Rawayana

Rawayana is a Venezuelan band formed in Caracas in 2007. The group's music combines a variety of musical genres including reggae, funk, and salsa, and the members describe their style as "trippy pop". The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Alberto "Beto" Montenegro, bassist Antonio "Tony" Casas, drummer Andrés Story, and guitarist Alejandro Abeijón.

History
After the release of the album Trippy Caribbean in 2016, the band was nominated for Best New Artist at the 18th Annual Latin Grammy Awards, losing to Dominican musician Vicente García. To promote the album, the band embarked on a tour of major cities in Latin America and the United States, and released a music video for the song "Funky Fiesta" featuring Jose Luis Pardo of Los Amigos Invisibles.

Rawayana's 2021 album Cuando los Acéfalos Predominan discusses the crisis in Venezuela in both its lyrical content as well as the album's accompanying music videos. The album featured Los Amigos Invisibles, Cheo Pardo, and Akapellah, and was released in conjunction with an art installation in Mexico City. In the words of lead singer Montenegro, the satirical music video for the song "Into You", which parodies Latin American talk shows, served as a way to "[call] forth major 'entertainers' in the industry not to stay silent about the world’s problems". On September 19, 2023, the band performed a Tiny Desk Concert for NPR to promote their album ¿Quién trae las cornetas?.

Members

 * Alberto "Beto" Montenegro (vocals, guitar)
 * Antonio "Tony" Casas (bass)
 * Andrés "Fofo" Story (drums)
 * Alejandro "Abeja" Abeijón (guitar)

Discography

 * Licencia para ser libre (2011)
 * Rawayanaland (2013)
 * Trippy Caribbean (2016)
 * Cuando los Acéfalos Predominan (2021)
 * ¿Quién trae las cornetas? (2023)