Chicano rap

Posted on 07.6.2000

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Chicano rap
spanish rap

Chicano rap is not a style of rap, but rather rap by all Chicanos. It started in the early eighties with Kid Frost.
In the early nineties, he started using Spanish. His track "La Raza" started a whole generation of rappers using some Spanish in their English rhymes. Sometimes this usage is termed Spanish, although most of it is English, and usually only single words are from Spanish. In the late nineties, some rappers started rapping exclusively in Spanish. The first Chicano rap album that was wholly in Spanish was probably the Dark Room Familia’s "Matan Mi Gente".

Mellow Man Ace preceded Kid Frost with his bilingual rhymes, and even though he is not Mexican-American himself, he also used Chicano slang in his rhymes. Cypress Hill may be viewed as Chicano rappers - their lead rapper B Real is half-Chicano ; and like Mellow Man Ace they also use Chicano slang. Sen Dog from Cypress Hill is Mellow Man Ace’s brother.

In the late nineties, some Chicano rappers started using influences from Mexican music, for example Akwid and Darkroom Familia. Not surprisingly, both groups also rap exclusively in Spanish on some of their albums.

The two most famous Sardinian rap groups were influenced by Chicano rap ; Sa Razza (SR Raza) even named themselves after Kid Frost’s track "La Raza" ; and La Fossa also identified with and were inspired by Chicano rap.

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