Listen to the single, “Sin Excusas,” from Chico Trujillo’s 2008 album, Plato Único Bailable. The enormously popular music group, Chico Trujillo, branched off from the Chilean ska-punk group, Lofloripondio, creating a unique genre of Cumbia music known as “Nueva Cumbia Chilena.”

The Colombian Pacific coast is a forgotten paradise. Its habitants complain about the lack of attention from the rest of the country, but it might be this bit of isolation that helps them maintain their rich culture. ChocQuibTown comes from the world’s rainiest lowland, and it is there that they learned to mix African drums and Latin beats with hip-hop and funk, creating a totally new sound that’s firmly rooted in their tradition.

ChocQuibTown is the most important Colombian hip-hop band of the moment and they have been pretty busy exporting their music around the world. From Argentina to Texas, people are dancing to their rhythms. But even as the band travel, ChocQuibTown hasn’t forgotten where they all come from. On the contrary, they are inspired by their Colombian roots.

Stop thief! A stranger with a foreign accent and talk of riches has come in and taken all the native gold, leaving poverty in his wake. Colombia’s talented ChocQuibTown manage to sing about serious geopolitical exploitation in a way that’s fun to listen to (and danceable, too).

ChocQuibTown is a name everyday more common on Colombian airwaves and dance floors. Their mix of traditional rhythms from el Pacífico with hip-hop elements and a heavy dose of “funky” is earning them a place on the playlists of both young listeners as well as a more traditional audience. In this Yabla-exclusive interview, we had the chance to chat with the band about where, exactly, it’s all at.

Christhian presents us with his rendition of "Temblando" by "Hombres G."

Cienfue is a charismatic Panamanian singer. He manages to have a rock star attitude and still be a nice guy. We know: we had a chance to meet him. Make sure to visit his webpage.

There’s a lot to love about Panama’s Cienfue. Take this great song and its even better video. It makes you want to walk right into the ocean to play guitar underwater on a sunny day, doesn’t it?

Cienfue is an alternative folk guitarist and singer who mixes Panama's peculiar folklore with alternative rock and social lyrical content. Here is the official video of "La décima tercera", a song that is part of his 2010 album La calma y la tormenta (The Calm and the Storm).

The Puerto Rican rockers Circo never do explain what the accidente was exactly, but it doesn’t make this music video any less entertaining to hear. Lead singer Fofé (aka José Luis Abreu, formerly of El Manjar de los Dioses) sounds at times like a latin Robert Smith of the Cure. But maybe it’s the other way around, since Smith is said to be a fan....

How hard is your cáscara? Here Circo’s José Luis “Fofé” Abreu sings about a certain someone with the power to crack his. Note that cáscara is mostly used for eggs and nuts, whereas the shell of a turtle would be caparazón and that of a snail would be concha.

Have you ever had una sospecha (a suspicion)? Puerto Rico’s Circo explores restless uncertainty and mines a treasure chest of carnivalesque imagery from the world of Santeria, that mix of African deity worship and Catholicism that sprouted after African slaves arrived on the shores of the new world.

Can you tomar en serio a group called Circo? This Puerto Rican rock band gives us advice about how to leave behind bad moments at the speed of light. But should we trust them? What if they are payaseando?

We all know how magical a circus ring can be: crazy clowns, fearless acrobats, smart animals and all kind of colorful and dreamlike acts. But here, at the Circo Infantil de Nicaragua the real magic happens backstage, where we learn that a good show takes a lot of dedication, hard work and passion.

Meet Francisco Javier, a passionate apprentice at the Circo Infantil Americano, and learn that a circus is a serious business, where hard work is always required. But the long hours of rehearsal are rewarded with family-like treatment and access to one of the most magical places on earth.