News (Noticias) for Blogante Entertainment

Vikki Carr, Cheo Feliciano, Astrud Gilberto, Angelica Maria, Maria Dolores Pradera, and Estela Raval will receive The Latin Recording Academy(R) Lifetime Achievement Award. Simon Diaz, Larry Harlow, and Juanito Marquez will be honored with the Latin Recording Academy Trustees Award. The award recipients will be acknowledged at a special ceremony on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2008, at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts in Houston.
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“This is a diverse group of honorees that represent the vivid history, rich diversity and true foundation of Latin music,” said Gabriel Abaroa, President of The Latin Recording Academy. “Their legendary passion and artistry has spanned many decades across many countries, illustrating the prominence and importance of Latin music globally. The Board of Trustees of The Latin Recording Academy is honored to pay homage to these creative and innovative visionaries who have made prolific contributions to Latin culture.”

Lifetime Achievement Awards: This Special Award is presented by vote of The Latin Recording Academy’s Trustees to performers who, during their lifetimes, have made creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording.

Three-time GRAMMY(R) winner Vikki Carr has helped pave the way for American singers to freely explore their Latin roots in the United States. Born in El Paso, Texas, she released her first Spanish language album in 1972 and quickly developed a strong Mexican following. She has spanned genres from mainstream pop to country and jazz, and recorded more than 60 albums. Carr has also made her mark on screen and stage, and still performs to sold-out audiences today.

Blessed with a beautiful voice, Puerto Rico’s Cheo Feliciano has been at the epicenter of the salsa movement since the ’60s. As a soulful singer with a bolero style, he explored the fusion of Afro-Cuban dance with mainstream American genres such as R&B and big band jazz. He was an important part of the cultural movement of the New York salsa explosion in the ’70s. With such hits as “El Raton” and “A La Seis” he continues to play live shows and record salsa songs to this day.

The unique, wispy style of Brazilian vocalist Astrud Gilberto highlighted on the classic hit “The Girl From Ipanema” stormed the world by surprise as she won Record Of The Year at the 7th Annual GRAMMY Awards in 1964. As a poignant symbol of the bossa nova movement, she recorded more classics including among many others “Insensatez,” and “Corcovado,” In 2002 she released Jungle, an album of original compositions and she continues to sing throughout the world.

One of Mexico’s jewels known as “La Novia de Mexico,” Angelica Maria was the first woman to record in the bolero ranchero field, and her distinctive voice became associated with the emerging rock en espanol genre. Born in the United States, she relocated to Mexico City at the age of five, and is known for such pop-rock gems as “Adonde Va Nuestro Amor” and “Dominque.” She has also enjoyed a flourishing career as an actress, starring in many movies, stage musicals, and telenovelas, where she continues to work today.

Favoring classic song formats like the bolero, ranchera, ronda, fado, and vals, Maria Dolores Pradera is one of the most respected and majestic singers to come out of Spain. She began her career as an actress, and in the ’60s joined Los Gemelos, where she would develop her crisp, delicate vocals that stand out in such songs as “Amarraditos,” and “La Flor De La Canela.” She continues recording albums and performing worldwide, and most recently released En Buenas, a compilation album of her best duets.

An influential artist in the emergence of Latin pop and Spanish rock and roll, Estela Raval brought ’50s doo wop into Latin America. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1956, she founded the group Los 5 Latinos, with whom she would record more than 20 albums and such hits as “Solamente Tu” and “Tu Eres Mi Destino.” Last year, they celebrated their 50th Anniversary with numerous sold-out shows throughout the Americas and a live CD/DVD package. She continues performing actively.

Trustees Award: This Special Award is presented by vote of The Latin Recording Academy’s Trustees to individuals who, during their careers in music, have made significant contributions, other than performance, to the field of recording.

