Caracas Chronicles

On July 1st of this year, I gave birth to a Venezuelan… in Italy.

As my daughter grows up in the diaspora, I want to help her feel connected to her father’s homeland. When I asked my husband to teach me some songs from his childhood, he claimed he didn’t remember the lyrics to any. While I was initially skeptical, the fact that he uses the Himno Nacional as a lullaby suggests this may, in fact, be true.

Luckily, a few weeks later, our Venezuelan cousins who now live in Spain came to visit. One of them had prepared for us a playlist of greatest hits, including the gran trío of their youth: Popy, Las Payasitas Nifu Nifa, and Juan Corazón.

For the uninitiated like me, a quick PSA: arguably the three most prominent children’s musicians of the 1970s and ’80s were all—wait for it—clowns.

Whether you recognize these names or whether they are new to you, here’s a quick crash course on the payasos of Venezuelan children’s music.

A clown reborn

The first payaso in our lineup is Popy. A staple of Venezuelan TV for over three decades, Dionisio Rafael López Ramos (Diony López) was a singer, actor, and director most famous for his character Popy. The clown first came to life on Venezolana de Televisión in 1970 and was popularized in El show de Popy (1971-1988) on Radio Caracas Televisión (RCTV). He produced nine musical albums and is so well known that the phrase “ponerse Popy” is used by Venezuelans to mean to cause problems or oppose something. Basically a culturally significant synonym for “ponerse cómico.”

Today, fifteen years after López died, his legacy lives on in Miami through his son, Gabriel. In March this year, Gabriel started a YouTube channel for the character Popy Jr. In his first interview about this new project, Gabriel explains his goal is not to copy—for one, he has left the clown makeup behind—but to pay homage to his father. Initially hesitant to produce content for children, Gabriel cites his inspiration was living with his nephew and witnessing first-hand the lack of “contenido de valor” for today’s youth. Popy Jr. will bring back old favorites but also have songs of his own covering modern themes and topics.

Take a listen: Check out Popy’s original “A Cepillarse,” as well as Popy Jr.’s new interpretation.

A case of clown backstabbing?

Las Payasitas Nifu Nifa were founded in 1984 by Gianna Lodi. What started as performances for birthday parties and schools grew into an international sensation, still going strong today after four decades. Known for their colorful wigs and their lamé jumpsuits, Las Payasitas Nifu Nifa have won numerous recognitions, including two Latin Grammy nominations.

In a poignant interview with Globovisión in 2016, Monsalve (Juan Corazón) recalls how a child’s drawing of a daisy helped put his life back on track.

Just as chavismo has divided many families, so, too, it seems, has it divided the payasitas… at least indirectly. Lodi left the country in 2007, and in 2014, she gave permission to former members Dayana Fuentes and Carolina Laya to continue giving performances in Venezuela under the Nifu Nifa name—as long as she received a reasonable cut and that their work continued to meet the group’s standards. Meanwhile, Lodi restarted Las Payasitas Nifu Nifa in Panama and later moved them to Miami.

In 2018, unbeknownst to Lodi, Fuentes registered the Nifu Nifa brand in Venezuela under her own name. It seems corruption and preferential treatment was at play, seeing as Lodi had been attempting—unsuccessfully—to renew the brand with the Servicio Autónomo de la Propiedad Intelectual (SAPI) since 2006. For more on this sordid tale, check out the documentary “Nifu Nifa: El Legado Robado,” worth watching if only to see serious interviews conducted wearing clown costumes.

Lodi, who owns the rights to Nifu Nifa outside of Venezuela, continues to direct international shows and performances. In fact, if you are in the Miami area, the original payasitas are available for hire for your child’s birthday party or your wedding’s “hora loca.”

Take a listen: Check out their most recognizable hit “Ki ki kí – Co co có,” a high-energy tune centered on animal onomatopoeias. Fun fact: the song is a reinterpretation of the Italian song “Chì chì chì cò cò cò” which Pippo Franco debuted at the 1983 Sanremo Music festival.

A clown’s flower

Juan Corazón, played by singer and actor Alberto Rafael Monsalve Aponte (Rafael Monsalve), can be interpreted as a kind of direct competition for Las Payacitas Nifu Nifa. The character, who wore no traditional clown wig or makeup but only a heart painted over his left eye, is most known for his musical albums and his appearances on RCTV’s “Fantástico” in the ’70s and ’80s.

Juan Corazón was later exported and eventually retired after an unsuccessful run in Puerto Rico. After being abandoned by his agent, Monsalve fell into a depression. In a poignant interview with Globovisión in 2016, Monsalve (Juan Corazón) recalls how a child’s drawing of a daisy helped put his life back on track. When interviewer Rocío Higuera asks Monsalve to draw a picture for Venezuela, Monsalve sketches that same daisy, springing up from even the most broken of soils—a beautiful metaphor which, unfortunately, continues to be relevant nearly a decade later.

Take a listen: While Juan Corazón is perhaps best known for songs such as “Mi Abuelita Me Contó” and “Kalelo,” my husband’s personal favorite is “Empieza Con A,” a musical “hangman” game played using vowels.

BYO nostalgia playlist

From now on, thanks to my daughter’s new playlist, in addition to knowing these clowns, I’ll be sure to sing “Arepita de manteca / pa’ mamá que da la teta” as we toss our masa in the mornings. And “Sana sana colita de rana” when she gets a boo boo.

What were your favorite childhood songs? And for those of you in the diaspora, how are you keeping Venezuelan music alive in your family?