Article published in:
The Politics of Sound: Intersections of Music, Discourse and Political CommunicationEdited by Lyndon C.S. Way
[Journal of Language and Politics 18:4] 2019
► pp. 541–559
Paramilitarism and music in Colombia
An analysis of the corridos paracos
Eduar Barbosa Caro | Universidad Del Rosario
Johanna Ramírez Suavita | Universidad Santo Tomás (Colombia)
Colombia has experienced violence at the hands of both guerrillas and paramilitaries fighting
to control territories, drug trafficking, and gain political influence. Though in recent years armed
activities by both groups has subsided, their conflicting ideologies are visible in several contexts in
today’s polarized Colombia. We tend to think about conflict in terms of bullets and people in military
uniforms, but discourses of conflict are also evident in popular culture, such as music. In this paper, we
analyse 19 corridos paracos, videos produced by sympathisers of Right-wing guerrilla groups,
to demonstrate how this is done. Here, we find songs present a messianic portrayal of the paramilitary along
with sexist ideas as the representation of manliness. Moreover, there is an almost total absence of peaceful
actions in the lyrics, and an exaltation of brutality and terrorism. In a political context which cries out
for reconciliation, these do little to this end.
Keywords: paramilitarism, corridos, music, politics, armed conflict, Colombia
Article outline
- 1.Paramilitarism in Colombia
- 2.Music videos, violence and criminal discourses
- 3.Actors and actions
- 4.Method
- 5.Results
- 6.Final thoughts
-
References
Published online: 28 June 2019
https://doi.org/10.1075/jlp.19019.bar
https://doi.org/10.1075/jlp.19019.bar
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Cited by
Cited by 3 other publications
Hynes-Bishop, Luke
Millar, Stephen R.
Millar, Stephen R. & Evropi Chatzipanagiotidou
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