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Venezuela still does not have a president. Incumbent Nicolas Maduro says he won the election last month, and has been cracking down on any dissent, but his opponents say they have proof he did not. Venezuelan pop star Danny Ocean backs the opposition, and is using his music to tackle this moment in his country's history. NPR's Isabella Gomez Sarmiento has the story.
ISABELLA GOMEZ SARMIENTO, BYLINE: A few days before the Venezuelan presidential election, one of the country's biggest stars, Danny Ocean, released an EP called "Venequia." The title is a reclamation of the word veneco, that is sometimes used in a derogatory way against Venezuelan migrants.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "POR LA PEQUENA VENECIA")
DANNY OCEAN: (Singing in Spanish).
SARMIENTO: "Venequia" is dedicated to the more than seven million Venezuelans who, like Danny Ocean, have been forced to leave the country. Widespread poverty, a lack of access to health care and political repression have all contributed to what human rights groups are calling one of the biggest displacement crises in the world.
OCEAN: (Speaking Spanish).
SARMIENTO: Danny Ocean says he wants the world to see the pain that the Venezuelan diaspora has endured, and in his EP, he takes aim at the current government for polarizing society and splitting up families, as more and more people flee Venezuela.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "POR LA PEQUENA VENECIA")
OCEAN: (Singing in Spanish).
SARMIENTO: "Just leave, please," says one line. "Let's not fight anymore, please. I'll trade you justice for peace." That lyric has popped up on protest signs around the world, following the July 28 election. President Nicolas Maduro claims he won reelection, despite allegations of fraud. Opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez points to evidence that he beat Maduro by a wide margin. Maduro says he plans to show tallied evidence of his win, but more than two weeks later, he has yet to do so. In the meantime, Venezuelans continue to gather in and out of the country, demanding a transition of power. Maduro says police have arrested more than 2,000 dissidents, but human rights groups say that number is closer to 1,300. Protests have turned deadly. Danny Ocean says he's not politicizing his music.
OCEAN: (Speaking Spanish).
SARMIENTO: He says he sings about Venezuela's reality out of necessity and humanity, but he's leaning into his support for the opposition movement.
MARIA CORINA MACHADO: (Speaking in Spanish).
SARMIENTO: That's opposition leader Maria Corina Machado in a video she posted on Instagram, claiming victory. Machado was barred from running for president after she won the primaries last year. She recently collaborated with Danny Ocean for the song "Escala En Panama."
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ESCALA EN PANAMA")
OCEAN: (Singing in Spanish).
SARMIENTO: The music video shows crowds of people clamoring to get to an airport and onto a plane. At the end, Machado's voice appears.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
MACHADO: (Speaking Spanish).
SARMIENTO: "Welcome to Venezuela," she says - "welcome home." Danny Ocean says he wanted her to be part of this song because he feels she's giving her all to the country's future. Recently, amidst government calls for her arrest, Machado wrote in The Wall Street Journal that she is in hiding, and fears for her life.
OCEAN: (Speaking Spanish).
SARMIENTO: Danny Ocean firmly believes this is not political. He says he's passionate about wanting to be on the right side of history...
OCEAN: (Speaking Spanish).
SARMIENTO: ...And he promises to keep raising his voice until the country recovers. Isabella Gomez Sarmiento, NPR News.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ME REHUSO (2024 ACUSTICO)")
OCEAN: (Singing in Spanish). Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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