Internationally recognized as Krudas Cubensi
Odaymar & Oli are Cuban Queer Nonbinary Artivists Feminist Hip-Hop Pioneers, Worker class Independent Musicians, Justice Fighters standing for black people, trans people, woman, queers, inmigrants, intersectional beings. They twist powerful crispy flow, fierce feminist rebel lyrics & afro-cuban sounds to uplift a message that makes their delivery, irresistible.
In the cuban nineties they developed into gender, sexuality justice warriors, advocates against racism and created Krudas Cubensi with Wanda Cuesta (Odaymar’ s sister) in Havana in 1999.
Odaymar and Oli became a powerful duo since 2004 and escaping censorship and looking for a better future, they decided to leave Cuba in 2006 and relocated to Austin Texas to pursue their dreams and internationalize their career. These fat, feminist, queer, trans non-binary, black & brown vegan immigrants are aware that most of these intersections are underrated in the music industry. Krudxs Cubensi exist to represent and empower not only themselves, but marginalized people like them. They have been performing, recording, giving talks, workshops, educating and touring nationally, globally and now during covid times, virtually, all independently and under self management. They bring a forceful daring mix to the world. Actually and from august 2021 they have been very honored to be part of the Abolition Democracy Program in the Black Studies Collaboratory at UC Berkeley.
Krudxs Cubensi Cuba/ USA
Odaymar Cuesta (Havana, Cuba 1973) studied Fine Arts at the Higher Pedagogical Institute in Havana Oli Prendes (Guantanamo, Cuba 1971) studied at the National School of Music (1986- 1990) and at the Higher Institute of Art in Havana Cuba (1990- 1996)
From 1999 until the present they have been working uninterruptedly offering art and knowledge as performers, composers, artivists and educators with over two hundred original songs, more than five hundred performances and more than two hundred workshops and talks in more than one hundred and fifty Schools, Colleges, Universities and Cultural Centers, like Columbia University, UMASS, Wake Forest University, Salem College, Davidson College, University of California-Santa Cruz, New York University, University of Texas Austin, University of Texas San Antonio, Kansas University, University of New Mexico, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign, Lehigh University, University of Mexico and many more.
They have self organized more than twenty national and international tours, produced more than eight independent albums, participated in more than thirty collaborations and compilations, produced, directed and starred in more than thirty music and art videos, sat for more than one hundred and fifty interviews, and collaborated with more than three hundred artists and activists on projects around the world. We have been a prestigious Astraea Foundation Global Arts Fund grantee (2017), awarded the Best Hip Hop Video at the Lucas Video Awards in Havana, Cuba (2016), and Artists-in-Residence at allgo, one of Texas’s oldest statewide queer people of color organizations (2015 – present). They have performed in spaces such as First Avenue Theatre Minneapolis, MN in 2006, SOB’s in New York City in 2007, the Brava Theatre in San Francisco, CA in 2008, the Mission Cultural Center in San Francisco, CA in 2009, the SXSW Film and Music Festival in in Austin, TX in 2012 and 2017, Lincoln Center in New York City in 2019 and at the One Mic Festival at the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington D.C. in 2014. Krudxs documentary Somos Krudas produced by Arts in Context with PBS won a Best Topic Lone Star Emmy Award in Austin, TX in 2015, this was one of many great achievements that verified for them that Krudxs music, which began from personal motivations, has now become a collective fortune for so many people at the international level, to have the big honor of this nomination is a huge proof of that. In 2021, even in this time of pandemic, people contact Krudxs everyday from different parts of the world to interview them, to invite them to share their music, their story and their point of view on radio shows, in documentary and art films, for Netflix series, as part of feminist campaigns, on podcasts, as part of university and community lectures, for academic books, journal articles, thesis and dissertation research. This is why Krudxs are here on this planet, to leave a mark, to improve their environment, to contribute to the development of humanity, to denounce injustices and to propose more equitable ways for all of us to coexist gracefully and in harmony with all the life around us.
Here some of the activities we have participated in over the years
Outsider Fest. Talk and Show. Austin Texas
Esperanza Center. Out and Proud Virtually. Online Show
Cine Las Americas. Virtual showcase. Sinca misa Video
Permanently featured multidisciplinary artists on Radio VoxFem. Krudxs Visual Art Retrospective
Dialogos Afrocubanos. Online talk with Pablo Herrera
Virtual Rhyming Workshop with Diversiles
Tap in Series. Self care Online talk with allgo
Crónicas Urbanas virtual interview
East to West Project. Odaymar’s Online Talk
Unpacking Polyamorous Relationships part II online talk
allgo 35th Anniversary Extravaganza. Online Show
La Historia Perdida Online Interview/ Polyaffects Virtual Workshop
Mares Hambrientos Online Interview
Festival Latinidades. Utopias Negras. Virtual Show. Esperanza Out and Proud Virtually Encore. Online Show.
ACLU 100. Austin Tx
Outsider Fest. Austin Tx
Fusebox Festival Hub. Austin Tx
Williams College. MA Concert and Workshop
Austin Caribbean Day Festival. Austin. Tx
Picture Box Studio. allgo.org. Austin Tx
Knight Concert Hall – Adrienne Arsht Center. Fl
David Rubenstein Atrium, Lincoln Center NY Punto Gozadera. Mexico City. Mx
Black Barcelona @ MACBA Museum of Contemporary Art. Barcelona Spain
Krudxs Winter Europpean Tour. Europe
Azpeitico Festak 2019. Pais Vazco
Fluff Festival. Czech Republic
OCCI. Amsterdam. The Netherlands.
