All Songs Considered

Alt.Latino: Venezuelan producer Ella Bric spins songs with a 'teardrop of optimism'

January 28, 2026

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  • Venezuelan producer Ella Bric curated a playlist of socially, culturally, and politically impactful Venezuelan music from the last half-century, emphasizing that this art often contains a "teardrop of optimism" despite reflecting hardship. 
  • The selected music highlights the recurring themes of inequality, political transition, and social commentary in Venezuela, spanning genres from rock and traditional Afro-Venezuelan music to ska. 
  • Ella Bric's selections demonstrate that contemporary Venezuelan artists, even those based outside the country, continue to draw from deep-rooted traditions and address ongoing national crises like economic instability and power outages. 

Segments

Introduction of Guest DJ
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(00:00:18)
  • Key Takeaway: Producer Ella Bric, a Latin Grammy winner, is guest-hosting to share impactful Venezuelan music.
  • Summary: Ana Maria Sayer introduces guest DJ Ella Bric, a prolific Venezuelan trumpet player and producer based in New York who won a Latin Grammy for Producer of the Year in 2018. Bric’s art reflects her curiosity about the state of the world. She was invited to walk through a personal playlist of socially, culturally, and politically impactful Venezuelan music from the last half-century.
La Vida Bohème’s Social Commentary
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(00:01:46)
  • Key Takeaway: ‘Hornos del Cal’ by La Vida Bohème symbolizes the dual nature of Venezuelan barrios as both refuge and prison due to pervasive insecurity.
  • Summary: The first track, ‘Hornos del Cal’ (2013) by La Vida Bohème, addresses the reality of life in Venezuelan barrios, similar to favelas. The song describes neighborhoods where residents must stay awake after dark because safety is never guaranteed. Bric notes that despite reflecting inequality, the music maintains a positive outlook, characteristic of the Venezuelan spirit.
Afro-Venezuelan Tradition Focus
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(00:06:41)
  • Key Takeaway: Betzaida Machado and Parranda el Clavo represent contemporary Afro-Venezuelan tradition bearers whose music serves as a vital, uncompromising protest against violence.
  • Summary: The second selection, ‘Sentimiento’ (2017) by Betzaida Machado & Parranda el Clavo, highlights contemporary Afro-Venezuelan tradition, which Bric notes is sometimes overlooked. The song functions as a powerful protest against insecurity and violence in Venezuela, moving listeners deeply. Machado’s work is crucial as a reference point for roots music, even as newer artists incorporate Afro-Venezuelan ideas into mainstream sounds.
National Identity and Sovereignty
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(00:11:35)
  • Key Takeaway: Maria Rodriguez’s ‘Los Dos Titanes’ embodies a non-partisan reminder of collective Venezuelan identity and sovereignty, rooted in eastern coastal traditions.
  • Summary: Maria Rodriguez, known as ‘La Sirena de Cumaná,’ performs ‘Los Dos Titanes,’ a song carrying a deep sense of national feeling about sovereignty. Rodriguez represents traditional oriental styles like polo and fulías, which carry history through rhythm and storytelling from the eastern coast. This contrasts with the more commonly known Joropo music from the plains, though Bric notes a current resurgence of neo-Joropo.
Nueva Canción and Inequality
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(00:15:11)
  • Key Takeaway: Ali Primera’s ‘Techos de Cartón’ remains relevant by literally depicting the hardship of informal housing and embodying the necessity for artists to reflect contemporary inequality.
  • Summary: Ali Primera, ‘El Cantor del Pueblo,’ is featured for his work in the Latin American Nueva Canción movement, rooted in working-class life. His song ‘Techos de Cartón’ powerfully describes the literal reality of cardboard roofs on informal hillside homes in Venezuela. Bric observes that this song’s themes of inequality are repeated in contemporary music, such as La Vida Bohème’s track.
Contemporary Artist’s Personal Struggle
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(00:19:52)
  • Key Takeaway: Ella Bric’s own track, ‘Unfinished Song,’ confronts the cruelty of the 2019 nationwide electricity blackout and the resulting inequality, co-produced by La Vida Bohème’s vocalist.
  • Summary: Bric shares her own track, ‘Unfinished Song,’ written under her former name Linda Briceño, detailing the trauma of Venezuela’s multi-day electricity blackout in 2019. The song contrasts neighborhoods in darkness with those who maintained power, incorporating sampled sounds of protests. It was co-produced with Henri D’Artanay, the lead vocalist of La Vida Bohème.
Humor as Resistance in Ska
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(00:27:36)
  • Key Takeaway: Desorden Público’s ‘Políticos Paralíticos’ uses humor and absurd hooks to critique corruption, turning anger into energized, danceable movement for generations.
  • Summary: Desorden Público is highlighted as one of Venezuela’s most iconic ska groups, comparable in importance to Soda Stereo in Argentina. Their song ‘Políticos Paralíticos’ uses humor to call out corruption and impunity among leaders. The band’s energetic live performances, featuring the pogo dance, exemplify how they turn anger into kinetic, hopeful expression.
New Generation’s Economic Reality
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(00:29:50)
  • Key Takeaway: Bucle Lunar’s contemporary track ‘Subió El Maldito Dolar’ captures the current reality of economic fluctuation forcing friends and family to leave Venezuela.
  • Summary: The final song, ‘Subió El Maldito Dolar’ (2025), is by Bucle Lunar, a duet from Mérida, Venezuela, discovered by Bric on Instagram. The lyrics directly address how the rising dollar rate forces friends to emigrate, reflecting present-day social problems. Bric finds hope in the young artists’ message of resistance, encapsulated by the phrase, ‘It doesn’t matter how bad it is, we are gonna keep resisting.’