Category Archives: Celebrity Interviews

At last, meet the Viva Latino Podcast…now on Spotify!

Posted in Celebrity Interviews, Music, Podcasts by

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This one has been a long time coming but I’m excited to finally be able to share my latest project for Spotify: the Viva Latino Podcast!!!

It’s been so much fun to co-produce and co-host this with my fellow Spotifier, AJ “El Kallejero” Ramos. Together, we bring you that “arroz con pollo” flavor. Lots of fun conversations in Spanglish, music geekery, laughter, and yes, the occasional “Oprah” teary-eyed moment. In one episode of Season 1 in particular, we all got emotional with one of the biggest names in Latin music.

Here’s what you need to know:

  • The Viva Latino podcast takes you behind the streams of Latin music’s biggest superstars, featuring insightful interviews and unique data stories behind today’s global Latin hits.
  • This is a unique, audio-driven brand extension of Viva Latino—Spotify’s biggest Latin playlist globally. You can think of this as the “cousin” of the playlist. 
  • Season 1 launched on Nov. 30, with Jennifer Lopez as our first guest. YES. J.LO. JENNY FROM THE BLOCK. LA LOPEZ. I still can’t believe it. But yes, it happened. And now I can die happy. By the way, the JLo episode got a ton of press because she was her magical self and opened up about a bunch of stuff, including her relationship with Marc Anthony, the lasting legacy of Selena Quintanilla, her current view on love, her bucket list, the proudest moments of her musical career, and so much more. Here’s one article in particular that does it justice on E!.
  • The podcast is currently available in the following territories: US, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile, Dominican Republic, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay.
  • Season 1 features interviews with J Balvin, Bad Bunny, Daddy Yankee, Anitta, Prince Royce, Becky G, Carlos Vives, Residente, Bomba Estéreo, Jesse & Joy, and Pablo Alborán.

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So check it out here, be sure to FOLLOW IT so you don’t miss a single episode!!! Enjoy the amazing line-up we have for Season 1.

Shout out to everyone who made this possible: Natalie, Baron, Whitney, Andrew, Ayleen, William, Fred, Jack, and Rocio.

Thanks for listening!!!

It’s all about #LatinosOnSpotify!

Posted in Celebrity Interviews, Culture, Music by

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So proud of our Hispanic Heritage Month campaign on Spotify! It was a true team effort and the first of many big things to come on the platform as we seek to give Latin music lovers the best experience. 

About #LatinosOnSpotify:

Data shows that Latin music is now one of the most popular genres globally on Spotify. To mark this milestone and to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, on September 15, Spotify launched #LatinosOnSpotify, a month-long campaign featuring, for the first time in a category’s history, Latino-centric video, podcasts and specially curated playlists all in one place.

Debuting just in time for Hispanic Heritage Month, Spotify.com/Latino celebrates the diversity and nuances within the culture, offering music for every taste and catering to different Hispanic audiences within the United States.

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Fans of Regional Mexican, Tropical, Latin Urban, Pop, Rock, Alternative, Jazz, and more, will have a chance to experience the music they love like never before and connect with their favorite artists in a unique way. Enrique Iglesias, Prince Royce, Marc Anthony, Los Tigres del Norte, Maluma, Daddy Yankee, Becky G, Yandel, Gloria Estefan and many other superstars have all come together with Spotify to bring you an unforgettable musical experience.

 

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Artist interviews with the biggest Latin stars in the world are available for streaming in the new Latino hub alongside Spotify’s most popular and beautifully redesigned genre-specific playlists and special one-off playlists such as “Latinos, Let’s Vote!”, our collaboration with Voto Latino to mobilize the vote among Latino millennials in this upcoming election. Also, for the first time ever inside the Latin category on Spotify mobile, people are able to enjoy some of the best podcasts on a range of topics of interest to Latinos!

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The first thing you see when you visit the new Latino hub is “La Familia, With Marc Anthony & his Father Felipe Muñiz,” Spotify’s first ever Latin music documentary. The 3-episode short doc profiles legendary recording artist Marc Anthony as he delves into the story and process behind one of the most exciting passion projects of his career: recording the new bolero-flavored track ‘Dejé de Amar’ with his father, Felipe Muñiz, who makes his recording debut at 81. Joining them is multiple Grammy Award winning producer Sergio George. In this intimate session, Marc and his father come together to discuss family, play music, and to celebrate the sound that was passed down from father to son, a gift that ultimately produced one of the biggest Latin stars in the world.

