Meet Liberato Kani, a hip hop artist in Lima, Peru—or as he says, “the Andean Bronx”. At his concerts, a typical call and response you hear is “Quechua es resistencia”: Quechua is resistance. Though Quechua is spoken by nearly ten million people, Peru’s native language is at risk of dying off because of anti-indigenous prejudice. Liberato and other musicians like Renata Flores are here to save it—and restore a country’s pride while they’re at it. Want to talk more about the show? Share your favorite artist from this episode with host Saleem Reshamwala (@Kidethnic) on Twitter.
This episode features music and interviews from Liberato Kani, Renata Flores, Kayfex, and Uchpa’s guitarist and songwriter Marcos Maizel. Listen to more from these artists on TED’s Spotify playlist, “Quechua es Resistencia.”
Pindrop is produced by Jesse Baker and Eric Nuzum of Magnificent Noise for TED. Our production staff includes Elyse Blennerhassett, Oscar Durand, Kim Nederveen Pieterse, Sabrina Farhi, Hiwote Getaneh, Angela Cheng, and Michelle Quint, with the guidance of Roxanne Hai Lash and Colin Helms. Additional recordings by Whitney Henry-Lester and Hernando Suarez. Translation and transcription by Hernando Suárez, Eilis O’Neill, and Oscar Durand. This episode was mixed and sound designed by Kristin Mueller.
