Tag Archives: Junot Díaz

Estefan to Serve as Honorary Co-Chair of Univision & Fusion Media Group’s “Rise Up as One” Event

Posted on by
Reply

Gloria Estefan is ready to rise up…

The 59-year-old Cuban singer-songwriter and her husband, Emilio Estefan, have been named as honorary co-chairs of Univision and Fusion Media Group‘s “Rise Up as One” event — a two-day celebration of music, diversity and unity, taking place on October 14 and 15.

Gloria Estefan

The Estefans will serve as co-chairs alongside Calle 13‘s René Pérez aka Residente.

Also attached to the project are Junot Díaz, Ava DuVernay, America Ferrera, Salma Hayek, Samuel L. Jackson, Quincy Jones, Mía Maestro, Jonathan Olinger, Robert Rodriguez and Forest Whitaker, among other artists, thought leaders and influencers.

“We’re honored to have such a diverse group of inspiring and talented individuals joining us to celebrate who we are and the way we live through this unprecedented event. Their passion and commitment will help us put a spotlight on the power of inclusivity in a changing America,” said Camila Jimenez Villa, Fusion Media Group Co-President and COO.

The two-day event will wrap up with a free ticketed concert headlined by artists and musicians that are yet to be announced.

The concert will broadcast live on October 15 on Univision and Fusion at 7 p.m. ET.

Pitbull Graces the Cover of Rolling Stone’s First Bilingual Issue

Posted on by
Reply

Pitbull is rolling his way into the history books…

The 31-year-old Cuban American hip-hop sensation graces the cover of Rolling Stone’s first bilingual issue in the magazine’s 45-year-history.

Pitbull's Rolling Stone Cover

Pitbull appears on a secondary cover, complete with the Rolling Stone nameplate and cover lines entirely en español on the back page of the magazine’s November 22 issue.

Pitbull’s cover opens to a 15-page special section, Latin Hot List, which features Hispanic artists,  musicians and luminaries like Puerto Rican rap group Calle 13, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Junot Díaz, Emmy-nominated actress Sofia Vergara and more.

“This section was an incredible opportunity for us to dive deep into Latin music and culture, from Pitbull to Café Tacuba,” said Nathan Brackett, Rolling Stone Deputy Managing Editor in a press release. “We are thrilled with the results.

The November 22 issue has articles written in English with interview sidebars in Spanish — and no translations.

Martinez Nominated for National Book Award

Posted on by
Reply

Domingo Martinez is having a royally remarkable year…

Domingo Martinez

Not only is the 40-year-old Mexican American writer a 2013 Pushcart Prize nominee, but the National Book Foundation has also just selected him as a finalist for this year’s National Book Awards.

The Brownsville, Texas native’s novel The Boy Kings of Texas appears on the short list of nominees in the non-fiction category. It’s up against books by Anne Applebaum, Katherine Boo, Robert A. Caro and Anthony Shadid.

The Boy Kings of Texas

Martinez’s lyrical and gritty memoir, published by Lyons Press, is an authentic coming-of-age story that centers on a family living on the Texas-Mexico border.

Meanwhile, Junot Díaz, who recently received a lucrative “genius grant” from the MacArthur Foundation, is nominated in the fiction category for his critically acclaimed collection of short stories entitled, This Is How You Lose Her.

The National Book Foundation will announce the winners of the National Book Awards on November 14 in New York.

Here’s a look at this year’s finalists:

FICTION

Junot Díaz, This Is How You Lose Her (Riverhead Books)
Dave Eggers, A Hologram for the King (McSweeney’s Books)
Louise Erdrich, The Round House (Harper)
Ben Fountain, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk (Ecco)
Kevin Powers, The Yellow Birds (Little, Brown and Company)

NON-FICTION:

Anne Applebaum, Iron Curtain: The Crushing of Eastern Europe, 1945-1956 (Doubleday)
Katherine Boo, Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity (Random House)
Robert A. Caro, The Passage of Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Volume 4 (Knopf)
Domingo Martinez, The Boy Kings of Texas (Lyons Press)
Anthony Shadid, House of Stone: A Memoir of Home, Family, and a Lost Middle East (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

Diaz Receives Genius Grant From MacArthur Foundation

Posted on by
Reply

There’s no denying Junot Díaz is a literary genius, especially after picking up a Pulitzer Prize for his novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. But now he has official proof.

The 43-year-old Dominican-American novelist and creative writing professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has received a genius grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

Junot Diaz

The 500,000 award, which is paid over five years, gives recipients the freedom to pursue a creative vision while receiving their funds. Winners, who work in fields ranging from medicine and science to the arts and journalism, don’t have to report how they spend the money.

“It would never have dawned on me to think such a thing was possible for me,” Díaz said, reflecting on his early years in New Jersey “struggling with poverty, struggling with English. … I came from a community that was about as hard-working as you can get and yet no one saw or recognized in any way our contributions or our genius. … I have to wonder, but for circumstances, how many other kids that I came up with are more worthy of this fellowship than me?”

But Díaz isn’t the only Latino on the list of 23 genius grant recipients this year.

Natalia Almada, a 37-year-old Mexico City-based documentary filmmaker. who explores views of Mexican history, politics, and culture, also received a grant.

In all, the MacArthur Foundation has awarded a total of 873 grants to date.