The Latinx Artists, Shows, and Films I Recommend for the Perfect End to Hispanic Heritage Month
By: Nancy Aguilar Sanchez ’22
As a Mexican-American student at USC, here are some of my favorite Latinx artists and media that you should explore in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.
Artists
Ambar Lucid
Dominican-Mexican
21-year-old Ambar Lucid is sure to mesmerize you. She writes her own music inspired by her experiences, most notably her father’s immigration and her separation from her family. Her songs traverse genres from R&B and alternative to indie and pop music.
Songs I’d recommend:
Fantasmas
Omar Apollo
Mexican-American
25-year-old Omar Apollo is taking the world by storm with his R&B, funk, and soul music infused and inspired by Latin music. His style and music is a unique fusion of the cultures he was raised in, and he was recently featured in the Hispanic Heritage special on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert segment, “El Tiny.” In this concert, he opens with a mariachi cover in homage to his Mexican roots and then brings it home with tracks from his new album, Ivory.
Songs I’d recommend:
Evergreen
Bad Life feat. Kali Uchis (Colombian-American)
Boy Pablo
Chilean-Norwegian
Boy Pablo’s family of musicians moved from Chile to Norway. His music is self-proclaimed “nostalgic bedroom pop anthems” that put you in your feels as you listen to his retro 60s sound, nodding to his Chilean roots. He’s a must-listen if you want to get over heartache.
Songs I’d recommend:
hey girl(acoustic)
i hope she loves me back
Juanpalitoschinos
Mexican
Juanpalitoschinos is a duo formed by partners Friné Alejo and JP Guerrero in Mexico City. In their Spotify bio, they say they’re “inspired by Japanese City Pop from the 1980s—they incorporate its joyful essence with the indie music of Latin America.” The romance in their music is palpable, and I highly recommend their songs when you’re thinking of that special someone.
Songs I’d recommend:
Bellavista 130
Shows
The Gordita Chronicles - Claudia Forestieri (Dominican-Italian)
The Gordita Chronicles are a must watch show if you’re into comedies like Modern Family or Fresh Off the Boat. It centers around a Dominican-Republican family that moves to Florida because the father lands a job there. Only life in America is not as easy as they dreamed. They have to lift themselves up by their own bootstraps and work in the uptight American life as opposed to the quiet of their beloved Dominican Republic.
On My Block - Lauren Lungerich, Eddie Gonzalez and Jeremy Haft
On My Block centers around a group of Brown and Black kids as they navigate growing up and life in their Hispanic and Black neighborhood in South Central Los Angeles. It’s a nice mixture of comedy and drama, teaching about real life issues while making you laugh despite the serious situations.
Jane the Virgin - Jennie Snyder Urman [showrunner]
Jane the Virgin is a romantic comedy that re-imagines the soap-opera trope of Latinx countries and infuses it with subversive comedy and self-aware sarcasm. It brings together Latinx and American culture to bring you a loveable romance and hilarious family drama that keeps you engaged.
Los Espookys - Julio Torres (Salvadorian), Fred Armisen (American)
New to HBO this year, Los Espookys [the name making fun of the Spanish accent’s tendency to add an ‘E’ to English words that start with an ‘S’], takes place in Los Angeles. It centers around a horror enthusiast that sets up his own business aiming to scare and thrill clients. It’s a show that highlights a special portion of Latinx-Americans– the emo and the gore-lovers.
Movies
Bajo La Misma Luna, [Under the Same Moon] - Patricia Riggen (Mexican)
This is a drama that pulls your heartstrings. After Carlitos’s grandmother dies, the young boy, makes his way across the border to find his mother in Los Angeles. Making the dangerous journey on his own, he gets help from an undocumented man that he meets in Texas. This man becomes a father figure to him in the short week they spend together. Prepare to fight back tears of laughter and sadness with this one.
Roma - Alfonso Cuaron (Mexican)
Winner of an Academy Award in Best Foreign Language Film, this drama centers around Cleo, an indigenous live-in maid working for an upper-middle class family in Mexico City. Cleo and Sofia, the mother of the family, experience deception from the men in their lives and realize that they have their own unorthodox, dysfunctional, yet loving family in their friendship and love for each other. This causes them to leave their partneres. It’s a great lesson on Mexico’s diversity and cultural variance.
Amores Perros - Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu (Mexican)
This is the directorial debut of Iñárritu, known for The Revenant and Birdman. In this film, Iñarritu creatively intertwines seemingly different stories when a car crash happens, in a bold, intensely emotional and ambitious film. It’s a psychological drama that touches on the themes of loyalty, inequality, and violence. It’s a great piece to learn about Mexico and its cinematic richness.
Real Women Have Curves - Patricia Cardoso (Colombian)
Real Women Have Curves is a coming of age film that centers around a Mexican-American girl who is torn between her dream of becoming a college student and her parents’ dream of having her stay home to take care of her family. It’s a dramedy that captures your heart and sheds light on issues that many teens from immigrant families face.
These are only a few of countless brilliant Latinx works. Remember to support and explore Latinx (and all POC) arts and media year round, not just during Hispanic Heritage month. You can also keep up with Hispanic Heritage events all year long through USC institutions like La Casa and Latinx Student Assembly.
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