About this Artist
One of the most respected MCs in any language, ANA TIJOUX is burning up the charts with her brand new record La Bala (the bullet), the follow up to her Grammy-nominated album, 1977.
Born in France—where her parents were exiled during the military dictatorship in their native Chile—Tijoux became a household name in Chile with her first band, Makiza, as well as voicing the main character in the popular animated series Los Pulentos. After going solo, she quickly gained fame throughout Latin America with a string of hits including the smash “Eres Para Mi” with Julieta Venegas.
But the world really began to take notice when she dropped 1977, an album full of classic beats and her signature flow that harkened back to the 90s and the golden age of intellectual hiphop. International accolades soon followed, with praise from mainstream press around the globe, as well as tastemakers like Thom Yorke, and the album ended up at the top of the “Best-of” lists of Amazon, Billboard, and iTunes, amongst others.
Ana followed her breakout album with La Bala, a hard-hitting, no-holes-barred response to various political changes in her native Chile. The emblematic theme song “Shock” (based partially on Naomi Klein’s book The Shock Doctrine) helped to consolidate what was a months long student movement protest decrying conditions of the local public schools. Its video—showing the schools which had been taken over by the students, the violent street protests and police reactions, the young men and women who were involved in hunger strikes, and the multitude of supporters who stood by the students—was shared millions of times in Chile and beyond, showing to the world scenes that were banned or ignored by most media.
The album was a continuation in spirit from this global activist and MC, while taking her signature sound to a new level, dropping many of the producer driven beats and going with lush orchestral arrangements and a more organic, live band sound. Collaborations with the Oscar and Grammy winner Jorge Drexler, as well as Cuba’s hiphop stars Los Aldeanos, are just some of the highlights of the album. And once again the industry took note of what is truly the only Latin artist working these sounds, with her first Latin Grammy nomination in addition to another Grammy nod.
In April of 2014, Ana Tijoux will release her highly-anticipated 3rd album for Nacional Records, entitled Vengo. Continuing in the vein that she has come to define, she once again mixes a classic hiphop sound with lush arrangements and biting lyrics, and this time adds a new layer as she for the first time explores more Latin America and folkloric sounds, embodying a whole continent and truly becoming the spokesperson for the next generation of Latinos.
In concert, Tijoux now takes the stage with her full band to flesh out the intricate arrangements of the new album. Her shows are a whirlwind trip through hip-hop, jazz, and funk, spiced up folkloric Latin rhythms, a bit of politics, and her great sense of humor that has made audiences around the globe fall in love with her