The digital cumbia pioneer returns this weekend for a late-night DJ<\/a> set at a secret downtown venue hosted by ZZK Records, an independent label that was founded in Buenos Aires in 2008 and moved to L.A. in 2019.<\/p>\n \u201c[L.A.] is as Latin American as any city in America,\u201d said ZZK Records founder Grant Dull. \u201cCumbia has always been here, and there\u2019s a demographic of music lovers here in L.A. that is constantly pushing cumbia.\u201d<\/p>\n Born in 19th-century Colombia from Afro and Indigenous rhythms, cumbia spread across Latin America, absorbing local sounds and styles. Today, it\u2019s global \u2014 but L.A. may be the best place to experience its freshest, most exciting edge.<\/p>\n LA might be the best city for cumbia lovers<\/p>\n How LA became a hub for cumbia<\/p>\n L.A. became a hot spot for acts like Chancha Via Circuito to perform in for two reasons: the internet and migration.<\/p>\n Chanca\u2019s Pedro Canale was part of a new generation of digital cumbieros who, in the aughts, started mixing electronic music with the Afro-Indigenous rhythms of cumbia and sharing it online through platforms like MySpace. This allowed the music to spread more quickly to diasporic communities across the world, including L.A.<\/p>\n Pedro Pablo Canale, better known as Chancha Via Circuito, is an Argentine electronic cumbia producer.<\/p>\n (<\/p>\n Guadalupe Miles <\/p>\n \/<\/p>\n ZZK Records<\/p>\n )<\/p>\n Meanwhile, L.A. of the late aughts saw the evolution of another kind of digitally enabled cumbia: cumbia sonidera. Sonideros are a mix of DJ and MC \u2014 they talk over the music they\u2019re playing from large and powerful sound systems.<\/p>\n Cumbia sonidera was brought by migrants from Mexico City and Puebla to Los Angeles. Audiences on both sides of the border would live stream these sets and pass messages to loved ones through the sonidero.<\/p>\n Documentarian Alvaro Parra chronicled L.A. sonidero culture in his film Sonidero Metropolis<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cYou can literally tap into YouTube and see what sonidero parties are like in Puebla instantaneously,\u201d Parra said.<\/p>\n Sharing the history behind the rhythm<\/p>\n Because of people like documentarian Parra and Dull of ZZK Records, L.A. isn\u2019t just a good city to hear cumbia live but also to learn about its history.<\/p>\n Parra has screened his documentaries at places like the Hammer Museum and LACMA. \u200aAnd ZZK has started Reina de Cumbia<\/a> \u2014 a series of panels, film screenings and exhibits that showcase the history of Cumbia.<\/p>\n \u201c<\/b>\u200aIn the end, you want people to know where this is coming from,\u201d Parra said. \u201cThis is coming from a long tradition. Cumbia in Los Angeles has really been a reflection of the migratory waves of people that come to live in Los Angeles.\u201d<\/p>\n Angelenos to follow to stay in the know<\/p>\n Alvaro Parra, <\/b>@delaparraproductions<\/b><\/a> ZZK Records, <\/b>@zzkrecords<\/b><\/a> DJ Sapo, <\/b>@dogtoad\u00a0<\/b><\/a> Gary Ganas Garay, <\/b>@og_ganas\u00a0<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n
Parra is an Emmy-winning documentarian and one of the preeminent chroniclers of cumbia. He announces screenings through his social media pages.<\/p>\n
ZZK doesn\u2019t just announce upcoming shows on its Instagram page, it also provides the context behind the acts that come through.<\/p>\n
DJ Sapo hosts a regular cumbia night at Cha Cha Lounge in Silverlake.<\/p>\n
Gary Ganas Garay hosts a radio show for dublab called \u201cMas Exitos<\/a>\u201d on which he features a lot of cumbia. He also hosts a regular dance party at Footsies in Cypress Park.<\/p>\n