Luis Vazquez Named to Billboard’s 21 Under 21 List

Posted on October 9, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Luis Vazquez is one of the young ones to watch…

The 15-year-old Puerto Rican salsa singer has been named to Billboard’s 21 Under 21 list, which features a mix of young chart-toppers, TikTok stars-turned-artists and on-the-verge breakout acts, among many more making waves in the industry right now.

Vazquez kicked off his music career at just 5 years old, having joined the musical group Los Bravitos de la Plena, founded by his musician father in Puerto Rico.

By 2019, Vazquez was discovered by artist manager Andy Martinez, who signed him to his label, JAK Entertainment, with a 360 deal. Earlier this year, Vazquez, whose biggest inspiration is Victor Manuelle, released “Tu Fan,” an urban-infused salsa track that highlights his crisp, dulcet vocals. “Tu Fan” scored Vazquez his first No. 1 on Billboard’s Tropical Airplay chart, making him the youngest soloist to arrive at the summit since the chart began in October 1994.

But Vazquez isn’t the only Latinx artist to make the list…

Lucia de la Garza, sister Mila de la Garza and their fellow The Linda Lindas members, Bela Salazar and Eloise Wong, have made the cut.

The Linda Lindas first played together in January 2018 (before they were officially a band) when Dum Dum Girls founder Kristin Kontrol had them accompany her at the Los Angeles Girlschool festival.

By April 2019, the Latinx and Asian American punk rockers had opened a one-off date for Bikini Kill. The group has since independently released its debut, self-titled EP; placed a synch in Amy Poehler’s February film Moxie; and in May — after going viral with its anti-intolerance hit “Racist, Sexist Boy” — sisters Lucia and Mila, cousin Eloise and friend Bela signed with Epitaph Records and made their late-night debut on Jimmy Kimmel Live!

Pedro Tovar Jr., Brian Tovar and Ulises Vázquez are also celebrating their place on the list…

Together they form Eslabon Armado.

Just six months after the band’s third album, Corta Venas, debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Regional Mexican Albums chart in January, the teenage band from Patterson, Calif., landed another chart-topper on the tally with Tu Veneno Mortal, Vol. 2. The 12-track set was the act’s fourth No. 1 in less than 13 months. With new member Ulises Vázquez now in tow, the trio — which won top Latin album artist of the year, duo or group at the 2021 Billboard Latin Music Awards — doesn’t plan to slow down.

“I have a new strategy for the remainder of the year: release music when people expect it least,” reveals group member Pedro Tovar. “I want to have that element of surprise like other mainstream artists have done.”

For the complete 21 Under 21 list, click here.

A committee of Billboard editors and reporters weighed a variety of factors in determining the 2021 21 Under 21 list, including, but not limited to, impact on consumer behavior, measured by metrics such as album and track sales, streaming volume (listed here as each artist’s career global total to date), social media impressions and radio/TV audiences reached; career trajectory; and overall impact in the industry, specifically during the past 12 months. Where required, record-label market share was consulted using MRC Data market share for album plus track-equivalent and stream-equivalent album consumption units. Unless otherwise noted, MRC Data is the source for sales/streaming data.

Jessie Reyez Release Modern Soulful Version of Patsy Cline’s “Crazy”

Posted on November 24, 2019 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a Crazytime for Jessie Reyez…

The 28-year-old Colombian singer, who earned her first Grammy nomination this week, has released the music video for her latest track, “Crazy.”

A tribute to Patsy Cline’s 1961 country classic, Reyez dropped her own modern soulful version of the single, as part of Apple Music’s Up Next program.

“Crazy” will form part of Reyez’s debut studio album, slated for an early 2020 release via FMLY/Island.

The gruesome music video shows Reyez covered in blood and fighting for her life after an intense argument with what seems to be her abusive boyfriend.

“Crazy” comes one day after Reyez received the news that her sophomore EP Being Human in Public was nominated for Best Urban Contemporary Albumat the Grammys.

