Listening Session & Conversation with Joe Bataan, Bonita and Goya Gumbani

New York City, El Barrio; from Mambo to Hip Hop. The Story of Joe Bataan

This conversation will take the audience on a journey through 70’s NYC, where the ghettos in the city served as birthplaces and melting pots for new connections and expressions in music and culture. Predominantly inhabited by Puerto Ricans & African Americans, the neighbourhood provided the setting for these cultures to mix for the first time, birthing new collaborative movements in art and culture. El Barrio was both the birthplace of Salsa, Boogaloo and Latin Soul igniting 70s NYC, some 10 years later Hip-Hop was born and a whole new era of music began; Joe is one of the pioneers on both movements, releasing several albums with the biggest label in Latin Music, Fania and later creating what is known to be one of the first, if not the first Rap song, ‘Rap-o-Clapo’ under the label Salsoul released in 1979. .

Accompanying the conversation, we will have a vinyl listening session of Joe’s discography mainly on Fania and Salsoul together with his own record label, Ghetto Records. The music selected will serve as the soundtrack to this story.

Joe is the living representation of this defining period in history, Mr New York is a living legend from a time and a place that changed music and culture forever.

The audience with Joe Bataan is presented by Bonita and Wax Poetics it will be accompanied by a pop-up T-shirt printing press courtesy of Heated Words, a Fania record sale and DJ sets by Goya Gumbani, Dommy P and Bonita.

Whether you’re a guest staying with us or a member of the public, please submit your email address and download our mobile app to RSVP. If you already have our app, you’ll be directed to this event to book your spot.

Please note this event is first come, first serve.