Jesse & Joy to Release Fourth Album “Un Besito Mas” on December 4

Posted on September 28, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Jesse & Joy are ready to kiss and tell about their upcoming album…

The Mexican pop duo, comprised of siblings Jesse Huerta and Joy Huerta, will release their fourth album, Un Besito Más, on December 4 via Warner Music.

For their latest album, Jesse & Joy 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?, which won them four Latin Grammy awards),and Dominican legend Juan Luis Guerra, alongside Jesse.

The first single, the hauntingly powerful ballad “Ecos de Amor,” positions Joy as a soulful songstress in her prime. The visuals to the official music video are equally stunning, thanks to Samuel Bayer who directed the single’s video.

It’s been 10 years since the pair’s Esta es mi Vida debut, and, as Jesse will humbly tell you, “we know there’s something we do that connects.”

So Jesse & Joy tried to staying true to their sound while exhibiting growth this time around.

“Coming from an album like ¿Con Quién Se Queda el Perro? the challenge was big. We got to that point because we did things we had never done before and I think this album is one of the most diverse we’ve done in terms of rhythms. It’s a bit riskier, even though the first single “Ecos de Amor” doesn’t necessarily show that riskier side. We chose that as the single because we wanted it to be that bridge between where we came from and where we are. We wrote most of the songs for this album during the ¿Con Quién Se Queda el Perro? tour, in between hotels and studios in different cities that we played in,” said Jesse in an interview with Billboard. “In fact, we wrote ‘Ecos de Amor’ three years ago and we’ve always sort of done it that way. We take our time. Right after a tour we take some time to depressurize and spend time with family. Then we go back and see what we have, what we love, what’s left to do, and then we finish an album.”

Read the complete interview here.

Smollett Signs Recording Contract with Columbia Records

Posted on March 4, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Jussie Smollett is ready to create his own music empire…

The 31-year-old Brazilian actor/singer, one of the stars of Fox’s breakout hit series Empire, has reportedly landed a recording contract at Columbia Records.

Smollett revealed the good news to Entertainment Weekly.

“There will be a Jussie Smollett album. I signed to Columbia,” he said when asked about future music plans. “So darling [Laughs] I’m label mates with Beyoncé and Adele and Barbra Streisand.”

Smollett has seen much success with his role on Fox’s smash hit, Empire, which continues to see new additions to its 13.8 million viewers with each episode.

News of the record deal comes as little surprise…

Throughout Empire’s freshman season, Smollett’s character, Jamal Lyon, has showcased some applaudable pipes. And his songs from the show has repeatedly performed well on iTunes.

Carey Reportedly Being Eyed to Replace Celine Dion at Caesars Palace’s Colosseum

Posted on August 30, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Mariah Carey is reportedly in the running to take over the Palace for a time…

The 44-year-old half-Venezuelan American Grammy-winning singer is reportedly being eyed to replace Celine Dion at the Colosseum at Las Vegas’ Caesars Palace, according to TMZ.

riah Carey

Dion will soon be taking an indefinite hiatus from her longtime residency at the resort and casino. And, TMZ says that the Colosseum is interested in signing Carey for “a very lucrative weekend engagement.”

They have reportedly offered the soon-to-be-single superstar $750,000 for two shows at the legendary venue.

Carey isn’t the only star wanted to play shows there. The Coloseum operator, AEG, is also targeting other big names like Adele, Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert, Prince and Bruce Springsteen.

Earlier this month, Dion announced she’d put her Las Vegas residency on hold and canceled her remaining tour dates indefinitely to focus on her ailing husband, Rene Angelil.

“I want to devote every ounce of my strength and energy to my husband’s healing, and to do so, it’s important for me to dedicate this time to him and to our children,” she said in a statement.

Michael to Display His Work in a Special Exhibit at the Polaroid Museum

Posted on March 23, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Instagram may be all the rage… But Lucas Michael is making sure a pop culture classic isn’t forgotten…

The Argentine photographer is helping Florida-based retailer Polaroid Fotobar celebrate the opening of its flagship store inside Las Vegas’ The LINQ this spring with four new exhibits at the Polaroid Museum, focused on Hollywood’s most celebrated stars.

The exhibits will feature shots by Michael, as well as fellow photographers Maurizio Galimberti, Marc Serota and Maripol.

