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…
LatinoLife's 2023 Homegrown Music Roundup
We at LatinoLife are so proud of our UK Latin Talent, and the privilege of helping to nurture and showcase that talent to the world through our media, events and music label and activities as a National Portfolio Organisation.…
THE AUGUST REGGAETON RECAP
August is in-your-face with many artists on this list capitalising not only their songs but their names too. This month is also a final opportunity to soak up the sun and digest August’s hottest hits. One song features a well-…
THE JUNE REGGAETON RECAP
Karol G surprised everyone by announcing a new album while the second half of this reggaeton power couple, Feid, also decided to drop a new project. Two stars joined forces to re-learn everything they thought they knew about the…
LATIN LONDONER #6 Camilo Menjura - Musician and ChoIr Master
One of London’s most loved singer-songwriters and choir master, this two-time LUKAS winner for Musician of Year specializes in Afro-Colombian, Afro-Peruvian and Andean Jazz. Camilo is also a renowned choral master, leading the…
Santo Domingo Blues: Los Tigueres de la Bachata (2004) by Alex Wolfe.
A genre once ignored and disrespected by the Latin American elite as no more than bawdy ghetto music, bachata has risen to stand beside the best of salsa and merengue, and arguably outstrip both in popularity around the world, to…
Candela Records announces "Hot Steppa" Angelo Flow's latest single featuring & J Spades and Diztortion
Following on from his club hit "Solo Tu", Angelo teams up with UK rap pioneer J Spades on a new JA dancehall influenced "Hot Steppa". Fusing the artists' Jamaican and Venezuelan Caribbean flows and London…
Classic Album: 'MTO² New Generation' by Don Omar
We revisit Don Omar's Album "Meet the Orphans 2: New Generation", released nine years ago. Full of surprises and without a shadow of a doubt, an album that made history in music.
A Soulful Voice from Brazil
Natacha Andueza Bosch talks to emerging Brazilian vocalist Sarah Roston, who draws on a range of influences from funk, soul, jazz, to reggaeton and traditional Brazilian music
Argentine Songs that Tell the Story of the Malvinas
Every year in April, Argentines commemorate Day of the Veterans and the Fallen in the Malvinas War (Dia del Veterano y de los Caídos en la Guerra de Malvinas), a national holiday honouring those who took part in the 1982 conflict…
LATIN LONDONER #25 - Jamy - Singer-songwriter
Jamy is a Colombian singer, whose latest critically-acclaimed Tropical album "Cuentos de la Luna" (Moon tales), includnig Bachat and Kizomba - was produced in the Dominican Republic and is available on iTunes, Spotify…
Southern Passion at the Cervantes Theatre
The Flamenco Festival London 2022, based at Sadler’s Wells (dance) and the Cervantes Theatre (music) featured renowned stars and legends like Tomatito, the Compañia Jesús Carmona, El Yoyo and his troupe, Rocío Márquez and…
Things That Matter to…Omara Portuondo
One of the most inspirational women in music and known for her vibrant live performances, Omara Portuondo rose to fame in the 1950’s in pre-revolutionary Havana in the vocal group Cuarteto D'Aida, before becoming a huge name…
We haven’t killed Salsa! Part 1
Earlier this year we published a piece 'Did Salsa Dancers Kill Salsa Music?' which generated much controversy. In a passionate response, Kerry Ribchester argues that we haven't killed Salsa, we are more in love…
Cuarteto Rising: From Córdoba’s Barrios to the Global Dancefloor
Forget tango. Forget rock nacional. The sound shaking Argentina right now is cuarteto, born in Córdoba’s sweaty dancehalls. Raw, relentless, working-class — the music of Saturday nights and fernet in plastic cups. Eight decades…
The Gentleman with the Bad Ass Voice
Gilberto Santa Rosa shows no sign of slowing down. Jose Luis Seijas caught up with the Puerto Rican icon to discover that the rumours were true: he really is ‘The Gentleman of Salsa,’ as often referred to - the nice guy of Latin…
Latin Londoner #33: Natalia Luisbassa, Conductor
Coming up through Venezuela's world famous El Sistema, Natalia became the first person to obtain a degree in Orchestral Conducting in Venezuela. She completed her postgraduate studies at the Royal College of Music (RCM) in…
Wandering Soul
Caracas born singer-songwriter Laura Guevara was one of Venezuela’s risings stars, winning the Pepsi Awards in 2017, the country's equivalent of the Mercury Prize. Her involvement in the student protests, however, leading…
All Hail the Vinyl Collectors!
