NTS Guide to: Panama Soul

Panamanian Soul emerged during a turbulent time in the country’s history—the 1960s and early 1970s. During the construction of the Panama Canal between 1904 and 1914, Afro-Caribbean laborers were brought in from British colonies such as Jamaica and Barbados. After the Canal was completed, these workers and their descendants faced exclusion and racism within Panamanian society. By the 1960s, the global wave of civil rights movements had not gone unnoticed. Many Panamanians were exposed to the U.S. Black freedom struggle through contact with American G.I.s stationed at U.S. military bases. The voices of Marvin Gaye, James Brown, and Otis Redding, broadcast over Army Radio, also left a lasting impression. Inspired by this cultural exchange, many descendants of the canal laborers began forging their own unique Soul sound.