For me, Latino music has been in my life since I was six years old. When my mother remarried a Nicaraguan man, I was exposed to a different side of the world. There was so much that I had never known about, but now loved. It is for this reason that I tend to notice where and how many people are listening to Latino music, particularly within the context of music from one’s own home country. I decided to find out how much this music has been integrated into the typical life of an FSU student in Tallahassee, within a group of friends. This music defines Latino culture through sound, behavior, and concept.
To begin with, I had to ask my friends
what they listen to. The group that I am focusing on contains seven members. Of
those seven, five are Latino and two are “white”; I, Sarva, am half
French and half of descent from the British Isles, and the other
“white” person, Evan, is of descent from and . The other five are
from (Carlos), (Daniel), (Andrea), (Leslie), and (Tony).
I found through interviews that all of the Latino members of our group listen
to music from their homeland on, at the very least, a weekly basis. That means
that once a week, they are connecting back to their cultural identities through
music. When I asked Evan if he listens to music from or , he said that he
doesn’t. “It isn’t because I don’t like it,” he said. “It has
just never been a part of my life the way it has been for my girlfriend.”
Evan and Andrea have been dating for three months, as Carlos and myself have
been dating for nearly three years.
I find that the way things are run in Carlos’ house …
