La Crema Drops Song Criticizing Cuba's "Floating Rate" Policy

Cuban reggaeton artist Luis Alberto Vicet Vives, widely recognized by his stage name La Crema, has once again captured public attention. He released a video that creatively blends humor, social critique, and music to address the recent introduction of a floating exchange rate by the Central Bank of Cuba (BCC).

The video kicks off with La Crema discovering the news on his phone, leading to confusion and bewilderment.

"What is this? Look at what they're doing. They criticized El Toque so much and now they've set the dollar rate almost the same as El Toque's," he exclaims. "First the dollar was at 24, then 120, and now a floating rate. I don't understand anything."

With an ironic and critical tone, the artist elaborates on the situation:

"They say there's this new measure at the bank called the floating rate, to gather dollars and plenty. We've gone back to the old days. Where will the inflation go? There's no solution with the floating rate. And the dollar rises, no one can stand it. Things are getting desperate," he sings.

"You sell all your dollars to the bank, but the bank doesn't sell them to you. And if the bank sets the street price, it doubles when they sell it to me. It doubles because there's a dollar shortage, since you control all the cash. You've opened Pandora's box, the dollar will keep rising, going up by the hour," he adds.

The clip concludes with La Crema summarizing the frustration felt by many: "My love, look at this. It says here it's a floating rate. We're the ones who are going to float. Floating rate, not floating rate."

The song arrives at a time of significant social media buzz, as Cubans turn to humor to express disbelief and mockery in response to the new measure.

Independent outlet El Toque kicked off the day with a Star Wars-inspired meme, portraying the BCC as Darth Vader saying, "I am your father!" This reflects how many view the measure as an acknowledgment of the informal market, which the government previously tried to discredit.

Pages like El Pelotazo have added to the satire with memes of Mr. Bean copying and pasting, suggesting that the BCC simply replicated rates already known from independent sources.

Other comments mock official spokespersons like Humberto López, who criticized El Toque before the BCC adopted similar rates.

Humor extends to illustrations and memes on X and Facebook: user Ñango Leyva posted a toilet floating on the sea with the message "Now you have a floating rate #CubaFailedState #SOSCuba".

Meanwhile, the account Habanero Memes shared an image of Susely Morfa with the question, "Who’s going to follow the floating rate the bank will publish?" and a blunt response: "Nobody!"

Since December 18, Cuba has operated with three exchange rate segments: 1x24 CUP for state services, 1x120 CUP for entities with external income, and a floating segment for the private sector and individuals, starting at 410 CUP per dollar and 481.42 CUP per euro. These figures are close to the informal market, where the dollar hovers around 440 CUP.

The Central Bank claims the rate will fluctuate based on supply and demand and be published daily, but institutional credibility issues and limited access to foreign currency lead many to view it as a more cosmetic than effective move.

Meanwhile, the Cuban populace continues to use satire and music as an outlet for economic uncertainty, proving that laughter remains the strongest currency in the country.