Salsotecas are the mythical vinyl-sharing encounters that began in Cali, Colombia. We explore the legendary phenomenon that helped give the city its reputation as home to the world’s most passionate Salsa lovers.
The Future of Latin Music?
While Venezuela has always been the land of opportunity for Colombians, one of Venezuela’s most successful new musicians and innovative producers, has gone the other way and is coming back with some sounds that are rocking the…
REYKO @ The Waiting Room
REYKO kicked off the new year with an exceptional London concert in The Waiting Room. A concert hall filled with music enthusiasts, fans, and curious Londoners wanting to know more about this mystical Spanish band, making it the…
Trovador Extraordinaire
In an era where bland music and meaningless lyrics pollute the airwaves, singer-songwriters such as Pablo Milanes, the legendary Cuban icon and one of the founders of Nueva Trova, are revered more than ever. His songs about the…
Dominican Shades
Lara Morgenstern reflects on the enviable coolness of Vicente Garcia, when she meets the Dominican singer-songwriter, clad in sunglasses on a cloudy London day.
The Simplicity of Complexity
Multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer, Zé Ibarra, began garnering attention aged 15 as the voice and pianist of Rio band Dônica, and went on to co-found Bala Desejo with Dora Morelenbaum, Julia Mestre, Lucas Nunes, which…
The Reggaetón Boss
Back in 2005, Daddy Yankee became the only Reggaetón artist ever to chart in the UK, with 'Gasolina' at #4. Now the same artist has again hit the spot and broken another record with his current song ‘Despacito,’…
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…
THE JANUARY REGGAETON RECAP
It’s the first Reggaeton Recap of the year and the artists certainly know it as they’re pulling out more stops than ever before! There’s a cross-continental collaboration that shows some very promising prospects and a collision…
Eliades Ochoa's Fantasy Island Discs
If you were stranded on a desert island, which tracks would you absolutely need to get you through those times of despair? Our castaway this month is Eliades Ochoa, known as Mr Chan Chan in his hometown of Santiago de Cuba, from…
Latin Londoner #20 ..Emeris Solis - Percussionist
Emeris is one of Europe’s best Latin percussionists and the epitome of the Latin immigrant who has earned success in London through his craft. Chilled, good humored, and professional, he is a master in Colombian folklore,…
Top Ten Hits April 2020
Another week of lockdown, another week of boredom...but wait! Here’s our Top Ten Hits of April 2020 to keep your spirits up and hips swaying through quarantine...
APRIL REGGAETON RECAP
Latin women are dominating the documentary industry in the past four weeks. Whether it was Anitta's game-changing 'Larissa' dropping at the end of March or Karol G's 'Mañana fue muy bonito' and now…
Latin Londoners #28: Andria Antoniou and Roman Gomez, musicians
Argentine-born Roman Gomez, is a piano, bandoneon and guitar soloist, as well as composer and arranger. Andria Antoniou is a renowned Jazz and Tango vocalist. Their unique blend of Argentinian tango and Latin American Folk with…
LATIN LONDONER #9 Paco Peña - Flamenco Guitarist
The Spanish Flamenco Maestro who has become living example of an artist that has explored the best of London’s diversity and multiculturalism whilst cherishing his Spanish roots to make simply beautiful music.
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…