Fighting for Nicaragua Through Song

A Portrait of Carlos Mejía Godoy

January 26, 2012

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On this special musical edition of Latino USA, Maria Martin shares the story of one of Nicaragua’s most celebrated musicians — singer-songwriter Carlos Mejía Godoy. Carlos Mejia1 A Portrait of Carlos Mejía GodoyIn the sixties and seventies, Carlos, along with his brother, Luis Enrique, composed the soundtrack for Nicaragua’s Sandinista revolution. And today, decades later, both are now working to preserve Nicaragua’s unique cultural traditions. Carlos explains how.

This program was produced and hosted by Latino USA’s producer María Martin.

Right-click here to download an .mp3 of this segment.


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Carlos Mejía Godoy is one of Nicaragua’s most beloved and acclaimed musician/singer-songwriters. Luis Enrique is Carlos’ younger brother and also a loved and celebrated Nicaraguan musician.

Both men were a leading force of ‘La Nueva Canción’ or the ‘New Song Movement’ that blended folk music with politics and culture. This music is associated with revolutionary social movements and played a pivotal role in Nicaragua’s social upheaval during the sixties and seventies.

Carlos and Luis were recently honored with Nicaragua’s highest cultural distinction, the Order of Rubén Darío.


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María Emilia Martin is a pioneering public radio journalist with more than two dozen awards for her work covering Latino issues and Latin America. She started her career at the first community public radio station owned and operated by Latinos in the U.S. Martin has developed ground-breaking programs and series for public radio, including NPR’s Latino USA, and Despues de las Guerras: Central America After the Wars. A recipient of Fulbright and Knight Fellowships, she has extensive experience in journalism and radio training, in the U.S., Mexico, Guatemala, Bolivia and other countries.


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Read Maria Hinojosa’s King Features column.

Watch full episode and extras from Maria Hinojosa’s FRONTLINE investigation on immigrant detention.

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