Venezuelan composer and singer Simon Diaz has written dozens of songs that deeply connect to Latin American culture. His famous anthem “Caballo
Viejo” — also known as “Bamboleo” — has been translated into more than 10 different languages. Artists he has composed for include Ruben Blades, Celia Cruz, Placido Domingo, Julio Iglesias, and the Gipsy Kings. He recorded his first album as a singer/songwriter in 1963, and has since recorded many albums including the 2001 Amorosante where he revisited his bolero beginnings, as well as 2005’s Sabaneando. Also recognized as a celebrated comedian in Venezuela, his career has also encompassed roles in film, television, and theatre.

Salsa bandleader and keyboardist Larry Harlow, “El Judio Maravilloso,” was one of the pivotal influences in the salsa explosion of the ’70s. A Jewish-American New Yorker, he proved that you don’t need to be Latino in order to be an innovator of Afro-Caribbean music. His densely textured keyboard solos highlight such classic salsa anthems as “La Cartera” and “Senor Sereno.” A tireless promoter of tropical music, he has produced dozens of albums, created the all-female orchestra Latin Fever, and was an integral in the establishment of a Latin music category in the GRAMMY Awards — which was instituted in 1975. He currently tours the world performing salsa music.

Cuban guitarist and composer Juanito Marquez has had a remarkable career as a songwriter, arranger, and conductor in Cuba, Spain, and the United States. He composed the memorable boleros “Alma Con Alma” and “Como Un Milagro,” and his debut album in 1964 pioneered the infectious song format pa’ cá - a swinging Cuban variation of the Venezuelan joropo. He was at the forefront of the golden era of Cuban music, when genres such as mambo and
cha-cha-cha changed Latin music forever. His distinctive guitar skills can be heard in the music of Cachao, Julio Iglesias, Paul Mauriat, and on such Gloria Estefan albums as Mi Tierra, Abriendo Puertas, and the recent 90 Millas.

The Latin Recording Academy is an international, membership-based organization comprised of Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking recording artists, musicians, songwriters, producers and other creative and technical recording professionals. The organization is dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for Latin music and its makers. In addition to producing the Latin GRAMMY Awards to honor excellence in the recorded arts and sciences, The Latin Recording Academy provides educational and outreach programs for the Latin music community. For more information about The Latin Recording Academy, please visit www.grammy.com. “

Today Zune, Microsoft Corp.’s end-to-end music and entertainment service, announced jointly with Fania Records the availability of a custom collection of Fania albums consisting of never-before-digitally-released productions. For the first time, the Fania collection will be digitally remastered and available exclusively on Zune Marketplace. The collection will include legendary artists such as the Fania All-Stars, Hector Lavoe, La Lupe, Celia Cruz, Ricardo Ray and Bobby Cruz, Cheo Feliciano, Mongo Santamaria, Bobby Valentin, and many more.

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During the 1960s and 1970s Fania Records produced the best in salsa and Latin jazz and has been credited with starting the New York salsa movement. Fania and its roster of stars have introduced Latin music to the world, and Zune will now make this music available digitally for a new generation to discover.

“It’s exciting to partner with Zune to offer our collection digitally and for new content from such classic artists. Our hope is to have a new generation of music lovers discover these masters of music from such a significant musical era,” said Leda Ceccarelli, director of New Media, Fania Records.

The Zune Marketplace Latin content producer worked with the label’s digital distributor, the Orchard, to select the content released through the custom-built Zune boutique page. The addition of Fania to Zune Marketplace demonstrates Microsoft’s commitment to integrating Latin music across the platform and enabling music lovers of all genres to discover these artists. Most recently, the Zune Marketplace team also produced a special event with Tijuana-based artists to highlight Mexican culture, featuring graphic and visual artists Acamonchi and VJ PR4, DJ sets from Loud Noises and Tremolo Audio, and live performance by Nortec Collective Presents: Bostich + Fussible.

“We wanted to bring a sense of retro music to Zune Marketplace, and to do that, there’s no other label to work with than Fania,” said Mariel Cruz, Zune Marketplace Latin content producer. “Fania’s renowned roster of musicians made it easy to select iconic artists, and we’re happy to bring this collection to our subscribers.”

