The well-known Catalan rumba singer interrupts his retirement and returns to the stage to create a protest rumba. The song calls for redistribution of wealth and a financial system that is fairer to the people, just as a recession looms.

“They say that gypsies are thieves, but it’s not true, thieves are the ones… who wear a nice tailcoat!”, says Petitet in ‘La rumba dels calerons’. For the first time, rumba delves into social criticism without abandoning the joy and partying that characterises this Catalan musical genre, with international repercussions.

El Petitet, who suffers from myasthenia gravis, has created ‘La rumba dels calerons’ to explain that “money is not everything in life” but that, unfortunately, “you’re only worth as much as your wallet”. That is why he accepted 11Onze’s commission, to demand a redistribution of wealth. “It cannot be that 99% of the wealth is in the hands of 1% of the population and that a whole series of obligations that are demanded of the majority, the upper strata of society, can avoid. There needs to be money for everyone and tools to control how this money is managed,” says 11Onze president James Sène.

All this makes even more sense when we are on the verge of a major economic crisis caused, above all, by the public debt bubble. In Spain, public debt is growing at a rate of 200 million euros per day and already exceeds 1.46 trillion euros. 11Onze and Petitet are calling for the crisis not to be paid for by the same general public this time.

The composition of the song has allowed Petitet to bring together his usual collaborators and add new nuances to the rumba. For the first time, a harp has been added by Esther Pinyol, second harp at the Liceu. “I’ve enjoyed it very much”, says Petitet, adding that “banking today is like a casino, they treat you well as long as you have money”.

Of Petitet, James Sène explains that “the first time we met, before I could sit down, he asked me ‘are you a good person?’. To which I replied, ‘oh man, I think so’. After that came a hug and generosity, always. I don’t think we could have found a better representative, a better collaborator, to create the 11Onze song.

The music video: a popular party like in the old times

The music video of ‘La rumba dels calerons’ was made in the middle of Barcelona’s Rambla del Raval, where a popular dinner was set up with more than 100 people. “We didn’t want to simulate a party“, explains 11Onze content director Toni Mata, “we wanted to throw a party. Rumba is for the people and 11Onze is also for the people, so we wanted to celebrate this collaboration”.

The song also brings a further differentiating factor: 11Onze becomes the first financial institution to give the gypsy people a leading role. “We wanted to do it,” says Mata, “because historically gypsies have had to endure stigmas that have banished them from society. But not only have they known how to resist and get ahead, but they have also known how to preserve the Catalan language and their culture better than many others who look down on them”.

‘La rumba dels calerons’ is, therefore, a criticism, but without losing the spirit to party because, as Petitet always says, “it’s better to laugh than to cry“.

The song is available on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Deezer, and all the usual platforms.

The video clip can be seen on YouTube and 11Onze TV.

11Onze is the fintech community of Catalonia. Register in La Plaça for free and join the revolution! Register – 11Onze