If you want to know who will benefit from Norah Jones performing in communist Cuba and who won’t, just look at who is defending the event and who is criticizing it. While Cubans are calling on Jones to not allow herself to be a tool for their oppressors, the Cuban regime has launched a counteroffensive to rally support for the concert, which they see as a source of revenue and propaganda to whitewash its daily crimes against humanity. When the oppressed are critical of you and a brutally oppressive regime is defending you, you know you’re on the wrong side.
State-run media calls for a mobilization in support of Norah Jones and against the ‘haters’
State-run media has called for mobilization in favor of the Norah Jones concert and against the “haters” who have criticized the show.
A Cubadebate article, echoing the words of Cuban-American professor Carlos Lazo, who leads “Puentes de Amor” (Bridges of Love), asserts that “the pack” came out to condemn the singer’s trip in an attempt to prevent it, “as has happened so many times before.”
“They wasted no time in attacking the artist. Already on Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms, prominent haters are campaigning against the trip. But Cuban men and women are also stepping up to defend it, offering warm welcomes to Norah Jones from their profiles,” the state-run newspaper noted.
Using a tired discourse and framing the criticisms as part of a conspiracy project from Miami, the media outlet, which is a mouthpiece for the regime, even referred to figures like Andy Vázquez, who recently stated he was “stepping away from political issues.”
Official reporters took the opportunity to discredit independent press and government opponents.
In their view, “anti-Cuban” topics “are imposed by the so-called anti-Castro industry, whose handlers use and abuse recently arrived artists, forcing them to pay heavy tribute in political statements if they want any contracts in the City of the Sun.”
The announced Norah Jones concert continues to draw criticism after announcing two exclusive concerts in Havana.
The website created to promote the event indicates that Jones will perform in February on the island as part of “a four-day immersive experience that delves deeply into the heart of Cuban music and culture.”
The promotional note details that the American singer will be accompanied by “some of the best Cuban artists and musicians,” including the group Síntesis and the salsa musician Alain Pérez.
Following the announcement, Cubans reacted massively on social media, pointing out the prohibitive prices of the tour packages being sold for attending the performances, which also include accommodation and participation in other activities. Additionally, they criticized the tourist nature of the presentations.
The website created to promote the event “Norah Jones: Live in Havana” establishes a price range from $2,999 for a shared room at the Grand Aston hotel to $7,599 for a suite for two people in the same facility.
“You know you’re on the wrong side.” Well, you should know, but even if you do, you may still not care.
In any case, she looks less than brilliant and kind of pathetic. People in Cuba are NOT into her kind of music.