Press play now for Hispanic Heritage Month and join the conversation using #LatinosOnSpotify.

 

Jesse & Joy reveal new album title, release date & heartfelt Juan Luis Guerra duet (exclusive)

Posted in Celebrity Interviews, Music by

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Mexican brother and sister duo Jesse & Joy are well aware that when you listen to their music, you almost need to have a box of tissues nearby. This is not because their music is depressing (although if you’re going through a breakup it can certainly seem that way), but because it’s so visceral. This in itself is a gift. But then you factor in the powerful instrument that is Joy’s voice, Jesse’s production savvy and their unique bond, and you’ve got something extra special.

The same holds true for their upcoming fourth album, Un Besito Más (One Last Kiss), due Dec. 4 via Warner, for which they expanded their production roster to include Fraser T. Smith (Adele, Sam Smith), Grammy winner Martin Terefe (who handled production on their previous album, ¿Con Quién Se Queda el Perro?), and Dominican legend Juan Luis Guerra, alongside Jesse.

Vocally, there’s a newfound confidence. The first single “Ecos de Amor” (Echoes of Love) positions Joy as a soulful songstress in her prime. The visuals are equally stunning, thanks to Samuel Bayer (Michael Jackson, Rolling Stones, Justin Timberlake) who directed the single’s video.

That Jesse & Joy are doing it big is no coincidence. It’s been 10 years since their Esta es mi Vida debut, and, as Jesse will humbly tell you, “we know there’s something we do that connects.” So the trick this time around was staying true to their sound while exhibiting growth. “It’s a challenge we were totally up for and we put everything we have into this,” says the elder Huerta (he’s 32; Joy is 29).

Billboard spoke via phone to the two siblings, who were at home in Mexico City and offered exclusive details on the album.

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Meet ‘Dope’ Star Tony Revolori, Soon-to-Be Your Favorite Latino Actor

Posted in Celebrity Interviews, Culture, Movies by

Tony Revolori Dope movie

Most people toil away in independent cinema for years, maybe even decades, before catching a big break through some sort of cosmic alignment and starring in an Oscar-winning movie.

Not Tony Revolori. The 19-year-old Californian with Guatemalan roots, who stars in the buzzy, nerds-in-the-hood dramedy Dope (out June 19), is doing it all backwards.

After a string of small television parts, he was cast as Zero Moustafa, the orphaned lobby boy and fiercely loyal protégé of eccentric concierge Gustave H (Ralph Fiennes) in Wes Anderson’s dazzling 2014 murder mystery, The Grand Budapest Hotel. As the story goes, Anderson searched far and wide for the right actor to play Zero, who in the film is supposed to be a political refugee from a fictional Middle Eastern nation. The A-list director looked at actors of Israeli and Lebanese descent, but eventually landed in Los Angeles, where he auditioned Tony and – get this – Tony’s own brother, Mario. But in case you’re wondering – all is good between the two hermanos. In fact, Mario visited his younger brother on the set of Dope, along with Tony’s mom. (The acting gene actually runs in Tony’s family. His father was an actor, too.)

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Chiquis Rivera Pays Tribute to Mom Jenni Rivera and Makes Her Own Mark With Debut Album ‘Ahora’: Track-by-Track Review

Posted in Celebrity Interviews, Music by

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The late, great banda singer Jenni Rivera once said “haters are just confused fans.” So it makes sense that although Jenni’s eldest daughter Chiquis seems to have an equal ratio of the latter to gung-ho cheerleaders, this in no way has deterred her from pursuing her own career in music.

And why should it? At 29, Chiquis has already endured more pain and tragedythan most people could conceive of (including losing her mother in a plane crash on Dec. 9, 2012) and has lived to tell the tale.

Despite being booed quite loudly on social media upon the release of her first single back in early 2014 (“Paloma Blanca” — more on that later), Chiquis dusted herself off and tried again, but not without remastering a few things, literally and figuratively.

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The Ultimate Listening Guide to Bomba Estéreo’s ‘Amanecer’: In Their Own Words

Posted in Celebrity Interviews, Music by

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Bomba Estéreo is ready for the big time. Nearly 10 years after the Colombian electro-tropical outfit started making noise in the Bogotá club scene (and then popped up on music lists galore), singer Liliana Saumet and multi-instrumentalist Simon Mejía are now veterans of the global festival circuit. So it’s only right that for the band’s fourth album, Amanecer (due June 2), they would take things up a notch — and we’re not just talking bpm.

