Así suena: Afro-Diasporic Music and Soundsystem Cultures in Colombia. A Conversation between Professor Juan Suárez Ontaneda and Carlos Mojica (DJ Don Alirio)

Sound systems (sequential speaker systems) in Colombia, also known as picós (a Spanish adaptation of“pick-up” turntables), have shaped the musical culture of cities like Barranquilla, Cartagena, and SantaMarta since the 1950s. Influenced by Jamaican Sound systems, picós in Colombia became culturalinstitutions central to the circulation of Afro-diasporic music, creating audiences who danced andenjoyed genres as diverse as soukous, highlife, ndombolo, dancehall, and salsa. Carlos Mojica, alsoknown as Don Alirio, is one of the most important DJs of música picotera, the music that is played inpicós. As he says, “No soy DJ, soy picotero” (I am not a DJ, I am a picotero). In this conversation withProfessor Juan Suárez Ontaneda, Don Alirio will discuss the process of vinyl collecting, playing musicfrom the African diaspora, and the picó musical and visual culture that emerged in Colombian portcities. This event will be in Spanish with translation to English.•

Attendees who would like to learn more about picós are encouraged to watch the documentary“Picó: el documental” available on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuDf5axx-aU

If you have any questions, please contact Professor Juan Suárez Ontaneda(jsuarezont@brynmawr.edu)

This event is organized with the generosity of the Tri-College Faculty Forum Research Group on Andean Studies, theSpanish Department, and the Program in Latin American, Iberian, and Latinx Studies.