Out To Hit the Streets
By Ana Lucia Ralda. July 3, 2021.
On Friday, May 28, San Francisco was celebrating the reopening weekend after a long year of lockdown. In the Mission District, Valencia Street was only open to pedestrians during the weekend — it was a community project that started during the pandemic. This Friday night it was especially busy. The Mission was bustling with energy once again. In the corner of 17 and Valencia, local band Calmao Music set up to perform. It was a night to remember.
“There was a point where the street was practically blocked, there were so many people, it was incredible. There was an energy that I will never forget.” says Iván Rondón, the lead vocalist and founder of the band. It was the first time they had played together while. They had been waiting months for this day, and this was surpassing their expectations. From one side of Valencia to the other, masked dancers filled the street moving to Calmao’s beat.
Calmao is a nine piece latin fusion band that formed early 2019 in the Bay Area. Most of the band members are from Cuba and Colombia, but there are a couple locals that bring in the funky, bluesy, hip-hop fusion to their sound. It wasn’t the first time the band was hitting the streets to perform, they already knew how it goes. In fact, it was playing in the streets that many of them met.
“When I first came to San Francisco I worked as a janitor at an office building,” says Mario Cruz, the saxophonist of the band who is better known as Mayombe. “I would start at 11pm and finish at 4am. Then I would go home, sleep until noon and start rehearsing the saxophone. Every Saturday I would go out to play. That’s how I met Iván — in the street in Berkeley, playing music.” Since the beginning, Calmao played in the streets as a side hustle. For them, as for many other musicians and artists, live performances being prohibited during the pandemic represented a big economic challenge.
In the Bay Area, the rising cost of living makes it extremely hard for artist of any kind to live off their craft, especially those who come from minority backgrounds. Many see the streets as a possibility for making money doing what they love, without costs. This means that they can dedicate more time to making art for a living. The pandemic had taken that possibility away and now it was back.
“We decided that we wanted to play no matter what,” says Rondón. “We said: okay, we’re all vaccinated, and we want to go and play. We have all the equipment we need to go and crash the streets. And that’s what we did.” Since that first street performance six weeks ago, Calmao has played every weekend in Valencia, sometimes twice. Every time, without fail, the street fills up with masked dancers.
“There are now bigger opportunities that have opened up because of the street shows,” Rondón said. “We’ve been invited to play at the UC Theatre opening for Ilé on October 17. There is also a chance to play with our sister band, Barrio Manouche, on August 15. They are a gypsy-flamenco-jazz band….we are very close friends. Panitas, así del corazón (friends from the heart).”
For dancing lovers, the concerts that Calmao has coming up are not to be missed. Ilé is an acclaimed Puerto Rican singer and composer. Before embarking on her solo career a few years back, she was the lead female vocalist for the Grammy winning Puerto Rican urban band Calle 13.
Barrio Manouche too is an established and highly regarded alternative jazz band in the Bay Area, known for their innovative sounds and improvisational method. According to Rondón, sharing the stage with artists like these gives Calmao the exposure they need for the release of their first album coming in 2022, as well as to immerse themselves in the Bay Area music scene.
For the members of Calmao, as well as for many local artists, performers and musicians, this reopening is an opportunity for a breakthrough. “What you see is people that clearly have been isolated and they are finally exploring contact with other people again, finally listening to some live music,” Rondón says. “People want to dance. People want music. This is the moment to push.”
