Music has always been at the heart of Hispanic culture, coming from both the musical traditions of the Spanish and the native civilizations of Central and Southern America. Music from the Latin world has a characteristic vibrance that is unmatched by nearly every other culture. Hip hop is no different, and many Latinx rappers have made their names and left their marks on the scene, from Fat Joe, Kid Frost, Kap G, Daddy Yankee, and Angie Martinez. The similarity of experience of the black and Hispanic peoples has left both with a kinship unfound in many others. Nothing brings people together like struggle, and given that blacks and Hispanics have lived in the same communities under the same conditions for generations, it is no surprise that musical inspiration and crossover is plentiful.
One area that lacks representation however is the SoundCloud trap scene. Despite an obvious demand for the characteristic vaporwave, sadboy trap music that defines the platform, with Spanish speaking YouTube channels like patifelg, PILLS AND KNIVES, and Neephesto raking in ten of thousands of subscribers and millions of views on artists like Lil Bo Weep, Lil Peep, and Night Lovell. Very few Spanish speaking artists have arose that truly capture the essence of the underground trap wave, until now.
Meet 712, the Spanish speaking rapper that perfectly encapsulates the feeling and essence of the SoundCloud/vaporwave aesthetic. Hailing from Spain, the mysterious artist has been lurking around the depths of YouTube for a couple years now, releasing his first single “GENJUTSU 幻術” back in March of 2015 on his YouTube channel and following it up with “BLACK AUDI アウディ黒” and dropping his debut mixtape in collaboration with fellow artist Future Otaku in August of the same year. His music features production from well known talent such as Cash Money AP to lesser known production from artists such as HM2 and DEADALIVE, each one crafting beats for him to effortlessly flow over in Spanish. His music shows heavy inspiration from Asian and Japanese traditional music yet remixes the melodies over the ever icon trap sound, paying homage to a multitude of cultures.
Having his music first featured on the popular underground music channel HAUNTXR first brought him exposure in America. His music videos, all shot by cinematographer Jesus Varela, showcase gorgeous sweeping landscapes of deserts, waterfalls, mountains and rivers all the while having 712 calmly holding his iconic katana with his facemask obscuring the identity of the young rapper.
It can be hard to say who will blow up from underground fame to reach superstar status, but with the emergence of international talent such as Keith Ape, Kohhh, Higher Brothers, and Rich Brian all coming from Asia, more light has been shone on rappers from around the world. Their musical success continues to express to us that trap music is bigger than what most of us realize, and is a market that is still largely untapped. If 712 continues on his musical path, he might just be the next big internet rapper emerging from the Latin world. Check out his complete discography down below.