Bleep

MC Bin Laden, aka 23 year old Jefferson Christian dos Santos Lima, is the reigning ruler of São Paulo’s Baile Funk scene. Born in the impoverished Vila Progresso neighborhood of easternmost São Paulo, Jefferson began rapping as a teenager, mostly on youtube. His life changed in 2014 when he released “Bin Laden Não Morreu,” a break- out track heard throughout the fluxo street parties of Bra- zil’s favelas. MC Bin Laden performs Funk Proibidão, a contemporary version of the reigning archetypal sound of the favelas, Funk Carioca. While early incarnations of the Funk Carioca sound were rooted in Miami Bass, Proibidão is a striking and skeletal reduction. Beats composed of beatboxed vocal samples, and industrial sounds that bang and rattle alongside lyrics more concerned with describing the harsh realities of Brazil’s favelas than with booty-shaking. MC Bin Laden’s breakout single, “Bololo Haha,” distilled the palate even further, utilizing a bombastic mix of mo- torcycle revs, barking dogs, and cocking artillery sounds. The aggressive result, coupled with a dynamic video showcasing MC Bin Laden’s brash style, won him notori- ety in the streets of São Paulo, in addition to the support of international djs and producers drawn to his progres- sive and deconstructed club music. His vocals, which fa- vor percussive phonetic delivery to complex lyricism are sometimes funny, sometimes grim, and always convey the often complex and contradictory truths of life in favel