Inspirational and impactful
Lido Pimienta is a Colombian born Canadian singer, songwriter and musician. While she’s worked in music for many years, she gained some popularity in 2007 when her album, La Papessa, won the Polaris Music Prize which is a Canadian organization that honors creative and diverse music. Pimienta’s music varies in sound as she takes inspiration and influence from her Afro-Latin roots and infuses it with typical synth-pop styles, making her music quite different. Pimienta has recently released her third album, Miss Colombia, which continues to showcase her talent and special take on pop.
Miss Colombia opens on a softer note with track “Para Transcibir (Sol)” which has few lyrics, but many beautiful vocal ad-libs that give the song an almost choir-like feel. One of the funkier sounding tracks is “No Pude” which blends some electronic pop beats with Pimienta’s typical sound.
“Te Quería” is a song that perfectly encapsulates Pimienta’s sound with a sweet-sounding Latin pop melody set to a heavy African drum-beat. The lyrics, as all the lyrics on the album, are in Spanish and explain the emotions of caring and loving someone who just takes advantage of you and doesn’t feel the same way. We specifically hear that sentiment in the verse: “Lo que tú quisiste lo robaste/ Llegaste, pero de sorpresa/ Déjame, nunca me quisiste/Aléjate, me das pena ajena.”
Even more Afro-latino influence is heard on “Pelo Cucu” with more drum-centric beats and a message in the lyrics about the inherent colorism still prominent in the Latino community. Pimienta shows off her pride for her background and “ethnic” hair with lyrics like, “Solita cargo mi cruz/ Por tener pelo cucú/ Las puertas se me cierran/ No me vuelvas a fregar.”
One of the catchier tracks is “Resisto y Ya” that sounds slightly more upbeat than the rest and has a memorable, repetitive chorus. The song sounds more akin to the trendy Latin pop that’s been reaching mainstream success as of late. However, Pimienta’s music tends to be on the gentler, soft side.
Music with impact and political messages is hard to come by, particularly in pop and Latin music. Pimienta manages to stand out from the crowd with her unique, no holds barred approach to music with her honest, heartfelt lyrics paired with one-of-a-kind Afro-Colombian beats.
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