In this episode of the solecast I chat with Rodrigo Starz of Rebel Diaz. Rebel Diaz is a Bronx/Chicago based political rap group that's been killing shit for over a decade. Whether its Ferguson, Occupy or a myriad of other social struggles, Rebel Diaz has been there and engaged. Their family left Chile after their father who was a political prisoner was released and they settled in The Bronx. They have made numerous musical & political interventions over the years and set up one of the only hip-hop squat/community centers in the US called the Rebel Diaz Arts Collective… in the Bronx. Check out their music on Bandcamp, and follow them on twitter.
In this interview we also discuss:
Their origins
Analysis on the socialist wins in Central /South America / North America over the past decades and the subsequent rise of fascism globally.
Their new album America vs America
Cultural differences between rap shows in the US and elsewhere
The role of deportation & immigration in spreading and influencing hip hop culture
Thoughts on early rap history in the Bronx & neo-liberalism (a fancy word for capitalism)
The history of their autonomous hip hop center in the Bronx
Fatherhood & multi generational struggle
His viral intervention against Ted Cruz
The power of culture