“I was sleeping,” she tells Billboard of how she received the news. “My team showed up with a doughnut and a camera and my parents screaming congrats outside my hotel door. I was like wtf happened!?”

For Reyez, being a Grammy nominee has been a lifelong dream. “The nomination means a lot. I cried,” she admits. “It’s something I’ve thought about since I was a kid. I could say it’s an honor to be nominated, but this kid wants to win!”

Reyez performed “Crazy” on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Thursday night.

Lunay Named Apple Music’s Latest Up Next Artist

Posted on September 17, 2019 by Tom Castaneda

Lunay is Up Next…

The 18-year-old Puerto Rican reggaeton and Latin trap singerhas been anointed Apple Music’s latest Up Next Artist, the streaming platform’s monthly artist initiative aimed at identifying, showcasing and elevating rising talent.

Lunay recently released a new single, “Fin de Semana,” which will be included on his debut album, set for release on September 27.

“Lots of music is on its way,” he enthuses in a statement.

Lunay is best known for his breakout single, “Soltera (Remix)“, on which he appears together with his idol Daddy Yankee and Bad Bunny. Apple Musiccalls him “one of the most exciting new names in the Latin Urban genre” and his music has enjoyed 105 million streams on the streaming platform to-date.

“From the moment I heard Lunay’s first demos I knew that he was an artist that Apple Music should support,” said Apple Music Latin programmer Jerry Pullés. “The melodies were memorable yet fresh and even though he was just starting his career he performed them with the confidence of an A-level artist. Lunay quickly carved out his own lane in reggaetón but once he released ‘Soltera’ it was game over. The song became an anthem almost instantly and secured his position as one of the new stars of Latin Urban music.”

The teenage artist will make his late-night U.S. debut on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on October 2, as part of Apple Music’s Up Next program.

Lunay is interviewed in a new Up Next Short Shot video.

New Trailer Released for Saldana’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2”

Posted on March 3, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

It’s on guard(ian) for Zoe Saldana…

The latest trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, starring the 38-year-old Puerto Rican and Dominican American actress was unveiled by Saldana’s co-star Chris Pratt on Tuesday night’s Jimmy Kimmel Live.

The video features a handful of the same scenes that have been seen in previous trailers and promos, with the superhero team assembling to save the galaxy for a second time, as well as continuing the team’s adventures as they unravel the mystery of Peter Quill’s true parentage.

“Sometimes, the thing you’re searching for your whole life in right there by your side all along,” Pratt’s Star-Lord says in the trailer.

He doesn’t have to wait that long to find the thing he’s been searching for his whole life, as audiences are finally introduced to Star-Lord’s father Ego, played by Kurt Russell.

In addition to Saldana and Pratt, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, directed by James Gunn, also features Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel as Baby Groot.

It opens in theaters on May 5.

Nicky Jam Gives First Performance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

Posted on January 26, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a foreign experience for Nicky Jam…

The 35-year-old Puerto Rican and Dominican American singer-songwriter appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Tuesday night to perform alongside The Americanos, Ty Dolla $ign and French Montana.

Nicky Jam and the gang performed “In My Foreign,” an original song for the film xXx: Return of Xander Cage.

It’s the first time the reggaetonero has performed on ABC‘s late-night show.

Nicky Jam made his big-screen acting debut in the hit film starring Vin Diesel on January 20 — the same day he released his new studio album Fenix, featuring collaborations with J Balvin, Sean Paul and Daddy Yankee.

Maldonado & Pentatonix Groupmates Remain Atop the Billboard 200 for Second Week

Posted on January 2, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Kirstie Maldonado is still basking in the holiday spirit…

The 24-year-old half-Mexican, part Spanish-American singer and her fellow Pentatonix members spend a second week atop the Billboard 200 with their holiday album A Pentatonix Christmas.

The set earned 101,000 equivalent album units in the week ending December 29, 2016 — the final tracking week of the calendar year.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA).

The closing tracking frame of 2016 includes the two days leading up to Christmas Day and the holiday itself, so it’s fitting that a Christmas album leads the tally.

