In this episode we talk about actions that involve parts of the body and clothes. Putting on clothes, taking off clothes… Especially the latter.

Taking off one’s clothes became a big trend in mid-to-late 70’s Spain. With dictator Franco finally dead, it was a turbulent time of change as a heady sense of liberation descended upon Spanish society. It’s the period that we know as la transición – the transition, from el franquismo to la democracia.

‘Las tetas y la política’ (boobs and politics), as some have put it, became the two great preoccupations of many Spaniards during this sort of adolescence in our recent history, in a social phenomenon that became known as el destape (the ‘uncovering’).

Model, actress and singer Susana Estrada became one of the biggest stars in a new subgenre of destape raunchy comedies, which often blended heavy-handed erotism and (mostly female) nudity with political satire.

In 1981, Estrada released Amor y Libertad, a ten-song album of disco music. The title says it all: Love and freedom. Not just romantic or even sexual love but, more broadly, self love, self respect. Amor por uno mismo o, más exactamente, por una misma. Respeto. Autoestima, as we’d call it today.

The album is a true call to arms. Out of the ten song titles, no less than four are commands told in the imperative sense. Hagámoslo juntos. Let’s do it together. ¡Ven! Come! ¡Gózame ya! Enjoy me now! And then, our song for this episode: ¡Quítate el sostén! Take off your bra!

¡Quítate el sostén! is a rap song, inspired by the disco music of the time and early hip hop. Estrada had a lot to say, and rapping was the ideal medium for her to deliver her message.

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