Proibidão, which literally translates to "strongly prohibited", is a subgenre of funk carioca music originating from the

favela Favela () is an umbrella name for several types of working-class neighborhoods in Brazil. The term was first used in the Providência neighborhood in the center of Rio de Janeiro in the late 19th century, which was built by soldiers who had ...

s of

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

where it began in the early 1990s as a parallel phenomenon to the growth of drug gangs in the many slums of the city. The drug gangs sponsored DJs and baile funks in the favelas they controlled to spread respect and love for their gang as well as hate to the other gangs. The music that resulted is proibidão. Proibidão is characterized as a raw mix of live funk vocals and

Miami bass Miami bass (booty music or booty bass) is a subgenre of hip hop music that became popular in the 1980s and 1990s. The use of drums from the Roland TR-808, sustained kick drum, heavy bass, raised dance tempos, and frequently sexually explicit l ...

structures. The explicit lyrics typically promote the gang the MC is affiliated with, crime, drug use, and violence. Like gang members, MCs who speak ill Each drug gang sponsors their own baile funk at their own favela(s), which results in a unique sound that distinguishes each MC, and by extension, each gang. The highly territorial nature of the gangs has made proibidão an extremely localized form of funk in Rio de Janeiro. Moreover, in Brazil, it is against the law to promote crime in song lyrics which makes most proibidão songs illegal to perform or broadcast through radio (hence the name "proibidão"). These two factors seldom allow proibidão to be heard beyond the live performances in favela. One particularly powerful gang, the

Comando Vermelho Comando Vermelho (, ''Red Command'' or ''Red Commando''), also known as C.V. is a Brazilian criminal organization engaged primarily in drug trafficking, arms trafficking, protection racketeering, kidnappings-for-ransom, armored truck hijacking ...

(

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

for ''Red Command'') has given poor youths free girls, drinks, and entertainment at their dances, hoping to engrain a positive image of drug-dealing and gang membership to Rio youths. In Red Command released CDs, their gang sign, a CV, sits across the label, representing the community and the gang instead of the artists. The Red Command's influence was best shown in 1990, when William Santos de Souza and Duda, the "Kings of Rio rap" at the time, released a track entitled, "Rap do Borel" shouting out to a gang-controlled favela in Rio. No gang better represents Proibidão than the Commando Vermelho. Other gangs also have renowned songs. For example, the gang

Amigos dos Amigos Amigos dos Amigos (ADA, ''Friends of Friends'') is a criminal organization that operates in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro. It was started up in 1998 when a member of Comando Vermelho was expelled from the organization for ordering the murd ...

(

for ‘’Friends of Friends’’) is known for "A.D.A do Chuck", featuring MC Cruel. Another Funk emcee, MC Colibri, was very successful with erotic funk, but he has also already made music for the

Terceiro Comando Puro Terceiro Comando Puro is a Brazilian criminal organization in Rio de Janeiro. They split from the Terceiro Comando Terceiro Comando (Portuguese for ''Third Command'') is a Brazilian criminal organization engaged in drug trafficking in Rio de J ...

. Proibidão has some very important implications for the acquisition of social space in Rio. For the gangs and drug lords, it represents a form of musical expression that corresponds to territorial dominance. In effect, when these gangs host their particular bailes, they assert their authority over rival gangs and state law enforcement. Since Proibidão elicits the criminal lifestyle and habitual drug use which characterize its performers, police naturally attempt to stop the bailes and the correlative spread of Proibidão. Thus, when myriad bailes do subsist each week, despite the efforts of state programs like D.R.E (Divisão de Repressão à Entorpecentes or Division of the Repression Against Drugs)Behague, Gerard. "Rap, Reggae, Rock, or Samba: The Local and the Global in Brazilian Popular Music (1985-95)." Latin American Music Review 27, no. 1 (Spring/Summer 2006): 88. to stop them, it is a palpable win for the gangs. In addition to just hosting these bailes, the gangs recruit urban youth and advertise their daily struggle, which makes the favela bailes a crucial social space in which gangs can conduct business.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Proibidao Brazilian styles of music Funk carioca genres