Press Record.

http://www.blender.com/guide/articles.aspx?ID=1653

Coke. Guns. Booty. Beats.In the slums of Rio De Janeiro, drug lords armed with submachine guns have joined forces with djs armed with massive sound systems and rude, raunchy singles. Welcome to the most exciting—and dangerous—underground club scene in the world.By Alex BellosBlender, June 2005



Five A.M.: In the sultry depths of Rio de Janeiro’s Nova Holanda shantytown—or favela (pronounced fuh-VELL-luh)—more than 1,000 people are dancing in a narrow street. A wall of speakers stacked 15 feet high and 60 feet wide sends a dirty electro beat shuddering through the ground. On a tiny stage, MCs Juca and Paulinho* shout out the lyrics of their hit “24 Hours”: “Bullets into the Terceiro,” they say in chorus. “Shoot the snitch!” Suddenly the crackle of gunfire cuts through the bass: From the middle of the swaying crowd, someone is shooting into the air.A sea of hands goes up: The men point their index fingers and cock their thumbs, waving imaginary guns over their heads. Other hands form into C and V shapes—the Rio gang sign of the Comando Vermelho, the “Red Command” drug faction that runs this favela. On the stage beside Juca and Paulhino stands a young man in his early 20s; he has a pencil moustache, wears an expensive blue T-shirt with a picture of a surfer on the front and is holding a sub-machine gun. He smiles with approval at the show.