Michael’s photos from last year’s Golden Globes will be on display, featuring candid shots of Jennifer Lawrence, Adele, Bryan Cranston, Ben Affleck, Daniel Day-Lewis and the cast of Girls.

Galimberti, who has worked with Polaroid cameras since 1983, will showcase his portraits of Kate Winslet, Benicio Del Toro and Javier Bardem.

Serota utilized a multi-step image-transfer process to create his large collection of Polaroid portrait prints (“pictorial biographies”), which include shots of Paul McCartney, Roger Daltrey, Kenny Rogers and Gloria Estefan.

Maripol’s 75-shot exhibit will include images of a young Madonna dancing the night away, Debbie Harry in a red sailor suit, and Andy Warhol walking the streets of New York.

The works of the four artists will also join other exhibits, including Warhol’s “Capturing Celebrity,” Tim Mantoani’s “Behind Photographs,” and the world-famous 20×24 Polaroid camera at the Polaroid Museum. The museum will also feature a history on Polaroid founder Edwin Land, as well as an extensive collection of rare artifacts, art and advertising from the Polaroid Historical Collection at MIT.

The exhibits will debut at the Polaroid Museum on April 17, with Polaroid Fotobar’s flagship store opening March 31.

Mars Tops 2013 Illegal Download Chart

Posted on January 3, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

It appears Bruno Mars is getting locked out of his rightful earnings…

The 28-year-old part-Puerto Rican singer has been named the musician whose work was illegally downloaded the most in 2013, according to a study prepared by Musicmetric.

The company, based in London, analyzes consumer behavior, and its report has been published in Billboard.

In the report, which is based on a study of Bit Torrent sites — collectors’ web pages that allow peer-to-peer sharing of music, video and data — Musicmetric listed 20 artists whose work had been illegally downloaded 64.5 million times in 2013. About 70 percent of the downloads were albums; 30 percent were individual tracks.

Mars music accounted for 5,783,556 of those downloads, followed closely by Rihanna (5,414,166), Daft Punk (4,212,361) and Justin Timberlake (3,930,185).

Other artists on the list include Flo Rida, Kanye West, Eminem, Jay Z, Maroon 5, Adele and Katy Perry (who holds the No. 20 position, with 2,318,740 downloads).

Lopez Saves Adele & The Grammys from Stage Crasher

Posted on February 12, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Maybe it was her superhero-costume-like dress… But, Jennifer Lopez proved to be a fearless hero at this year’s Grammy Awards…

The 43-year-old Puerto Rican singer/actress saved Adele (and the live show) from an awkward encounter with Grammys crasher Vitalii Seduik, a Ukranian TV personality who planted two kisses on Will Smith on the red carpet of Men in Black III’s Moscow premiere and gifted Madonna hydrangeas as a press event.

Seduik managed to walk the Grammys red carpet on Sunday night, enter the venue and take a seat in the second row. But that’s not all, when Adele’s name was called as the winner in the Best Solo Pop Performance category, Seduik walked onto the stage and started giving an acceptance speech before the British songstress had even reached the mic.

Luckily, la Lopez wasn’t having any of it… She not only glared at him, but shooed him away with a simple flick of the thumb.

Seduik reportedly spent a night in jail after being detained by event security backstage, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Mars’ “Locked Out of Heaven” Makes Billboard History…

Posted on December 28, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

Bruno Mars has notched another first on the Billboard charts…

The 27-year-old part-Puerto Rican singer’s “Locked Out of Heaven” remains at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for a third week, and crowns the Radio Songs chart for the first time.

Since Mars occupies the top spot on the Digital and On-Demand Songs charts, the song becomes the first to top all four tallies at the same time, dating back to the launch of the On-Demand chart’s launch in late March.

As “Locked Out of Heaven” earns the honor of being the first title to rank No. 1 on the Hot 100, Radio Songs, Digital Songs and On-Demand Songs at the same time, it’s the first track to crown the more established Hot 100, Radio Songs and Digital Songs charts simultaneously since Rihanna‘s “We Found Love,” featuring Calvin Harris, the week of December 3, 2011. Maroon 5‘s “Moves Like Jagger,” featuring Christina Aguilera (two weeks), Adele‘s “Rolling in the Deep” (three) and Katy Perry‘s “E.T.,” featuring Kanye West, also scored such a hat trick last year.

