Puerto Rico’s First Lady, Beatriz Rosselló, announced the resumption of “Unidos Por Puerto Rico” concert and telethon event, with the 49-year-old Puerto Rican salsa singer among the featured artists.
The charitable initiative was originally organized in early September to help those affected by Hurricane Irma and now joins the effort to raise funds for damages caused by Hurricane Maria.
In addition to Anthony, the concert-telethon will feature Luis Fonsi, Juan Luis Guerra, Ednita Nazario, Olga Tañón, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Zion & Lennox, Carlos Vives, Maluma, La Secta, Tito el Bambino, Vico C, Nicky Jam, Jowell & Randy, Pirulo y La Tribe, Víctor Manuel, Wisin, Ozuna and Yandel, among others.
The artists will also unite for a song and video titled “Isla Bendita“, which will honor the event.
“United for Puerto Rico” will air on October 22 directly from Puerto Rico through more than 20 Spanish Broadcasting System radio stations and on television through Telemundo, Univision and Mega TV in the U.S.
“Puerto Rico needs us now more than ever after suffering the scourge of two consecutive hurricanes,” said the Rosselló in a statement.
To make a donation for the victims of Irma and Maria visit www.unidosporpuertorico.com for more information.
Gilberto Santa Rosa is set to have a grand old time at this year’s NYC Puerto Rican Day Parade.
The 54-year-old Puerto Rican singer and bandleader, known as “El Caballero de la Salsa,” will serve as the grand marshall of the annual parade on June 11.
Santa Rosa is a Grammy and Latin Grammy winner, who has been active in the music industry for approximately forty years.
But Santa Rosa isn’t the only superstar participating in this year’s parade.
Iris Chacón, the 67-year-old showgirl who came to fame in the 1970s as “the Puerto Rican bombshell” has been named godmother of the parade.
Ozuna will appear as the parade’s Rising Star, salsa singer Ismael Rivera has been named a Puerto Rican Day ambassador, and Latin alternative duo BuscaBulla will also join the parade.
This year’s Puerto Rican Day Parade marks the 60th time that “la parada” fills Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue with tropical music and Puerto Rican pride. Previous grand marshalls include Marc Anthony and Ricky Martin; Calle 13’s Rene Perez was crowned king of the parade in 2014.
Olympic gold medal gymnast Laurie Hernández, actress Lana Parrilla (Once Upon a Time) and 14-time MLB All-Star Iván Rodríguez will also participate in this year’s parade.
The event will also reference recent politics: it will honor former political prisoner Oscar López Rivera, who was pardoned by President Barack Obama in January after 35 years in federal prison, as National Freedom Hero. And this year’s parade coincides with 100 years since all Puerto Ricans were granted U.S. citizenship by a law enacted by President Woodrow Wilson.
“In this monumental year, we are showcasing our collective achievement and the legacy we have built by working in solidarity,” Puerto Rican Day Parade Board Chair Board Chair Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez said at a press conference. “And we will discuss key challenges that Puerto Rico is facing to help inform and engage our community. We also honor legendary figures and the next generation of stars that are already accomplished in their own right.”
Two music festivals preceding the parade will turn June 9-11 into a full throttle Puerto Rican party weekend.
The 2017 Soulfrito festival will feature a line-up of “club bangers and Latin trap” that includes urban stars Farruko, Zion y Lennox , Bad Bunny, Cosculluela and Ivy Queen starts the party in Brooklyn on Friday, June 9, at the Barclays Center.
Willie Colon, Eddie Palmieri and Tito Nieves lead the incredible line-up of the 33rd New York Salsa Festival, which takes place Saturday, June 10, also at the Barclay Center. Jerry Rivera, Grupo Niche, Fruko y Sus Tesos, Tito Rojas and DLG are also among the artists scheduled to perform.
The 27-year-old Dominican American singer has earned his 15th No. 1 on Billboard’s Tropical Songs airplay chart as “Deja Vu,” featuring Shakira (who earns her fifth leader), steps 2-1 on the April 29-dated chart.