While A Pentatonix Christmas’ total units earned for the week were down by 51 percent, its traditional album sales were greater than any other album: it sold 82,000 copies (down 55 percent), far ahead of the No. 2 selling set of the week, Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic, with 55,000 copies (down 39 percent).

A Pentatonix Christmas‘ handsome sales, along with small declines in SEA and TEA (down 12 and 10 percent, respectively), helps keep the album ahead of the No. 2 set on the Billboard 200, The Weeknd’s former No. 1 Starboy. The latter climbs one rung with 94,000 units (down only 7 percent).

Mars’ 24K Magic dips one slot to No. 3 with 81,000 units (down 29 percent), while J. Cole’s 4 Your Eyez Only is steady at No. 4 with 75,000 units (down 16 percent).

The original Broadway cast recording of Hamilton: An American Musical climbs two positions to No. 5 with 54,000 units (down 7 percent). This is the highest rank for the title in five months, since it also placed at No. 5 on the August 6, 2016-dated list. The album has so far peaked at No. 3 (July 2, 2016), following its 11 Tony Award wins on June 12.

The soundtrack to the animated film Moana jumps 10-6 on the new chart with 53,000 units (up 4 percent), while Twenty One Pilots’ Blurryface vaults 15-7 with 52,000 units (up 37 percent). The latter album benefits from a $5.99 sale price in the Apple iTunes store, as well as promotion generated by the release of Twenty One Pilots’ new EP with MuteMath, The MuteMath Sessions, on Dec. 20. Overall sales of Blurryface were up by 23 percent to 33,000, while its download sales increased by a whopping 268 percent to 20,000.

Maldonado & Her Pentatonix Bandmates’ Christmas Album Reaches No. 1 on Billboard 200 Chart

Posted on December 28, 2016 by Tom Castaneda

Kirstie Maldonado is a woman on top… of the charts…

The 24-year-old half-Mexican, part Spanish-American singer and her fellow Pentatonix members have scored their second No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart.

The vocal group’s Pentatonix Christmas rises 2-1 on the latest list, earning 206,000 equivalent album units in the week ending December 22 (up 32 percent), according to Nielsen Music. Of that sum, 185,000 were in traditional album sales (up 33 percent).

It’s the first holiday album at No. 1 in five years, since Michael Buble’s Christmas ruled the tally for five consecutive weeks on the charts dated December 10, 2011, through January 7, 2012.

Pentatonix previously led the list with its self-titled album, which debuted atop the list in 2015.

The album benefits from not only holiday-fueled purchases, as well as a sale price in the iTunes Store (for just $7.99), but also a number of television appearances from the group during the tracking week. The act’s December 7 performance on ABC‘s Jimmy Kimmel Live! repeated on Dec. 16; NBC‘s A Pentatonix Christmas Special (which premiered on December 14) received an encore airing on December 17; they sang on NBC’s America’s Got Talent Holiday Spectacular on December 19; and they performed on Fox News’ Fox & Friends on December 21 and the syndicated Rachael Ray Show on December 22.

A Pentatonix Christmas is the group’s sixth top 10 album overall, and third holiday effort to reach the region, following 2014’s No. 2-peaking That’s Christmas to Me, and the 2013 PTXmas EP, which climbed to No. 7.

Pentatonix’s latest No. 1 also earns the largest sales week for a holiday album in two years, since Pentatonix’s previous holiday set, That’s Christmas to Me, sold 203,000 copies in the week ending December 21, 2014. In fact, the last acts that weren’t Pentatonix to sell more in a single week with a holiday album were Michael Buble and Justin Bieber during the week ending December 25, 2011. That week, Buble sold 467,000 copies of Christmas, while Bieber moved 225,000 copies of his Under the Mistletoe.

Further, A Pentatonix Christmas is the first album to earn its first week at No. 1 by climbing there — as opposed to debuting or re-entering at No. 1–since Rihanna’s Anti vaulted from No. 27 to No. 1 in its second chart week, on the February 20-dated list.

