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November 14, 2014. Thursday night, Latin fusion hip-hop and politically-charged band Calle 13 gave a free concert that was spontaneously organized in a just few hours through Twitter. The concert drew over 5,000 attendants to San Martin Square in Central Lima. The Puerto Rican band was supposed to play at the National Stadium together with two other iconic rock bands from Latin America, Molotov from Mexico and Illya Kuryaki and The Valderramas from Argentina. However, less than an hour before doors were supposed to open to the public, the official concert was cancelled by the vendords due to the lack of payment from the Chilean company “Colors” that was organizing the event.
Immediately after the cancellation, Calle 13’s rapper Rene Perez, also known as “Residente,” posted a message on Twitter saying, “if someone communicates with us through here, and let’s us borrow amplifiers and guitars, we will play tonight for free wherever.” Thousands of messages followed from both fans and critics of the band and the Twitter hashtag #Calle13enLima trended within minutes. About an hour later, Residente wrote a second message thanking all those who were helping to get equipment, stating that they were already coordinating to make the concert happen.
However, controversy was brewing before the day of the concert. The last time Calle 13 held a concert in Peru, it was delayed by 5 hours due to flight problems after the band gave a free concert in Venezuela for the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States. Calle 13 apologized for the delay and asked organizers in Peru to let the audience know. But the organizers did not inform the public about how long it would take for the band to arrive. When Calle 13 finally arrived, many in the crowd were angry and felt insulted. Some in the audience began to throw various items at the stage in response, including a set of keys that hit Residente, leading him to reply with anger.
The next day, local mainstream media portrayed Calle 13 as arrogant, unapologetic, and disrespectful to Peruvians. Calle 13 denied such accusations and pointed to the great number of their songs that are dedicated to and inspired by Peru. For example, the video for one of their most famous songs, “Latinoamerica,” was filmed by Peruvians, included footage mostly in Peru, and it featured world-recognized Afro-Peruvian singer Susana Baca. Calle 13 also has a documentary “Sin Mapa” (Mapless) in which they explore the history and struggles of some of the most forgotten corners in Latinamerica. About a third of the documentary is spent in Peru, including Amantani Island and the Rinconada Mine in Puno, which is in the highest elevation human settlement in the world.
Thursday nights’ concert appeared to be a great success with the audience openly expressing their enthusiasm. Calle 13 succesfully avoided disappointing their fans, playing for the thousands who celebrated, danced, and sang along in the streets. While the concert only lasted 40 minutes due to the time limit imposed by authorities, no one in attendance complained about the free concert. However, by Friday morning, mainstream media headlines were rife with accusations against the band for playing without a permit and disrespecting Peruvians once again. The city of Lima has issued a penalty of US$1,300 to Calle 13, and as result social media has today been inundated with arguments of whether to love or hate the band.
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