The lift puts Royce in third place for most chart-toppers on the 23-year-old chart, breaking out of a tie with Gilberto Santa Rosa and Elvis Crespo (each with 14 No. 1s). He is bested only by Marc Anthony and Victor Manuelle, who each lead the pack with 28 No. 1s.
“I feel honored and grateful for being amongst artists I admire. Marc Anthony and Victor Manuelle have been creating great music for so many years and have maintained the tropical genre,” Royce shared with Billboard.
The song reaches the top spot due to a 9 percent audience increase at monitored Latin stations, to 14.3 million impressions in the tracking week ending April 16, according to Nielsen Music.
Further, Royce has earned the 15 crowning hits faster than any other act — six years, six months, and two weeks after is first (“Stand By Me” reached No. 1 on the Aug. 14, 2010 chart). Anthony has the second-fastest accumulation of his first 15 No. 1 hits: seven years, one week (between June 17, 1995, when “Te Conozco Bien” hit No. 1, through June 29, 2002, when “Viviendo” first led the tally).
Royce adds, “Obtaining my 15th number 1 on the Tropical Songs chart in less than seven years is an accomplishment I’m proud of and I’d like to thank my fans, radio programmers, my team and all of the people that have supported my music throughout the years.”
Prince Royce’s 15 No. 1s on Tropical Songs chart Title, peak date (weeks at No. 1)
“Stand By Me,” Aug. 14, 2010 (one week)
“Corazon Sin Cara,” Oct. 23, 2010 (10 weeks)
“El Verdadero Amor Perdona” (Mana featuring Prince Royce), Dec. 10, 2011 (two weeks)
“Las Cosas Pequeñas,” Feb. 4, 2012 (two weeks)
“Incondicional,” June 16, 2012 (two weeks)
“Te Me Vas,” March 2, 2013 (four weeks)
“Darte Un Beso,” Aug. 17, 2013 (seven weeks)
“Te Robare,” March 8, 2014 (two weeks)
“Soy El Mismo,” Aug. 2, 2014 (one week)
“Solita,” March 21, 2015 (one week)
“Que Cosas Tiene El Amor” (Anthony Santos & Prince Royce), June 20, 2015 (one week)
“Culpa Al Corazon,” Feb. 13, 2016 (four weeks)
“La Carretera,” July 9, 2016 (one week)
“Moneda,” featuring Gerardo Ortiz, Jan. 28, 2017 (three weeks)
“Deja Vu,” with Shakira, April 29, 2017 (one week, so far)
On working with Shakira, Royce says the collaboration “has been such a great experience. She’s so talented and professional. The chemistry between us has been great; I love that she’s hands on and has been part of the process since day one.”
“Deja Vu” is the latest single from Royce’s most recent album, Five, which remains at No. 1 for a seventh straight week on the Tropical Albums chart.
The 54-year-old Puerto Rican singer, known as El Caballero de la Salsa, has become a Guinness World Records record-holder.
Santa Rosa has been recognized for having the most No. 1s on Billboard’s Tropical Albums chart.
He’s earned 12 No. 1s since the chart launched in 1985, more than any other act (Victor Manuelle follows with 11).
Guinness World Records presented him with the award at La Salsa Vive, The Concert at Madison Square Garden, where Santa Rosa and other tropical artists, like El Gran Combo, Ruben Blades and Jose Alberto “El Canario” all performed.
Santa Rosa, who began his singing career during the 1980s, earned his first No. 1 in 1992 with Perspectiva — which, with 10 crowning weeks, is his longest-running chart-topper to date. Most recently, Necesito Un Bolero topped the tally on the Feb. 28, 2015 dated list.