The custom Fania Records store will be exclusive to the Zune Marketplace until Oct. 21 and will include music from the following albums:

* Ricardo Ray and Bobby Cruz, “El Bestial Sonido”
* Fania All Stars, “Live At Yankee Stadium, Vol. 1″
* Hector Lavoe, “Le Canta A Borinquen”
* Roberto Roena, “Greatest Hits”
* Cheo Feliciano, “Cheo,” “Felicidades”
* Ruben Blades, “Maestra Vida Vol. I”
* La Lupe, “La Reina (The Queen)”
* Mongo Santamaria, “Fuego”
* Various Artists, “Cuba Y Puerto Rico Son”
* Various Artists, “El Barrio: Gangsters, Latin Soul & The Birth of Salsa 1967-75″
* Mark Dimond, “Brujeria”
* The Lebron Brothers, “Criollo”
* Celia Cruz, “Bravo”
* Various Artists, “Bailando at the Palladium Vol. 1″
* Bobby Valentin, “Algo Nuevo”
* Celia Cruz and Tito Puente, “Algo Especial Para Recordar”
* Charlie Palmieri and his orchestra, “Adelante Gigante”

Zune is the only digital media player to offer an end-to-end experience for music lovers with its portal devices, available with 8 GB, 16 GB and 120 GB; software features such as Buy from FM, which allows users to download music directly from the built-in FM tuner; and the subscription-based service Zune Pass, which allows subscribers to download millions of songs for the monthly price of $14.99.

The exclusive Fania Records digital collection is available at www.zune.net/musica. “

American Latino TV and LatiNation, the nationally syndicated TV programs for U.S.-born Hispanics, announced today that both shows will debut their new seasons in a record number of cities beginning this weekend, October 4th through 5th. American Latino TV’s new season will premiere in an all-time high of 105 cities representing over 92 percent of Hispanic homes and over 70 percent of all U.S. TV homes. LatiNation will be seen in over 85 cities reaching over 88 percent of Hispanic homes and 65 million U.S. homes.
“This year has been the most successful year in the history of these shows in terms of advertising revenue growth and number of affiliates. As the Hispanic population has spread across the U.S., so have our programs. More viewers than ever will have the opportunity to enjoy culturally aware content in a positive format all too rare in today’s television environment,” said Robert G. Rose, executive producer of the shows. “With each new season, our programs evolve to reflect the changing and rapidly growing U.S. born Hispanic market. We’re getting bigger and better, telling stories that are relevant not only to American Latinos but all Americans.”
American Latino TV, the flagship program is headed into its seventh season with an innovative look. Shows will be hosted in a new studio with a bicoastal, co-hosted environment featuring Los Angeles host Jeannette Sandoval and New York host, Julian Dujarric. Freshly produced, weekly segments are being launched as part of the new look, including trivia testing viewers’ knowledge of Latino culture. In addition, humorous and informative man-on-the- street style segments entitled “Viewer’s Voice” have been added where participants help break down stereotypes and misinformation on topics as diverse as Hispanic urban legends or the meaning of Hispanic themed holidays.
LatiNation, American Latino TV’s companion show, is celebrating its fifth season of broadcast syndication and will continue to be hosted by Adesina “Desi” Sanchez and Jose Mangin, the talented duo who have been fixtures on the show since the very first season. LatiNation is also featuring new segments, most notably “Making the Grade,” which provides an encouraging and inspiring look at students and organizations that stress the importance of education.
“Our production teams have done a great job bringing new energy and new ideas to our syndicated product, making this year’s offering the best season yet,” said Howard Bolter, president and COO, LATV. “American Latino Television is a trailblazer in the Hispanic market. Its distribution success story underscores the need to provide quality programming to the new generation of U.S. Hispanics.”
American Latino TV and LatiNation, award-winning, English-language Latino themed TV programs are part of LatiNation, LLC, and a subsidiary of LATV Networks. For more information, please go to www.AmericanLatino.tv.
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