Arts & International Affairs: Vol. 3, No. 2, Summer/Autumn 2018 | Page 73

ARTS & INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
come show of funk for the students. If you look at it from abroad, funk music encapsulates
the images of Brazil. It echoes the global imaginary of favela that movies such as
City of God or Elite Squad have contributed to create. It also echoes the colonial idea
of an exotic and sensual Brazil. Funk is already an export product and funk bands now
appear in all Latin America, in Africa, in Europe, and in the United States. I can provide
an example from Paris: recently a few teenagers were having a party in my building and
they were playing all the carioca funks “classics”. Even if they may not have understood
the lyrics, they seemed to have enjoyed it. A music producer and Youtube portal called
KondZilla hosting funk video had 36 million followers in June 2018, nearly 40 million
followers in September 2018, much more than Beyonce or Rihanna 1 . KondZilla now
ranks as the eighth most subscribed channel on the platform YouTube. To a certain extent
it has come to be the new face of globalized Brazil and to contribute to an exotic
image of it, with the dangerous, happy, and celebrating favela.
But there is more to funk than its commercial success or its ‘aesthetics’ and street style
festivity. In the context of the military intervention happening in Rio de Janeiro and
of political polarization in Brazil, using their global influence, funk artists could play a
decisive role in the political, social, and economical crisis Brazil is crossing. Their lack of
interest in politics shows the impact of the narrative of a generally corrupt political class.
While most MPB artists take position against the far-right, funk artists stayed quiet. It
echoes the idea that classical left/right politics is dead and has not managed to change
the situation some communities experience. It also explains the appeal of authoritarian
solutions through the figure of Jair Bolsonaro who will much likely be elected as Brazil’s
next president. Paradoxically, funk artists will probably be the most affected and the population
they claim to represent criminalized. But even if they do not believe in political
change, they could develop a global industry that will bring opportunities for its creative
youth. For what is commonly referred to as “the periphery” it could provide another
opportunity of inclusion in globalization. It could also be a tool of social change making
some of the communities funk says it represents more hearable inside and outside Brazil.
Corentin Cohen researches on culture and violence in Brazil and West Africa.
Over the past years he has done ethnographic works on the role of pictures
and videos of contemporary conflicts. Some of his latest researches focused on
music and its relation with organized crime in Brazil.
1 See https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCff DXn7ycAzwL2LDlbyWOTw
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