Here’s a look at Santa Rosa’s 12 No. 1s on the Tropical Albums chart:
Title, Peak date (weeks at No. 1)
Perspectiva, Jan. 11, 1992 (10 weeks) Esencia, Dec. 7, 1996 (four weeks) Intenso, May 19, 2001 (two weeks) Viceversa, Sept. 21, 2002 (eight weeks) Autentico, Sept. 11, 2004 (one week) Asi Es Nuestra Navidad (with El Gran Combo), Dec. 17, 2005 (two weeks) Dos Soneros, Una Historia (with Victor Manulle), Dec. 31, 2005 (three weeks) Directo Al Corazon, April 1, 2006 (two weeks) Una Navidad Con Gilberto, Dec. 20, 2008 (three weeks) El Caballero De La Salsa: La Historia Tropical, May 30, 2009 (one week) Irrepetible, July 17, 2010 (one week) Necesito Un Bolero, Feb. 28, 2015 (one week)
Guinness World Records adjudicator Raquel Assis bestowed the award to Santa Rosa at the concert. She stated “as the global authority in record-breaking, it is an honor to present Gilberto with this achievement and to be part of a night filled with some of the biggest stars of tropical music.”
In addition to his album achievements, Santa Rosa has also notched several hit songs on the Billboard charts. He holds 10 top 10s on the Hot Latin Songs chart, including a No. 1 with “Que Alguien Me Diga,” which spent three weeks atop the chart in 2000. Over on the Tropical Songs chart, he has notched 14 No. 1s, where he is tied (with Elvis Crespo) for third place among acts with the most chart-toppers.
Gilberto Santa Rosa is heading back to one of New York’s iconic music venues…
The 53-year-old Puerto Rican Salsa singer will return to the iconic Carnegie Hall in New York City for a special performance on Friday, June 3.
The concert, titled The Man & His Music II, will celebrate the brightest moments of Santa Rosa’s musical repertoire, including songs from his latest Latin Grammy-winning album, Necesito Un Bolero.
Twenty one years ago, Santa Rosa, known as “El Caballero de la Salsa,” debuted in Carnegie Hall where he recorded one of his most memorable albums, En Vivo Desde El Carnegie Hall.
Tickets for The Man & His Music II go on sale on Friday, April 1 at 10:00 a.m. through carnegiehall.org.
Santa Rosa currently holds the record for the most number-ones on Billboard’s Tropical Albums chart with 10.
International superstar Shakira is officially this year’s Person of the Year, an award shereceived from the Latin Recording Academy during a star-studded tribute event last night that included a special performance by the Colombian singer’s father.
Latin music’s brightest stars paid homage to the 34-year-old singer during the event at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay. They performed some of biggest hits, including “La Tortura” and “Estoy Aqui” during the two-hour salute to a career that has spanned decades and crossed international borders.
Shakira delightedly watched artists like Cristian Castro, Franco de Vita, Alejandra Guzman and Gilberto Santa Rosa sing her music and went on stage to hug each one after their performance.
But it was a surprise performance by Shakira’s father William Mebarak that served as the highlight of the night. Mebarak took to the stage mid-way through the event and sang “Mi Niña Bonita” to his daughter.
As Mebarak sang the father-daughter tune often heard at Latino weddings and birthday parties, pictures of him with Shakira, flashed on a screen behind him.
“Thank you, daddy, for that song,” Shakira later told her father in Spanish.
Marc Anthony later presented Shakira with her Person of the Year plaque.
“We are in the presence of one of the most special human beings, one of the most talented human beings you will ever meet,” Anthony said.
Shakira—who has sold more than 60 million albums in Spanish and English—is the youngest person to receive the prestigious award. Previous honorees include Carlos Santana, Gloria Estefan and Julio Iglesias.
“I’ll carry this night with me always,” she declared in Spanish after receiving the award. “It’s an honor that I am not sure I deserve, but you’ve made me very happy.”
She ended the night with a performance of “En Barranquilla me quedo,” a tribute to her hometown originally performed by the late Colombian salsa star Joe Arroyo. During the performance, Shakira lifted up the skirt of her sea foam-colored evening gown as she salsa danced across the stage.
