Central American influence at the Calle Ocho Music Festival rises with immigration
An intense desire to reconnect with her Costa Rican roots sprang up about three years ago in Yunissa Campos. The 45-year-old woman had been living in Miami for more than a decade and despite seeing a lot of Latin American culture around her, she felt detached from her own.
After consulting with acquaintances, friends and friends of friends, she heard about a folk dance group she could join. Although she had never danced in the 25 years she lived in Costa Rica, she decided to try it.
Now Campos is in love with her hobby and eager to share it with as many people as possible. This Sunday, her group of almost 20 members — Grupo Folklórico Costa Rica Mia — will perform for the first time ever at the annual Calle Ocho Music Festival, which shuts down 15 blocks from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in Little Havana, sets up 10 stages and attracts more than a million spectators.
The group is made up of dancers dressed in red, blue and white long skirts, to represent their flag, and wearing flowers in their hair. Other participants who hold dolls called “mascarados” in the air are also a part of it.
“It’s very exciting,” said Campos, who was born in the province of Alajuela but grew up in San José. “Representing my country is a big burden on my back, but I do it with incredible pride.”
The Grupo Folklórico Costa Rica Mia is just one of the dozens of acts who will perform on the Central American stage this year. The stage was added to the festival only three years ago, despite the fact that the event has been held in Miami since 1978. But it’s been rapidly expanding since, clear evidence of the growing number of Central American immigrants in South Florida.
The festival has always taken place in March and has always been organized by the Kiwanis Club of Little Havana. It started as a street party to expose Cuban culture, but, little by little, the event has included more nationalities.
Although it’s called the Central American stage, it will include not only performers from Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama but from across the Americas. This year it will feature Honduran rapper Aaron Bodden, known as the “Baby Boy”; Myrena Barrios, an American actress; and Los Noreños de Mazatlan, a band from Mexico.
“Our real intention is for the world to get to know Central America and identify with its culture,” said Leobaldo Rueda, one of the organizers of the stage and the president of an organization called CICAMEX, for its acronym in Spanish meaning Integrated Community of Central America and Mexico. “We want those in Miami to realize that we Central Americans are here and that we contribute to the political and economic development, and to the artistic one.”
Since Campos joined her folkloric group, she’s been feeling closer than ever to Costa Rica. She’s also started educating the Miami community about her land.
Along with its show, the folkloric group will have three stands, where members will sell souvenirs and traditional Costa Rican food, including fried tacos with tomato sauce and mayonnaise, and gallo pinto.
“The important thing is for people to educate themselves about who we are, to ask and show interest. That’s the most interesting part of the festival,“ Campos said.
Marcos Ayala, a member of the musical group Hermanos Ayala, formed by three brothers — 52-year-old Rigoberto, 51-year-old Héctor, 49-year-old Marcos — agrees with Campos.
He hopes the platform will publicize Central American talent. He and his brothers perform in concerts across the country regularly and send the money they make back to Olancho, the Honduran state they’re from, to build a football stadium there.
They arrived in Florida in 1998, and although they had attended the Calle Ocho Music Festival countless times, they never have participated as artists until this year.
Marcos said he believes that like him, many Central Americans are now getting more involved in the community with the arrival of more immigrants.
“More Central American go to the festival now. I’ve seen more there and in the city in general,” said Marcos Ayala.
This makes the brothers happy, said Marcos. He said they are anxious to sing two of their original songs: “Vino de Coyol,” a punta (a dance where people move their hips, elevated on their toes) about the traditional Honduran alcoholic drink, and “La Semilla” or “The Seed,” a merengue about eating mangoes.
Another of the artists who will be present on the Central American stage Sunday is José Neftalí Granados, who goes by his stage name, “Necflig.”
He is a 35-year-old Salvadoran, native of San Miguel, who has been singing and composing music of all genres professionally for three years. He arrived in Miami in 2000 and has since recorded 18 songs.
This year will mark the first time the singer and songwriter will participate at the festival. He said he feels that the Central American community is very divided in Miami, so he hopes that the stage will help it come together.
“I hope to see many people from my country out there,” Granados said.
This story was originally published March 9, 2019 at 7:52 PM with the headline "Central American influence at the Calle Ocho Music Festival rises with immigration."
