As a band, Afrobeta knows exactly what it is.
The duo of Tony Laurencio and Cuci Amador — the founders of Afrobeta — embody a Miami sound.
You can hear it. They’re EDM. They’re bass. They’re deconstructed salsa with dynamic vocals. Afrobeta found their voice as artists over nearly two decades, playing huge venues around the world like Ultra and Burning Man.
But as kids born in America to Cuban exiles, they never knew exactly who they were. Were they Cuban? American? Cuban-American?
They finally confronted that question when they were invited to play a concert... in Cuba. Their answers are in a one-hour documentary called Birthright. It recently aired on PBS and is streaming online. And now it’s nominated for a regional Emmy award.
READ MORE: Documentaries at Miami Film Festival delve into Cuba's voices heard through music
The couple accepts an invitation to play alongside Cuban musicians in Havana. The decision to perform in Cuba did not come without some trepidation and it deeply affected their family.
"We felt like we needed to tread lightly out of respect for what our parents actually struggled and went through, which became this deep trauma placed inside their hearts. That guides every decision they make. It's a big part of who they are."
On the island, they look for traces of the homeland their parents were forced to leave behind. They also discover a culture and a musical vibe that reminds them of home, but which is also starkly different. They confront an underground music scene that struggles with censorship. And they see how that affects musicians trying to shape their own sounds, their voices.
And people from across the U.S. resonated with their journey. Amador and Laurencio said they received emails from people who also shared similar struggles as them.
"They just really connected with what the film had to say about identity. And that's been really rewarding because you kind of grow up in this little bubble here in Miami and you think that your experience is singular and it's not at all," Amador said. "It's been nice to feel like the film could say something and for people to kind of feel identified with it."
On the Nov. 1 episode of Sundial, they join us to talk about this trip and what answers it brought them about their identity — and their music.
On Sundial’s previous episode, we spoke with Roberto Carlos Cruz Garcia. He is the author behind Sweet Boy: The Unintentional Offender.
Listen to Sundial Monday through Thursday on WLRN, 91.3 FM, live at 1 p.m., rebroadcast at 8 p.m. Missed a show? Find every episode of Sundial on your favorite podcast app, such as Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify.