Gender Unbound Arts Festival. Austin Texas
UMass Amherst. Queer Black Feminist Conference. MA
Visiting Performance Artist. University of Texas
Ohio Lesbian Festival. Ohio
allgo BPOC Austin Queer Artists Showcase. Picture Box Studio. Austin Texas
Krudxs Colombian Tour
Lesbian Wedding. Sahara Lounge. Austin Texas
Festival Nosotras estamos en la calle. Lima/ Cuzco. Peru
Krudxs get founded by Global Art Found Astraea Lesbian Foundation. NY
Out of Tropics @ The Fillmore. Miami Beach
Gender Unbound Arts Festival. Austin TX
Elberson Fine Arts Center. Salem College. NC
SXSW Festival. Austin Tx/ Europpean Tour
Punto Gozadera. Mx City
Jaime Torres Bodet Theatre. Guadalajara Mx.
Highly Addictive Album Release Party. Austin Tx
Mexican Tour. Mexico City/ Oaxaca/ Chiapas/ Monterey
Alternate Roots. South Dallas Cultural Center. Dallas Tx
Austin Caribbean Day Fest. Austin Tx
Caribash Caribbean Festival. Austin Tx
Chingona Festival. San Antonio Tx
Krudxs European Tour
En el solar. Video Release.
2015: European Tour/La Rima Festival. Barcelona Spain/ Sturmglocke. Hannover Germany /Dyke March Chicago. Illinois/ Maracuyeah. Washington DC/ PBS. Arts in Context. Somos Krudas. Lone Star Emmy Winner Documentary.
2013: Festival Latinidades. Brazil/ Krudxs Brasilian Tour/ Hip Hop and Punk Feminisms Symposium. IL 2012: Levantate Album Release/ Los Medios. Oficial Video release. Austin. Tx
2011: Women in Hip Hop Showcase. Mamas of color Rising. Victory Grill. Austin Tx/ The Black and Brown Feminisms in Hip Hop Media Concert. UTSA. Tx/ Summer Music Series. Orange County Center of Contemporary Arts/ Sta Ana. Ca
2010: Borderout at SOMarts San Fco. Ca/ Weast Coast Tour.
2009: National Queer Arts Festival @ Brava Theatre. SF. Ca
2008: Historic Victory Grill Austin Texas/ Silverlake Lounge. Los Angeles Ca.
2007: Resistiendo. Third Independent Album. Austin Texas/ Urbana Champaigne. Illinois University/ Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance. NY/ Solart Gallery. Sta Ana. Ca
2006: We left Cuba being one of the most significant groups on the Cuban Scene. Also in 2006 we were invited to the Spring Tour with Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra we played at 1st Avenue Theatre. Minneapolis Minnesota/ Double Door Chicago/ Canopy Club (Urbana Illinois/ Blueberry Hill. Saint Louis Mo/ Knickerbockers. Lincoln Nebraska/ Granada Theatre. Lawrence Kansas/ Blue Note. Columbia. Mo/ Waiting Room. Omaha, Nebraska/ Pabst Theatre. Milwaukee/ Majestic Theatre. Madison, Wisconsin/ Picador Theatre Iowa City/ Blind Pig. Ann Arbor, Michigan.
2005: Kandela. Krudxs Cubensi Second Independent Album, Music Video and Documentary Release. Machete Productions. Havana. Cuba/ Jovenes Rebeldes Documentary. Anna Boden & Brian Fleck ft Krudxs and other 5 cuban Hip Hop groups. Havana Cuba.
2004: Hip Hop Cubano Volumen II. Compilation. BISMUSIC. Havana Cuba/ Founding Feminist Theatre Hip Hop Collective Omega Kilay. Havana Cuba.
2003: Cubensi Hip Hop. Krudxs Cubensi First Independent Album Release. Havana Cuba 2002: Puños Arriba. Cuban Hip Hop Compilation. EGREM. Havana Cuba.
2002: Puños Arriba. Cuban Hip Hop Compilation. EGREM. Havana Cuba
2000/ 2006: Songwriting, playing underground Hip Hop Events, Hip Hop Concerts, going studios for beats making and recording sessions. Community theatre on stilts. Havana Cuba.
Press
Angel fire – Las Krudas: Those Quasi-Paradigmatic Black Cuban Rappers
The Kennedy Center – Las Krudas
Mr. Online – “As Free as the Words of a Poem”: Las Krudas and the Cuban Hip-Hop Movement
Astraea Foundation – Krudas repertoire includes Hip Hop Cubensi, Dancehall, old-school rhythms and new rhythms of the entire world.
PBS ORG – Somos Krudas
Austin Chronicle – Krudas Cubensi
Billboard – Internacional LGBTQ Musicians You Need To Know
Repeating Islands – Cuban rap group Krudas Cubensi to perform in Germany
Hacer de Todo – Nomadic wax presents Las Krudas and Keur-Gui | March 30 | Kennedy Center
Rising Up – Krudas Cubensi Premiere in Los Angeles
Womens E News – Cuban Hip Hop group Las Krudas embraces Feminism
Reuters – Lesbian hip-hop duo from Havana fights homophobia with music
Austin Chronicle – Arts in Context: Somos Krudas