Orishas

The Orishas story seems like one of those alternative universe episodes from the Twilight Zone where everything plays ass backward. Case in point: The Cuban hip-hop trio drops the usual reggaeton booty-shaking format and adopts a politically conscious style that's musically miles away from most of the Latin hip-hop on the market. While Orishas' MC Ruzzo declares, "we want to give a voice to Cuban hip-hop," he also acknowledges that "we grew up listening to the Wu Tang Clan." And the cultural exchange doesn't end there. Unlike most Cubano hip-hoppers, Orishas hail from neither Miami nor Havana , preferring the comparatively peaceful home of France. "Yeah, most Cuban immigrants end up in Miami, but we are actually French-based," Ruzzo says. "I feel it's a good thing because we have a very unique perspective on the Latin hip-hop movement. You see, we want our listeners to dance, but we also would like them to think about the other important things in life. After all, we are all immigrants, and if we don't sing about our struggles, no one else will know about them."