Also notable, since A Pentatonix Christmas reaches No. 1 in its ninth week on the list, it logs the slowest continuous climb to No. 1 (thus excepting re-entries at No. 1 from Prince’s The Very Best of Prince and Chris Stapleton’s Traveller) since the March 16, 2013-dated list, when Bruno Mars’ Unorthodox Jukebox reached No. 1 in its 12^th week.

Pentatonix’s New Holiday Album On Track to Reach No. 1 on Billboard 200 Chart

Posted on December 22, 2016 by Tom Castaneda

Kirstie Maldonado is ready to rule the roost…

The 24-year-old half-Mexican, part Spanish-American singer and her fellow Pentatonix members are on track for the vocal group’s second No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart, as industry forecasters believe the a cappella act’s latest release, the holiday effort A Pentatonix Christmas, could rise to the top of next week’s list.

Prognosticators say the album could earn over 175,000 equivalent album units in the week ending December 22. That should be enough to easily take over the top spot, as the next closest competitors will likely be The Weeknd’s Starboy album and Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic, with both albums predicted to sell around 100,000 copies for the week.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week based on multi-metric consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). The top 10 of the new January 7, 2017-dated Billboard 200 chart — where A Pentatonix Christmas could rise to No. 1 — is scheduled to be revealed on Billboard’s websites on Monday, December 26.

A Pentatonix Christmas was released through RCA Records on October 21. It debuted at No. 3 on the November 12-dated chart, and has never ranked lower than No. 6 on the list in its eight weeks on the chart. On the latest tally, reflecting the tracking week ending December 15, it climbed from No. 3 to No. 2 with 156,000 units (up from 128,000 the week previous).

The album is basking in the glow of holiday-fueled purchases, as well as a sale price in the iTunes Store (for just $7.99), as well as due to a number of television appearances from the group during the tracking week. The act’s December 7 performance on ABC‘s Jimmy Kimmel Live! repeated on December 16, NBC‘s A Pentatonix Christmas Special (which premiered on Dec. 14) received an encore airing on December 17, and they sang on NBC’s America’s Got Talent Holiday Spectacular on December 19.

If the album reaches No. 1, it will give Pentatonix its second leader, following their self-titled album, which debuted atop the Nov. 7, 2015-dated list. A Pentatonix Christmas is the group’s sixth top 10 album overall, and third holiday effort to reach the region, following 2014’s No. 2-peaking That’s Christmas To Me, and the 2013 PTXmas EP, which climbed to No. 7.

Cruz to Make First Appearance on ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Tom Castaneda

Ted Cruz is heading to late night…

The 45-year-old half-Cuban American U.S. Senator from Texas and Republican presidential candidate will make his first appearance on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Wednesday, March 30.

His visit comes less than a week before Cruz, Donald Trump and John Kasich face off in Wisconsin in the state’s critical primary.

Cruz is the candidate best positioned to defeat current frontrunner Trump for the Republican presidential nomination. Trump has 742 delegates to Cruz’s 462. A total of 1237 delegates are needed to win the nomination.

Jimmy Kimmel Live airs weeknights at 11:35 pm ET on ABC.

Miguel Serenades Unsuspecting Woman with “Coffee” on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

Posted on July 1, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Who wants a cup of joe when you can have a cup of Miguel?

The 29-year-old half-Mexican American Grammy-winning singer-songwriter gave one woman a wake-up call she’ll never forget on Monday night’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! when he unexpectedly serenaded her in a downtown Los Angeles coffee shop.

Miguel, who released his latest album Wildheart this week, sang “Coffee” — a track off the new album — as he walked out of a backroom carrying the surprised customer’s drink. His performance drew a few laughs because he was pronouncing the young woman’s name wrong — but he played it off after she corrected him.

Later on Kimmel’s show, Miguel sang the same song again live.

Wildheart is the follow-up to Miguel’s second album Kaleidoscope Dream, which was releast to critical acclaim in 2012. It spawned the hit single “Adorn,” among others.

Hispanically Yours

Celebrating the Latino Influence

Tag Archives: Jimmy Kimmel Live!