Chonga Defined

A chonga is a woman of Hispanic origin (mostly Cuban), characterized by the utilization of excessive hair gel, usually leaving two strands of hair hanging while the rest is pulled back, especially seen accessorized with giant hoop earrings and necklaces with their names written on them. They can be seen wearing tight short shorts and anything that will provide the excessive exposure of cleavage (or booty), especially, but not limited to, tank-tops. Chongas generally have names rooted in the post-Castro era such as Marisleysis. Hialeah, Florida is chonga capital of the world; however, they are known to migrate. Chongas have a distinctive dialect involving both the Spanish and English languages, merging to create what we now know as our version of “Spanglish.”

The Video

The Latina girls in the above video have become hometown celebrities here in Miami with their version of Black Eyed Peas lead singer Fergie titled “Fergalicious”. This week, they have made appearances on local radio, TV and have mega hits on youtube giving them a have a huge community following.

Everyday we hear about “runaway” viral videos that catapult the user into superstardom. Do you remember the “Coke and Mentos” experiment? Well “Chongalicious” is Miami’s latest contribution to online pop culture. It is important to point out that this video further proves the popularity of user-generated content in the Hispanic market, which is Miami’s “general market”. And the fact that it has become so popular is a testament to the power of Hispanics online.

We cannot go any further until we make mention of the granddaddy of Latino online pop culture and representing our Mexican roots… La Caida de Edgar. This video went around the country a few years ago and commemorates Latino popularity on youtube’s servers. This is one of my personal favorites.

Hispanic teens and adults are no exception when it comes to the need for consuming online content that is relevant and reflective of them. To reach this consumer, advertisers are finding themselves developing strategies and tactics that are outside of the traditional marketing bag of tricks. But unfortunately, this is not the case in the Hispanic market. We have finally been able to prove through research that there is a viable, Spanish-speaking audience online. I believe, for this reason that we will begin to see sophistication in the online tactics we see targeted to Hispanics (English or Spanish) in the online space.

Here is some video from Telemundo on social media growth with Chongalicious.

In the meantime, opportunities to target this “influencer” will remain wide open.

- Written by Miamiadguy