Another night out last night. This time to see what I consider the greatest appearance in Latin Music in recent history: Tego Calderón, "El Abayarde". It was a free show but it cost me a trip to a far corner in the west Bronx, where there are no signs of hipsters and one realizes, once again, how huge NYC is.
It also cost me a long wait inside a Latin nightclub. For about three hours everything was about legs, tits, bad djing, sexual harassment, ridiculous show off and many security concerns. I have never seen such a huge army of bouncers. They were probably 10 to 15 including the leader, the only one wearing white instead of black. They took my pen away by the entrance, but I managed to get another one inside. I never used it because I took notes in the Blackberry. Still, the point was to break their security and come back home with a pen.
One measure against cocaine sniffers that impressed me was the hole by the toilets doors enabling bouncers to see those moves. However, there were drugs, which means I wasn't the only one infringing the rules. There was weed smoke during Tego's performance.
Tego showed up before 3 am. He wore white and had his iconic beret on (like I was expecting because I wore mine to give him some homage). He just sang four songs. It was more a showcase than a concert. He finished when I was just ready for more. He is so real! He is fun and he is right when he claims his music is hip-hop. The reggaetón Dem Bow is a well-used accessory here.
It was pouring outside when I left. I was tired and wished to be tired for dancing Tego all night long. Whatever happened, it was part of the journalistic adventure.
