Afterwards most of us ended up at my sister's house. It was the typical extended family. My sad and morose sisters were sequestered in quiet places throughout the house while the rest of us just tried to endure the pall.
The adults played the requisite dominoes out on the porch. Music played. My nieces and nephews, many of them here just for this occasion, squatted out on the lawn, catching up with their cousins.
They hijacked the music. My brother and I groussed. We salsa classicists have been at war with what we deem to be modern crap: reggaton, rap, etc. Bad Bunny! It just seemed like the latest perversion. But It was a losing battle. They weren't dilettants. They sang along to all the songs. It filled them with joy and you couldn't help but think it was a good thing.
I didn't walk away with any appreciation for his music. In fact, still not a big fan. I keep meaning to buy the album and give it a fair shake but I just haven't gotten around to it.
But in the interim I've been watching his progression as a bona fide Puerto Rican hero, a true ambassador of our culture. And he's done it on his own terms with the utmost levels of professionalism and gentility. I think of him as our Taylor Swift.
No comments:
Post a Comment