“Pedro Navaja”: a song designed like a comic

The song “Pedro Navaja”, a fundamental piece of the 1978 musical production Siembra, marked a milestone in the history of salsa by becoming the first album with a strong social content while simultaneously achieving commercial success. Despite the initial doubts of Fania Records regarding its lyrics and length, “Pedro Navaja” has become an icon of the salsa genre and Latin identity, thanks to its lyrical content and orchestral complexity, both filled with significant references and intertextualities. These elements, along with its narrative structure inspired by the comic book format, grant the song a striking uniqueness and functionality in different contexts.