Hip Hop in Spain- DARKAS: Honor, Loyalty & Respect “The Only Black Angel”

It is well-known that in Spain, audiences mainly listen to pop. Internationally it is the flamenco, which is more commonly listened to in the south of Spain. Other areas, like the Spanish islands, are known for their techno, dance and house music. But where is the hip-hop and R&B based?

Madrid, the capital of Spain, has always mixed styles for all tastes: flamenco, salsa, merengue, dance, pop and hip-hop. Barcelona is another city influenced by hip-hop music, as well as some other cities in the south of this dream holiday destination. In Madrid you will find DARKAS Honor Lealtad and Respeto, which means honour, faithfulness and respect.

The beginnings

The group D.A.R.K.A.S is formed by Didash, GPi and Loren. Before they came together they were doing things separately in their own neighbourhoods. In 1993, freestyles, jams and concerts in the hip-hop arena were officially formed and recognised in Spain, due to the need for evolution within the music style. These freestyles, jams and concerts were the perfect place to show off talent and DARKAS took that chance. They shared the stage with future established artists in the field. In 1999, the group collaborated with Frank-T for the LP ‘FRANKATTACK’ with the song ‘No os dejan entrar’. Didash is also known as ‘The Only Black Angel’.

DARKAS ’s Evolution

From that point on, Didash continued collaborating with different Spanish hip-hop artists. In 2000, Didash collaborated on DJ PACO, aka DJ JAM’s, album along with Meko and Zenit, other Spanish hip-hop artists. Later, in 2001 they worked with Chojin on the album ‘Solo para adultos’. In 2003, Loren the other member of DARKAS appeared in ‘995-Kompeticion III’. In 2006, Didash collaborated on Rob Vendetta & NEIXLE’s song in a LP called ‘Pasarela’. In 2008, ‘The Only Black Angel’ cooperated with COSTELLO on his second mixtape ‘La Joya de la Corona’ and GPi. The third member of the group collaborated with the same artist in his third job, ‘DEL ½’, in 2010.

D.A.R.K.A.S recorded one single for PRIMER DAN’s LP ‘Crimen Sin Castigo’. DARKAS closed that same year, bringing out his own LP ‘HONOR, LEALTAD Y RESPETO’. It was a 74-minute disc, a very personal album full of messages, including for those no longer with us. 2010 was the hip-hop year and DARKAS was the group.

During 2011, DARKAS was promoting his new album all over Spain. In 2012, DARKAS collaborated with DJFANKMUSIC.COM and DJ PHET SPANISH FINEST’s mixtape. In 2013 and 2014 came collaborations with COSTELLO and the mixtapes ‘Ramos de Angel’ and ‘Medusa’.

Future of Hip-Hop in Spain According to Didash, a former member of the group, thanks to channels and platforms like You Tube and Spotify Spain, hip-hop groups now have the opportunity to be heard all over the world.

Hip-hop in Spain is still growing in terms of group formation. “You can discover very talented hip-hop groups and artists with enormous talent, but the circle is narrow and occupied by the four main groups,” said Didash, during the interview. “Finding your path as an artist is hard but not impossible. The most important thing is to connect with your audience.”

This year, D.A.R.K.A.S is working on their new album, which we’ll be happy to bring to you once finished. Additionally, DARKAS collaborated with Betto Snay on their third album. Connecting with their audience is something DARKAS know how to do, and they do it very well. We wish them all the best in the future. You can see their ‘Conéctate’ song and video here .