The Magic City’s trap-reggaeton phenom La Goony Chonga embraces the Chonga aesthetic while exposing the world to a culture that embodies women empowerment.

La Goony Chonga defiantly chooses to shy away from the conventional and instead rely on witty lyricism and a self-assuring demeanor to convey words that inspire and influence.

“Goony is the attitude and Chonga is the lifestyle” – La Goony Chonga

The Cuban American rapper is poised to make a significant impact in music that supersedes Miami’s divergent market. Whether it’s the authoritative swagger best referenced in La Goony Chonga’s most recent No Quieres Lio offering, or the resounding power that lies within her expressive flair for the unorthodox, her impending success is an attestation of her truth.

We had the opportunity to catch up with the charismatic bellwether of influence to talk about her backstory in music, forthcoming album and more.

 What inspired your name ‘La Goony Chonga’ ? 

Goony is the attitude and Chonga is the lifestyle! It was inspired by a song I made called Goony Chonga Barbie.

Where are you originally from? 

I was born and raised in Miami, Florida.

What was it like growing up? 

I would say it was good and fun for the most part. I was a pretty average student in school but always excelled in the arts. My mom put me in dance and theater at a young age and I did that for a few years. There are so many stages of life I can talk about but some of my favorite memories include growing up  around my older cousins who always put me on to the best/latest hip hop/rap music. I remember listening to Power 96 & 99 Jamz (popular hip hop radio stations in Miami). My cousins were Chongas around the age of 13 and literally pierced 3 holes in my ears when I was only 5 years old and even put acrylic nails on me! I remember my mom had a fit. Those were good times and really influenced who I am today.

What inspires your creativity as an artist? 

I get inspired by my experiences and going to different places. My Cuban culture inspires me a lot especially in my lyrics and swag.

What does the Chonga movement mean to you? 

The Chonga movement is one that I am trying to keep alive and relevant being that not many people outside of Florida are familiar with Chonga aesthetic and lifestyle. For me, it’s something that I will forever relate to and is a big part of who I am and how I grew up.

With you spearheading the role as a prominent figure within the Chonga culture, what has that experience been like regarding your artistic expression? 

It’s been pretty natural and easy because I am just being myself. Being an artist allows me to glamorize and exaggerate what being a Chonga is. My slogan is “La chongitona que tu conoces” I say it in almost every song at the beginning or end. It means the chongitona that you know. 

What’s the message in your music?

I convey many messages in my music depending on the song. Every song has a different message. 9 times out of 10, I’m on some feeling myself type of vibe. The message usually has something to do with feeling confident, making money and not caring what others think! A lot of times, my songs are aggressive and make you feel powerful. I really just hope that my listeners can turn to me in times that they need to feel that way.

Talk to me about ‘No Quieres Lio‘, what inspired the title and how did the song come about? 

In January this year, I was just in the studio with JHawk Productions for the first time and when I heard the beat is was very west coast and felt like a bop! I knew I had to do something aggressive yet fun. At the time, I had just gone through some ‘he-say she say” drama. Like I said before, most of my inspiration comes from experiences so that kind of fueled me to make a song with the message “you don’t want no problems and say it to my face” It’s also something that I feel like a lot of people can relate to so it was perfect. At the end of the day, it ended up being super catchy and led me to realize that i wanted to continue working with this producer which is how I ended up making a whole album with him! I’m super excited to share it with everyone. We’ve been working hard all year.

Majority of your early work was composed in English, with some of your latest offerings, specifically ‘Dinero’, being written in Spanish – what inspired the change in direction? 

It’s super funny because I was playing with a funny snapchat filter back in 2016 and talking in Spanish with my Cuban accent and ended up saying “Soy buena y guapa pero no soy barata!” which translates I’m nice and pretty but I’m not cheap.” It sounded super catchy so i was like wait a minute, I have to make this into a song! Shortly after, I made my first Spanish song “Buena y Guapa” I didn’t want to do it on a basic Latin beat. I wanted it to still be similar to my sound in English. At the time no one was really doing original trap-sound songs in Spanish especially not women! At first, I was super nervous to release it because I didn’t know if my fans would like it since it was a whole other language. Turned out to do very well and I got super good reactions and feedback! From that moment on, I came to a realization that this Latin trap sound could really be my own lane. Now, it has become my thing and I have gained a whole other audience of people.

Tell us about the full-length album project that you’re releasing soon? 

I have been working  on my new album DIMEN5ION with JHawk productions since the making of No Quieres Lio in January of this year. We were about 7 songs deep  when I finally came up with a name for it. I gave it this name because I realized  the songs all had  different vibes JHawk & I work really well together and somehow unlocked new sides of each other which makes this project so multi-dimensional. Like, he had me trying things I never did before and I had him playing with sounds he doesn’t usually do either. It’s like we both fed off each others energy and ended up creating this amazing body of work. The album will be 15 songs, each taking you through different “dimensions” aka sides of me as an artist  People can expect to hear the unexpected. I also have some cool artist featuring on it that I never worked with before. For those wondering why the S in the title is a 5 , its because 5 is my favorite number and very special to me spiritually. This is by far my favorite album I have created yet!

What does the remainder of 2019 have in store for La Goony Chonga? 

Hopefully I can go on a DIMEN5ION tour and get to perform all my new songs after the release of the album along with releasing new videos to all this new music. I also will be in my home city Miami for the rest of 2019 working out there, performing and getting back to my roots! I’m super hype about what 2020 has to offer as well.