Llorona Frida Kahlo Lila Downs México

I searched YouTube to find a clip of Lila Downs's La Linea or La Llorona to share, but almost all of her performances on the channel are live and the sound quality is not very good. When I found this one, I was initially put off by the overt sentimentality of pairing a song called "The Weeping Woman" with Frida Kahlo. For a lot of people, women particularly, Mexico begins and ends with Kahlo, and they never get past the narrative of the suffering but heroic artist. I went through a period in the years after Hayden Herrera's bio came out in the '80s when I thought I would tear my hair out if I had to look at one more Frida painting or see one more film about her life.

But watching this montage of iconic images, I guess I've made peace with these feelings. Maybe it's because I find Lila Downs's voice, which can be alternately grating and soothing, very healing.

Espero que disfrute de la cancion!