Nuyorican rapper Princess Nokia announced tonight via Instagram her first-ever concert in Puerto Rico – for free – taking place tomorrow at the University of Puerto Rico’s Río Piedras campus. Entry to the all-ages event, which Nokia organized through the student collective Grupo de Trabajo de Género, will be on a first-come, first-served basis.
An assortment of local talent is also included on the bill: R&B singer Audri Nix, rapper Villano Antillano, trap trio Las Bellaqueens, DJs Ca$h Onda and BoriFemme, and drag performers Simón and Adi Love. Connecting all those acts – including Nokia – is a through-line of feminist resistance, from subverting misogynistic genre tropes to queer and trans empowerment.
This show follows a controversial cancellation in August of 2017: Tickets had already been sold for a performance slated for Club 77, a venue near the University, when local promoters called off the event. Nokia alleged that the promoters involved were attempting to scam her, while one of the promoters claimed that her cancellation was due to a scheduling conflict related to a campaign for Champion and Urban Outfitters.
Tomorrow’s concert is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. at the University’s Centro de Estudiantes and, per posts from both Nokia and the Grupo de Trabajo de Género, will be a safe and liberated space for queer, black, and brown Latinx fans, where no inappropriate behavior, discrimination, or aggressions will be tolerated.
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Princess Nokia plays the Centro de Estudiantes at UPR Río Piedras on February 7 at 6 p.m.