In the latest episode of “The De Los Podcast,” Cypress Hill MC Sen Dog spoke with hosts Fidel Martinez and Suzy Exposito about growing up in L.A. as a Black Latino, taking up space in hip-hop and his upcoming documentary about his Cuban heritage titled “Mi Familia: Sen Dog and the American Dream.”
Proudly donning the label of refugee, Sen Dog was born in the Cuban city of Pinar del Río. His family eventually relocated to the L.A. area in his youth, settling in South Gate. Growing up in a predominantly Black and Latino neighborhood, the Grammy-nominated rapper found himself in a unique social position as a member of both communities.
“Being a Black Latino at that time was way different because some of the Black kids didn’t want to talk to us because we didn’t know English,” Sen Dog said. “And some of the Mexican kids would come up to us and say stuff in Mexican-style Spanish and we didn’t understand that … so there was a lot of confusion going on.”
But his in-between status and the richness of the culture that surrounded him growing up in the ‘70s and ‘80s helped to inform his musical taste. His musically inclined family had introduced him to Cuban megastars like Celia Cruz and Tito Puente, television commercials exposed him to artists like Elvis Presley, and programs like “American Bandstand” and “Soul Train” helped familiarize him with pop music plus soul, funk and R&B. He was then introduced to rock and metal music by his high school classmate, fellow Cuban and future Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo.
“Depending on what crowd I hung out with, that [dictated] what we were listening to that day,” he said. “If I hung out with the cholos, we’re playing oldies. If I hung out with the brothers, funk music was on. If I’m with the football players and the skaters, we’re listening to punk rock or heavy metal.”
Sen Dog also touched on what it was like being Latino in the ‘80s and ‘90s hip-hop scene.
“There was a little bit of a period where people had to guess who we are or what we were,” he said. “But I don’t think it ever held us back from anything because first and foremost we wanted to be a good hip-hop group like the guys we were influenced by. … We just went about our business, not realizing race had anything to do with it, but it really did.”
The “Insane in the Brain” artist capped off the conversation by touching on his latest project, a documentary that he’s been working on titled “Mi Familia: Sen Dog and the American Dream,” which delves into the rapper’s Cuban heritage. The film follows Sen Dog and his brother Mellow Man Ace as they travel between L.A. and their hometown in Cuba.
“It tells the story of great musicians that our family has in Cuba and around the world,” Sen Dog said. “Being an immigrant … you have to be proud enough to tell your story. You’re going to uplift someone or open somebody’s mind up with your own story. I never thought I had a story to tell because I never stopped to think about it.”
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