he does musically

31:20

and he has this one really cute song,

31:22

bandos and bongos. It's just like a love

31:24

song. Right? I'll be

31:26

the only, I'll be the lamb in

31:28

your coca-cone. Can't wait to

31:30

see what it's a song. Oh, you bring the

31:32

banjo, I'll bring the bongos. It's like it's

31:35

silly, silly lyrics. But it's a really cute

31:37

kind of like simplification of this like he's

31:39

like it's so simple. Like it's a simple

31:41

love song and it shows the synergy between

31:43

what he's trying to do there. It's

31:46

really quite lovely. Exact same story as Raul Malo for

31:48

the Mavericks. There goes my heart. I

31:51

was going to

31:53

say like I think

31:56

Raul Malo. like

32:00

paved the way for Cuban Americans to sing country

32:02

music and be really good at it. Well,

32:05

and that's what's so funny as he talks

32:07

about, you know, being born in Miami, having

32:10

all of these Cuban influences and kind

32:12

of just being really attracted to this country sound.

32:15

Yeah. I mean, like when you hear, I

32:17

just went back the other day, I was listening to

32:19

some of the earliest Mavericks. They had

32:22

huge hits in the 90s. And

32:24

here's, you know, Latino

32:27

frontman leading a country band with

32:29

Flaco Jimenez taking the accordion solo.

32:31

And this is on mainstream country radio. The

32:34

pioneers, incredible pioneers. He's

32:37

the one time I attended the Americana

32:39

Fest in Nashville. He was voted

32:42

into their Hall of Fame. He's

32:44

as he should be. He's a legend and

32:46

a voice and his voice. I swear to

32:48

God, his voice keeps getting better and better.

32:50

If it's possible. I don't know how that's

32:53

possible. But yeah, he is. If I

32:55

had to pick one favorite singer in the world, it's him.

32:57

Wow. Yeah, it really is. It's

33:00

just he's the Roy Orbison of our time. Wow.

33:03

Because recently and all finally and all

33:05

Spanish language Mavericks albums. And it's so

33:07

good. Oh my God. Killed,

33:10

killed. But I'm excited to hear the new one. I

33:12

haven't listened yet. That's on my list this week. And

33:14

I do feel like there's other artists in a

33:17

similar position to you who have this, this

33:20

cultural inheritance by the lives of country music.

33:22

I mean, there's this artist called Louis the

33:24

singer, another really young country artist

33:26

who is from out of Texas,

33:28

Fort Worth, Texas. And he literally

33:30

has songs where he specifically

33:33

talks about his his right

33:36

to performing this music. His

33:38

song in particular. Come and take it. This

33:41

is books. This is clothes. Same

33:44

kind with a coat of shoes.

33:46

Got a down named chill and he

33:49

loves to pitch. If I can't. And

33:51

what is it? I can't. But my

33:53

people. Start It. This is. Literally

34:18

talking about his right to perform country

34:20

music. He says they sang country but

34:22

my people started a thing they call

34:24

country and he kind of goes through

34:27

outlining almost like making his claim for

34:29

like all the things about him that

34:31

make him country that made him and

34:33

have the power of misuse it because

34:35

clearly like there has been a question

34:37

of of his entitlement to he also

34:39

makes is a lot of moments of

34:41

rap and hip hop into his sound

34:44

which I'm like that is only something

34:46

that could happen in this country. There's.

34:48

Not really have a a rat

34:50

sound that super popular in Mexico.

34:52

Right now have. A very much an American.

34:55

An American artist Mignon. American Sound.

35:00

Very rough figures over six. Vs

35:04

The words for go We to Doctors

35:06

about this is you obviously the first

35:08

person I thought of to talk about

35:10

this. I think it helps everyone understand

35:12

a little bit more about what the

35:14

special conversations about. So thank you Thank.

35:16

You so much for having me! It was really

35:18

fun to to and is actually kind of therapeutic.

35:21

Listed again as well We

35:23

do here at their feet.

35:25

Three Saracens or The Within

35:27

The Show On is probably

35:29

my favorite in. You know

35:31

this by favorite father yours.

35:34

Look Lola I drink that was long.

35:37

Have a grandson and you will have

35:39

your some and we were D C

35:41

B. S.

36:55

You know, Where.

37:18

Why You. The

37:25

Great song first time I heard it.

37:27

I just like because it's so it's

37:29

you said everything about me and our

37:31

culture in have I seen that was

37:34

loanable plan and you are Obviously you

37:36

don't have to explain who these people

37:38

are. If you get it then you

37:40

know right is like you just you

37:42

get it. Learning

38:06

about from Austin this week you have been

38:08

listening to outlet You know I'm Felix Cottrell

38:10

and I'm on a many as there are.

38:13

So this week is produced an edited by

38:15

working Cutler. Are didn't it or is he will

38:17

sell. for his tongue keeps i think

38:19

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