English 120
Professor Bewick
December
Who feels it knows it more: A Look Into Narcocorridos
I grew up in a household where rather than attending church on Sundays, we blasted music in our small 3 bedroom apartment and cleaned the house. When he could my father would play traditional Mexican ballads, know as corridos (ballads). Corridos talked about the Mexican Revolution and in essence where the songs that told stories of struggling times. What makes corridos so special is they talk about real events and real people. Several years ago when running a middle school aged after school program, corridos came back into my life. It was all the rage to listen to corrido artists and when the kids played them I was truly surprised by the …show more content…
The Mexican corrido has been around since the country itself was originated. Corridos have transformed along with the times and tell stories as they happen, following along in the path of history. Earlier on during the Mexican revolution corridos were used to tell stories of epic battles and described men of honor and courage. Historical figures like Emiliano Zapata and Pancho Villa are portrayed as heroic revolutionaries who fought for the rights of the lower classes. Corridos are a huge part of Mexican and Chicano culture as they are like a history book for their lives and the lives of their loved …show more content…
Now the country of Mexico has become more violent since the beginning of the drug war against the drug cartel that began in 2006. Corridos have been modernized and are now contain stories of beheadings, bloodshed and the smuggling of drugs across the border. The genre has become a ghost writer for the drug cartels. The emergence of narcocorridos in both Mexico and the U.S. has created a movement and a thriving trend for young people. Increasingly popular in Southern California cultural events related to El Movimiento Alterado, (The Altered Movement) which consists of a a variety of Mexican Norteño narco corridos which chronicles the effects of the drug war, often celebrating violence and criminal leaders.Professor Juan Carlos Ramirez-Pimineta of San Diego State University and author of “Cantar a los Narcos", said the Altered Movement is a result of the offensive administration of Mexican President Felipe Calderon against drug trafficking, which has caused 40,000 deaths in Mexico. This cultural trend had its origins in Sinaloa, Mexico and identifies its members as "bukanos" (bushings) part of the mix of English and Spanish and celebrates the violent part of drug trafficking, extolling beheadings, murders, bullets and luxury SUVs. The popularity of the music is widespread and teens that are 2nd and 3rd generation Mexican-America although