Latina Power

“You just saw four Latinas from London[’s] dreams come true,” Desta French shouts to the sold-out crowd at The Jazz Cafe’s Latinas of London event. Joined by Sophie Castillo, JSCA and Milena Sanchez, they had just finished singing a medley of Selena classics including ‘Como la Flor’ and ‘Amor Prohibido’, to which the audience went wild, singing along and cheering in turn.

During each number, each impeccably outfitted woman took a turn with the mic to solo part of the song, with the others shoring her up, at one point literally, as French knelt on the floor and pointed up at Castillo while she was singing.

This moment encompassed the whole point of the event: Latinas supporting Latinas, a theme evident throughout as each woman’s set blended seamlessly into the next, placing no one above the other on the billing and giving the night the feel of an endless celebration.

And these kinds of events are sorely needed. While women are making waves in Latin genres in general, according to French there’s still work that needs to be done when it comes to comparing Latin female artists against each other. She feels this is particularly true in London, as there are so few females pushing the London-Latino sound, which has been finding its feet in recent years, that the general feeling is there’s only room for one woman at the top.

Desta French, London’s Jazz Cafe, April 20, 2024

French, a London-based singer with Colombian-Italian parents, was the first UK Latin artist to be supported on BBC Radio with an all-Spanish language song in 2020. A front-runner in the Latin-London scene for a while now, she was perfectly placed to curate a night which combatted this feeling of competition. Not only were all the performers female, but the entire team was. French’s aim was to cut out the middleman (“who is always literally a man,” she says) to ensure that these women were represented in the most authentic way possible.

And it was a success. “I’m not going to lie, I’m down for all-female events forever,” says JSCA. “The vibe is just immaculate. There was no ego involved, it really felt like a sisterhood.”

This celebration was also an incredible showcase, not just of women in the Latin genre in London, but of the breadth of what that ‘Latin’ genre is. Each woman brought a new feel, from French whose fast-paced vocals belied her London roots, to JSCA’s softer numbers inspired by Latin folk music.

According to JSCA, it is this diversification which is also making the women in London’s Latin scene stand out. “Not to shade on the guys, but I’m tired of seeing ski-masked hype men in cars with hot girls around them.” She explains that, due to the thin line between empowerment and over-sexualisation that Latinas are forced to walk, they’re thinking a lot more actively about how they’re being perceived. “This is true sonically also,” she explains. “We’re all taking inspiration from different aspects of Latin music and turning it into something new. As a community, we’re digging a little deeper into what Latin music means and that’s making people create much better art.”

And with these types of events occurring at iconic spaces like The Jazz Cafe, there’s hope that this exploration and platforming will continue. As French says: “I know there were people in the crowd that felt inspired and moved by the moment that was taking place, and that’s all I can ask for, it’s what makes all the work worth it.”