The Legend of El Nigga

The hot studio lights mixed with the fear of failure as the middle aged Asian man stood at the podium. His daughter was on the Hit talent contest “Canta Conmigo” and the only thing that stood in the way of his child advancing with gifts and cash prizes, was his ability to get this one answer about pop culture correct.

                        Who is the artist who appeared in the music video with Jonesith?

A)   El Nigga

B)   Makano

C)   Eddy Lover

The Man gazed  blankly as only middle-aged people who are asked about tween pop music acts can.   

“El Nigga” said the Man.

He was wrong. 

I was on the floor totally confused.

Tons of Questions flew around my brain.

            Why was this artist named Nigga?

            Was he a rapper?

            Was he even Black?

            Did he make American style hip-hop?

            Is watching a middle aged Asian father use the word Nigga the funniest and most awkward occurrence on Television…in the history of Television?

I was so confused. As an avid Hip-hop lover and as an African American I am no stranger to the “N word”.  I hear it all the time. The word has been used by my great aunts at the dinner table, used by me and the majority of my friends as a pronoun, and used by hip hop artist and R&B singers.  The word also has more insidious uses as well. Classmates from her private school called my little sister, Nigger while she ice-skated. I was called a “Nigger B**ch” by a roommate during a discussion about gas usage. My Ancestors know what it was like to be spit on, excluded, and sometimes even killed while their oppressors used the word. At its worst, the Word “Nigger” and some would argue “Nigga” has been used to strip Afro decedents of their humanity.  At its best, its word that has been ripped from the hands of those who used it as a weapon, stripped of its negative power, and used by the people it was meant to make powerless. It has been turned by some into a piece of music, a joke, or at its basic level a word. Of course I have friends who are Black and refuse to use the word based on its history and the pain associated with it.

            Imagine then my surprise when a non-American artist takes this complicated and loaded word as his Stage Name!  It was very surreal to see a person so divorced from the history of that word or the place that birthed that word using it so casually. I immediately did some research on the music of “El Nigga”.   I was sure that I would hear posturing about living in the hood al la Meek Mills or Rick Ross.  Imagine my surprise when I actually heard his songs.

            He is the leader of a style of Spanish Reggae called “Romantic Style”.  He basically makes sappy love songs to a break /Ski beat. Which makes the whole name even stranger. His light complexion was confusing. In the African American community, you can be dark ebony or so pale cream with blue eyes and straight hair. No matter your complexion, hair texture, or features if you have African ancestry in the U.S. you are looked at as a Black person. I have had many conversations about race and social justice and many people, who could essentially “pass” for White, proudly proclaim their Blackness.

            It is very different here in Panama. Complexion in many circles determines your race. Elders in my village have told me of their children. One would be Moreno like me and the other would be Blanco (White).  2 children born to the same parents can be different races. People who would be considered Light skin or Carmel colored in the states are considered white. EL Nigga is the color of butterscotch when he is tan and lighter otherwise. He may come from Afro Decedents but on surface he isn’t Moreno. Which makes his taking up the Moniker “El Nigga” even weirder. 

            I sat really conflicted on what to feel about this artist and his strange name. I spoke to people in my community about the history of the word here in the United States. It was not until I had a talk to my Regional leader (Peace Corps Volunteer who organizes and helps other PCVs in a certain region of the country) about El Nigga that I was able learn more about this Artist and his history.

            It turns out that his cousin lives in my town and that El Nigga is actually from my Region!  The cousin and all of Azuero (My Region) are very proud of him. It turns out that his “Romantic Style” is in direct reaction to more hardcore and violent music. This music came about after the U.S. Led invasion that killed over 5,000 civilians and decimated whole neighborhoods in the late 80’s. Once prosperous regions were reduced to ghettos. Their Black, Brown, Poor inhabitants had an influx of American weaponry, no central government or police, and no job opportunities.  As you could imagine this turned into a very violent place. Inhabitants took their frustrations about the system and the hard life they were living in rap flavored reggae tracks. These tracks were nihilistic in their view and fairly violent.  Misogyny was also rampant. Which makes sense if you think about U.S. Service men, poverty, and sex work during that time. El nigga began to make music in this environment. He made music to make women feel wanted and valued. He eschewed violence and instead talked about positivity and steeped his music in the Afro-Panamanian tradition of Tamborito.  It turns out that although he divorced from American history of the Nigger/Nigga, he steeped in his own Afro Latino culture.  This really helped me have a more evolved since of El Nigga and what he is trying to do. I still think his music sounds a bit hokey and in the U.S. he goes by the name DJ Flex…because he is not stupid I imagine. What do you guys think about El Nigga?  The name, music, and man?

Here is a sampling of his work: