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HEARTSONGS
Lila Downs is back – with not one but Dos Corazones – a new song which she will be debuting live in London this this month. She tells Elizabeth Mistry how her first UK visit in eight years will be an opportunity to talk about…
Things That Matter… Jards Macalé
Having worked with some of the biggest names in Brazilian music, including Joao Donato, Gal Costa, Caetano Veloso and more, Jards Macalé has garnered status as one of the most influential samba and tropicalia artists. Macalé’s…
WHAT MEXICO IS
Often accused of glorifying violence, Norteño legends Los Tigres del Norte have caused controversy and divided opinion with their musical “story-telling”. Yet there is no denying the huge impact that this highly influential…
Things That Matter to…Sara Correia
Widely regarded around the world as one of Fado music’s fastest rising stars, Portuguese singer Sara Correia’s profile has continued to rise sharply this year following the release of her acclaimed third studio album '…
True Romantic
We talk to four-time Latin Grammy winner Andrés Cepeda about how girls inspired him to start writing music, his secret shot of aguardiente to calm nerves and love as the engine of life. There's no doubt about it, the much…
Golden Days
Four-time Latin Grammy winners Aterciopelados defined a new Golden Era of Colombian pop music when it exploded onto the Latin pop scene back in 1993, going on to become one of Colombia’s best known pop bands of the 1990s. With a…
Reggaeton’s Romantic
Jay Wheeler has long been known in his native Puerto Rico as “reggaetón’s favourite voice”, due to his romantic lyrics, folky tone and unashamedly sensitive side. He famously got so emotional at one concert in his hometown Ponce…
Things That Matter to…Harold Lopez Nussa
Recently signed to Blue Note Records, Harold started piano when he was eight years old in Havana, Cuba. After graduating from the Instituto Superior de Artes, he toured with Omara Portuondo and in 2003, worked with the Cuban…
Mexican Mambo
Widely regarded as one of the most influential Mexican music bands of all time, La Sonora Santanera’s unique big band style with elements of mambo, cha cha cha, bolero, cumbia and merengue, has made it popular all over Latin…
Big Little Sister
It would be surprising if iLe, Puerto Rico’s latest hot musical export, had nothing to say. Not only was she the sole female vocalist in rap group Calle 13, she has been performing with her politically astute half-brothers, Rene…
She Who Demands the Stage
Diva is the Latin word for goddess and Cuban-Spanish singer, Lucy Calcines, became just that when her performance on The Voice UK in 2020 raised the studio to its feet, got four judges turning and became the most streamed…
Finding Freedom
After a decade as one of the most sought-after salsa musicians in Europe, Rene Alvarez is embarking on a long-life dream of fusing his Afro-Cuban heritage with his love of North American funk. His new band, Alvarez Funk, departs…
Things That Matter to...Alfredo Rodríguez
Widely considered to be one of the most gifted and exciting jazz pianists of his generation, Alfredo Rodríguez’s high-octane, warm and joyous musicianship won him at first the mentorship of Quincy Jones then a Grammy nomination.…
The Reluctant Artist
When his debut album 'Veneer' went platinum back in 2006 while a Phd student at Gothenberg University, José González’s life changed forever. About to embark on a career as a ground-breaking scientist, his instantly…
Things That Matter to…Eliane Correa
Eliane Correa studied piano and composition at the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana, before relocating to London where she quickly gained fame for her work as a composer, musician and bandleader. After years as arranger,…
Prodigious Child
Silvana Estrada grew up in rural Mexico in a home where music and instruments were made; both of her parents are luthiers. She was raised singing Mexican son jarocho before studying jazz and absorbing the music of the likes of…
Street Elegance
L-Gante is one of the most exciting, original and successful urban artists to emerge from Latin America in recent years. Emerging from the working-class suburbs of Buenos Aires, the boy from el barrio came out of nowhere and…
Things That Matter to…Susana Baca
Three-time Latin Grammy winner, Susana Baca is Peru’s most internationally renowned artist, who shone a light on the previously little known world of Afro-Peruvian rythmns. In 2021, she marked the 50th year of her career with the…
Hot Steppin’ Chamo
With his latest single ‘Hot Steppa’ breaking records as the fastest-growing UK-produced Latino song ever, clocking over 160k views in YouTube in 4 days, Angelo Flow is on a high. The song, a collaboration with dancehall legend J…
Latin Londoner #47 - Esco, Music Producer
Esco is an young up-and-coming sound engineer and producer. Born in Camden to Jamaican and Colombian parents he has absorbed two musical cultures in a very London way. After being heavily involved in gangs as a teenager which…
A Megaphone for Peru's Musical Wealth
One of Peru's most groundbreaking bands, with a trajectory of almost 40 years, PeruJazz has germinated the fusion between traditional and contemporary, folkloric and urban, the cajón and the saxophone. Drawing inspiration…
SON OF HIPHOP: An interview with Trueno
Of the dozens of artists being hailed as the ‘next big thing’ in Argentine urban music, one has caught our attention. The son of a true pioneer of Argentine hiphop, Trueno has grown up immersed in the genre: a technically…
Brave New Woman: An Interview with Nathy Peluso
Fiery and fearless, big and bold, Nathy Peluso aims to provoke. A woman’s woman, she creates characters and shape-shifts between styles, genres and languages; hiphop, R&B, salsa or jazz - nothing fazes this Spanish raised-…
THE POWER OF NOW: An Interview with Cultura Profética
Cultura Profética is one of Puerto Rico's most influential bands. Formed in 1996, the group came to encapsulate what it is to be Latin Caribbean with its unique fusion of Caribbean reggae and Latin genres such as bossa nova…
An Aural Mapping of Nostalgia
One of the most critically and commercially successful bands to emerge from Latin America, Café Tacvba have come to define the essence of Mexican rock. Ahead of their European Tour this September, Shyal Bhandari speaks with…
TIMBA’S TRIUMPHANT RETURN
Those who were enjoying Eliane Correa and su Evolución at this weekend's LatinoLife in the Park, are no doubt are fans of Maykel Blanco - today's bonafide guru Cuban Timba. Lucky for them, for the first time in six…
Reclaiming The Streets
Ryan Castro is the latest in a string of Medellin music sensations to reach global fame, with hits such as Jordan, Wasa Wasa, Malory and Mujeriego. Just as Colombia’s ‘City of Eternal Spring’ has come to be known as the new…
Mexican Maverick
Striking gold in 2018 with his diamond-certified hit ‘Fuentes de Ortiz’, Latin Grammy-winning 21-year-old Mexican, Eduardo Hernández Saucedo, also known as Ed Maverick, became one of Latin America’s most in-demand talents…
Britpop's Favourite Timbalero
When Colombian timbal player Roberto Pla arrived the UK in the 1970s, the Latin music scene was practically non-existent. But the boy from Baranquilla soon became the percussionist of choice for UK pop artists such as Joe…
The Juanes Mash Up
The Colombian music landscape has transformed dramatically over the last 10 years, with reggaetón becoming the new pop, but one Medellín rockero has transcended all trends and remains as relevant today doing the music he loves.…
Odd One Out
Hailed as one of the most promising jazz musicians of her generation, Chilean saxophonist Melissa Aldana is somewhat of an anomoly. Amaranta Wright meets Blue Note’s latest signing and discovers an incredible journey from a…
The Brit-Latin Underground
Photographer Alicia Colarusso delves into the underground Latin music scene in London to capture the essence of five up-and-coming artists - Fluffy, Luisa Santiago, Guala, A Nahomy and P Man – all born or bred in the capital or…
Nature’s Children
We can all recognize the low whistle opening To My Love, or the growing drum and guitar rhythm of Fuego. Fans of Colombia’s hippest electro-tropical outfit will be dying to see Bomba Estereo after its 4-year break since Ayo. With…
Rebel Spirit
Ana Tijoux is well known for her strong lyrics that question the status quo, whether social, political, religious, cultural or economic. In the best tradition of Latin American cantaurores, the Chilean-French hip-hop singer…
Latin Music 2.0: Meet Candela Records’ Rising Stars
Ever since reggaetón became the world’s most streamed music genre, the major music labels have been on the hunt for the Latin music stars of the future. In a brave move, one global brand decided to look to UK shores for a new and…
Recent Music
Classical Jazz and Folk
HEARTSONGS
Lila Downs is back – with not one but Dos Corazones – a new song which she will be debuting live in…
Urban
Reggaeton Revolution: 20 years of UK Urban Latin Culture
Back in 2004, when the UK music industry was ignoring reggaetón and Maluma was in nappies,…
Brazilian Music
Things That Matter… Jards Macalé
Having worked with some of the biggest names in Brazilian music, including Joao Donato, Gal Costa,…
Most Viewed
Ballads and Boleros
Top Ten Mexican Male Singers of all Time
Since the days when Mexico was a serious rival to Hollywood in terms of film production and quality…
Urban
Top 10 Female Reggaeton Artists
We may have come a long way since the days of overt misogyny in Urban Latin Music, but the industry…
