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Orishas

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Cuban group who ran rap through son and rumba after regrouping in Paris, with 'A lo Cubano' carrying it far past the island.

The group began as Amenaza in Havana in the early 1990s, led by Joel Pando as the first Cuban rap act to address racial identity directly. Yotuel Romero and Ruzzo Medina, who had relocated to Paris through an international studies programme, joined Roldán González and Flaco-Pro to found Orishas in 1999.

The band set rap verses over son, rumba and guajira, with hooks sung in the style of traditional Cuban vocal groups. Their name refers to the deities of Yoruba-derived religions such as Santería, each linked to a natural element and a human trait, an idea carried into songs like "Nací Orichas."

Debut album A lo Cubano appeared in Spain in 1999 and carried them through a two-year tour of Europe and the United States. A December 2000 return to Cuba drew tens of thousands to two concerts, and tracks such as "537 C.U.B.A." reworked older Cuban material into hip hop form.

Flaco-Pro left in 2002 before the second album, Emigrante. In 2007 the group joined Puerto Rican act Calle 13 on "Pa'l Norte," which won a Latin Grammy for Best Urban Song.

Orishas split in 2010. They reunited in 2016 to record new material, releasing the album Gourmet in 2018, and have continued to appear together for live shows.

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