Ana Tijoux

Tijoux developed an interest for hip-hop at the early age of 11 when she was visiting Chile and met Consuelo Vergara, who taught her how to rap. Tijoux would later move from France to Chile after the return of civil power in 1993. While in Chile Tijoux became inspired by the local rap group Makul and soon formed her own hip-hop group Los Gemelos. In 1997 after her participation in Los Gemelos, Tijoux was involved in a group called Los Tetas and would later form the group Makiza.

Makiza began releasing albums in 1997 and by 1999 the group’s album “Aerolineas Makiza” put the group at the top of the Latin American hip-hop market. The group received comparisons to New York hip-hop groups like Native Tongues. The band took breaks throughout the 2000s in order for members to work on other projects and by 2006 Makiza had disbanded.

During Tijoux’s time away from Makiza she returned to France and recorded her first solo song “Santiago Penando Estas”. In 2006 Tijoux released her first single as a solo artist called “Yo no fue” and also began collaborating with the singer/songwriter Julieta Venegas. Tijoux released her debut album “Kaos” in 2007, which contained the single “Despabilate”. The album featured a heavy Latin vibe as well as elements of jazz pop. The album was also successful, achieving Tijoux recognition in the Latino MTV Music Awards.

In 2010 Tijoux released her second solo album “1977”, which is a reference to the year she was born. The album showed Tijoux returning to her hip-hop roots and is considered a tribute album to the golden age of hip-hop. The lyrics in the album are highly autobiographical and the music exhibits a raw, sincere sound. The album was well received critically and received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Latin Rock/Alternative Album. The album also contained the single “1977”, which has constantly been used in the media by programs like “Breaking Bad”. The single also gained praise by Thom Yorke from Radiohead, who called it one of his favorite songs of the year.

Tijoux’s success as a solo artist continued to flourish in 2011 when she released her album “La Bala”, which received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Urban Music Album. In 2014 Tijoux released her fourth studio album “Vengo”. The album followed in Tijoux’s traditional hip-hop sound. Instead of using samples in her music like most hip-hop artists do, she solely used live instrumentation in the studio to give her music a more organic sound. The instrumentation on the album heavily featured traditional South American instruments, which added a jazz and folk style to the album. The album contained the hit single “Vengo” and did well commercially, reaching the No. 15 position on the Billboard’s US Top Latin Albums chart.

Tijoux has collaborated with many notable musicians over her career. Some of the artists she has worked with include Control Machete, Bajofondo Tango Club, and Will Holland. She has also embarked on several headlining tours that have taken her all over the world and has participated in many prestigious festivals such as South by Southwest.