La gozadera

I have probably listened to this song at least twice a day, every day, for about a month now. In Cuba, I heard it just as often, albeit in conditions which limited my exposure (and without wifi to look it up). Fortuitously, though, this song actually brings up some things I'd like to talk about a little more regarding my experience in/with Cuba. Specifically: PARTIES.

The name of the song is actually a word meaning "party," or more accurately, a party that's especially happy, high-energy, friendly, etc. (the word derives from "gozar," meaning "to enjoy"). Although it seems from some preliminary research that the word is especially associated with the Caribbean, it's understood in many other parts of Latin America as well. The song--which debuted in the U.S. at No. 3 on the Latin Billboard charts, and currently has 240 million plays on YouTube--is a pan-Latin pump-up anthem, describing a party populated by each and every Latin American country (and Miami, whose justly-deserved nickname is "The Capital of Latin America"). The lyrics celebrate the distinctive culture of each country, showcasing Dominican drums, Puerto Rican rice & green bean dishes, Ecuadorian and Panamanian styles of dance, and so on. (For a complete side-by-side translation of the lyrics, click here.)

It's a fun song (for evidence, see my iTunes play count), but it also keys in to some interesting discussion surrounding Cuba's cachet as the party hotspot of the Caribbean (if not the entire Western Hemisphere, as it might have been at one point). As much of this information is conveyed visually in the music video as is in the lyrics. The classic cars on Havana's (suspiciously clean) streets, associated with the Havana heyday of the first half of the 20th century, before the Revolution, the Crisis, and the Bloque. The Latin dance styles, peppered with salsa and perhaps some Afro-Cuban influences (2:30 and 1:15, respectively), but also more recent trends in club dancing, combined with the distinctive (and distinctively gendered) modes of dress. The bright, tropical color palette, evident in the lettering, the buildings, and the body-painted dancers. All of this visual information reinforces the perception that Latin@s know how to party better than anyone else.

Cuba as a gateway: this song is distinctly Pan-Latin, but it's also explicitly set in Cuba, which is situated with Miami at the threshold between Latin America and the rest of the world.