Indie and self-contained from the get-go, Bomba was recently signed to a major, Sony Music Latin, which paired them up with a new producer, Ricky Reed, of the genre-mashing California group Wallpaper, whose credits also include JasonDerulo‘s “Wiggle” and Pitbull‘s “Fireball.”

The result is an album that is still very much Bomba to the core, but it also makes room for new influences. Recorded between the band’s headquarters in Bogotá and Reed’s home studio in Los Angeles, Amanecer should get them more airplay and even more gigs on the world stage. Take the lead single “Fiesta,” a party anthem dripping with bass and champeta that’s as much of an homage to the carnivals of their homeland as they’ve ever recorded, but it’s also a nod to Kwaito, an African genre of music fusing hip-hop, house, reggae, and traditional African rhythms.

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The Best of the 2015 Billboard Latin Music Conference

Posted in Celebrity Interviews, Culture, Media, Music by

Ivy Queen

I recently joined the extended Billboard family as a contributor and went down to Miami to cover the 2015 Billboard Latin Music Conference and Awards (April 27 – 30). I’ve greatly enjoyed collaborating with the inimitable Leila Cobo, who, quite simply, knows more about Latin music than anyone on the planet. She’s a pro, and definitely someone I look up to.

You’ll be seeing my byline on billboard.com/latin quite a bit this year, as I join Leila and the Billboard team in building the ultimate digital destination for all things Latin music.

Click below to see Billboard’s beautiful spread with exclusive portraits from the conference.

Billboard Latin Music Conference Exclusive Portraits  

And click here to view all of our great online coverage from this year’s conference & awards, including exclusive interviews with Carlos Santana, Daddy Yankee, Natalia Jimenez, Nicky Jam, Luis Fonsi, Wisin, Carlos Vives, Ivy Queen, and many more.

See Also: Highlights From the 2015 Billboard Latin Music Conference & Awards

Spotlighting Latina Beauty in Marie Claire’s Global Beauty Issue

Posted in Beauty, Celebrity Interviews, Culture by

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I was honored to contribute to Marie Claire‘s Global Beauty Issue (May 2015), spotlighting three Latinas whom I greatly admire: mogul (and all-around idol) Salma Hayek, supermodel Joan Smalls, and actress Genesis Rodriguez.

Follow the link to read the full feature —> Marie Claire

Backstage With Daddy Yankee at the 2015 Billboard Latin Music Awards

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Daddy Yankee

Mention the name Daddy Yankee to anyone in the Latin music industry and they’ll automatically think of the words legend, icon, or leader. Credited with making reggaeton a global phenomenon in 2004 with his hit “Gasolina,” the Puerto Rican superstar has more top 10s on the Latin Rhythm Airplay chart than any other artist (30) and more No. 1s on Top Latin Albums than any other urban act (6). It’s no wonder his peers — both established and emerging acts — constantly cite him as a source of inspiration.

When he’s not recording hits in the studio, Yankee is known for bringing the heat to any performance. The 2015 Billboard Latin Music Awards — which aired on Telemundo on April 30 from the BankUnited Center in Miami — were no exception, as Yankee took the stage twice. First, to perform his hot new single “Sígueme y Te Sigo” as a worldwide television premiere, and then with Carlos Vives and Wisin for “Nota de Amor,” an irresistible marriage of Colombian vallenato and reggaeton that’s as much about love as it is about dancing.

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Selena Quintanilla’s Family on Jennifer Lopez’s Tribute at the Billboard Latin Music Awards: ‘She Owned It’

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Selena tribute Jennifer Lopez Billboard Latin Music Awards 2015

It was the most talked-about moment of the night at the 2015 Billboard Latin Music Awards — Jennifer Lopez onstage, singing a medley of Selena Quintanilla’s most beloved hits, including “Como la Flor,” “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom,” “No Me Queda Mas,” and “I Could Fall in Love,” dressed in a pale pink ensemble reminiscent of the late queen of Tejano music. The heartfelt performance came 18 years after Lopez’s indelible portrayal of Selena made her a household name. Backed by the original Los Dinos band — made up of Selena’s brother A.B. Quintanilla, sister Suzette Quintanilla-Arriaga, and widower Chris Perez – JLo delivered an emotional tribute to an icon whose influence is still felt, 20 years after her life was tragically cut short.

After the performance, the Quintanilla family opened up to Billboard about how it felt to be a part of such a special moment, where the idea for the tribute came from, and how they’re keeping Selena’s legacy alive.

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