But “Lock Out of Heaven” is the first song by a male solo artist to lead the Hot 100, Radio Songs and Digital Songs simultaneously since Eminem‘s “Love the Way You Lie,” featuring Rihanna, back during the week of August 28, 2010.

“Heaven” moved up to the top spot on the Radio Songs chart with a 4% increase to 140 million all-format audience impressions (up 4%), according to BDS. The song is Mars’ fourth Radio Songs No. 1, tying him with Sean Paul and T.I. for fifth-place among males in the chart’s 22-year history. Among men, only Usher (seven), Ludacris, West (six each) and 50 Cent (five) boast more. Mariah Carey leads all acts with 11 Radio Songs No. 1s.

Aguilera to Appear on “New Year’s Eve with Carson Daly”

Posted on December 24, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

She may be taking a break from The Voice next season , but Christina Aguilera is planning to spend one last night with Carson Daly before she does…

The 31-year-old half-Ecuadorian singer, who has been named the People’s Voice, has been added to the lineup of NBC’s annual New Year’s Eve with Carson Daly.

The two-hour special, live from New York City’s Time Square and hosted by The Voice host Daly (late night’s Last Call With Carson Daly), will be headlined by Train and The Voice‘s latest winner Cassadee Pope on December 31, first from 10-11 p.m. and then 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. to ring in 2013.

Train will perform “Mermaid” and John Lennon‘s “Imagine.”

A music retrospective will also highlight the year’s top performances, featuring Justin Bieber, Coldplay, Madonna, PSY, Beyonce, Adele, The Spice Girls and David Guetta.

Daly, who has hosted the event since 2003, will be joined by his Voice colleagues Aguilera, Blake Shelton, Adam Levine and Cee Lo Green.

Additionally, Amy Poehler, Donald Trump, Jay Leno, Jimmy Fallon, Nick Offerman, Adam Scott, Parenthood cast members and The Office‘s Angela Kinsey, who will bring live reports from the ground in Times Square, are set to appear on the program.

Shakira Named to Forbes’ Top-Earning Women in Music List

Posted on December 13, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

Shakira is one of the most popular musicians on the planet… And, she’s also one of the industry’s big money-making women.

The Colombian singing sensation, who is expecting her first child with Spanish soccer star Gerard Piqué, has been named to Forbes magazine’s list of the Top-Earning Women in Music 2012.

Shakira, the lone Latina on the list, comes in at No. 10 after earning $20 million through her many concert performances throughout the world, strong record sales and a new fragrance, Elixir.

And now that she’s signed on to replace Christina Aguilera on the next installment of NBC’s The Voice, Shakira could see her ranking improve in 2013 thanks to increased exposure.

Here’s a look at the complete list:

Forbes Top 10 Highest-Paid Women in Music 2012:

Britney Spears – ($58 million)
Taylor Swift – ($57 million )
Rihanna – ($53 million)
Lady GaGa – ($52 million)
Katy Perry – ($45 million )
Beyonce Knowles – ($40 million)
Adele – ($35 million)
Sade – ($33 million)
Madonna – ($30 million)
Shakira – ($20 million)

Cabello & Hernandez’s FifthHarmony Advances to “The X Factor” Semifinals

Posted on December 7, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

Camila Cabello and Ally Brooke Hernandez have been Carey’ed into the semifinals on The X Factor…

Following Wednesday night’s inspired performance of Demi Lovato’s “Give Your Heart a Break” and less-impressive rendition of Adele’s “Set Fire to the Rain,” the Latina singers – both members of the Simon Cowell-created all-girl group FifthHarmony – found themselves singing for their lives on Fox’s reality singing competition.

Following the instant elimination of CeCe Frey, it was revealed that FifthHarmony and Diamond White would have to perform for the judges’ save.

Cabello, Hernandez and the ladies performed Mariah Carey’s “Anytime You Need a Friend,” making it a point to give each member of the group an individual moment to shine. Then White sang LeeAnn Womack’s “I Hope You Dance.”

Cowell and Britney Spears (White’s mentor) each voted to keep their act in the competition, but L.A. Reid and Lovato both picked FifthHarmony to move forward to the semifinals.

Here’s a look at the final rankings for this week:

4. FifthHarmony
3. Emblem5
2. Carly Rose Sonenclar
1. Tate Stevens

Hispanically Yours

Celebrating the Latino Influence

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