Wyatt Flores to Perform at 2024 Rock the South Festival

Posted on October 31, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Wyatt Flores is headed to “the biggest part in the south” next year.

Rock the South will return to Cullman, Alabama in 2024 for a three-day festival July 18-20, featuring the Mexican American country singer-songwriter.

In addition to Flores, who has earned acclaim for his single “Please Don’t Go,” joins a roster that includes headliners Eric Church, HARDY and Jelly Roll.

Other artists set to perform at the festival include Oliver Anthony, Parker McCollum, Flatland Cavalry, Warren Zeiders, Priscilla Block, Nelly, Gavin Adcock, Nate Smith and more throughout the three-day event.

As Rock the South continues to grow, organizers have increased the festival site by over 45 percent, invested in infrastructure improvements for campers, and added ways to beat the heat with the Honky Tonk Hideaway, a large-scale air-conditioned Nashville Broadway Experience outfitted with an acoustic stage, line-dancing lessons and more.

Tickets will go on sale on Friday, November 3. Pre-sale registration is now open and ends on Wednesday, November 1)at 10 a.m.

“After being named the Alabama Tourism Department’s Event of the Year, we’re excited to announce this year’s event, building on the success of our record-breaking 2023 and are prepared for 2024 to be the most incredible year yet,” said Nathan Baugh, Pepsi Rock the South partner. “Our biggest focus is always producing an incredible event with music’s biggest names. We love hearing the level of impact Rock the South has in our county and regionally.”

“Crafting the lineup for Pepsi Rock the South 2024 has been an incredible journey. We’ve listened to our fans and aimed for the stars,” said Shane Quick, partner of Pepsi Rock the South. “This year, we’ve brought together an amazing lineup of artists that truly reflects what our fans want to ensure they have an unforgettable three days. We have so many great things in store for Rock the South 2024.”

To learn more about the festival, visit rockthesouth.com.

Swizz Beatz to Participate in Grammys’ Star-Studded Segment Celebrating Hip-Hop’s 50th Anniversary

Posted on February 2, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Swizz Beatz is helping celebrating hip-hop history…

The 65th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, February 5, will feature a star-studded segment celebrating the 50th anniversary of hip-hop that will include the 44-year-old half-Puerto Rican recording artist, music producer and entrepreneur.

With a career spanning over two decades, his catalog includes “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem“, “Party Up (Up in Here)” (DMX), “Gotta Man” (Eve), “Jigga My Nigga“, “Girl’s Best Friend” (Jay-Z), “Upgrade U“, “Check on It“, “Ring the Alarm” (Beyoncé), “Good Times” (Styles P), “Bring ‘Em Out“, “Swing Ya Rag” (T.I.), “Hotel“, “I’m a Hustla” (Cassidy), “Touch It” (Busta Rhymes), “Ultralight Beam” (Kanye West), and more.

In addition to Beatz, the segment will include performances by Big Boi, Busta Rhymes with Spliff Star, De La Soul, DJ Drama, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Missy Elliott, Future, GloRilla, Grandmaster Flash, Grandmaster Mele Mel & Scorpio/Ethiopian King, Ice-T, Lil Baby, Lil Wayne, The Lox, Method Man, Nelly, Public Enemy, Queen Latifah, Rahiem, Rakim, RUN-DMC, Salt-N-Pepa and Spinderella, Scarface and Too $hort.

LL Cool J will introduce the segment, perform and give a dedication to hip-hop.

Questlove will serve as producer and musical director, The Roots will provide music and Black Thought will narrate.

“For five decades, hip-hop has not only been a defining force in music, but a major influence on our culture,” Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, said in a statement. “Its contributions to art, fashion, sport, politics, and society cannot be overstated. I’m so proud that we are honoring it in such a spectacular way on the Grammy stage. It is just the beginning of our yearlong celebration of this essential genre of music.”

The Grammys will also honor hip-hop with one of three breakout performances in this year’s In Memoriam segment.

On Wednesday (Feb. 1), the Academy announced that the In Memoriam segment at the 2023 Grammy Awards will include breakout tributes to three diverse artists who died last fall — Loretta Lynn, Christine McVie and Takeoff.

Kacey Musgraves will perform Lynn’s 1970 classic “Coal Miner’s Daughter” in tribute to the country legend, who died on October 4 at age 90; Sheryl Crow, Mick Fleetwood and Bonnie Raitt will team to perform “Songbird” from Fleetwood Mac’s album of the year-winning Rumours to honor McVie, who died on November 30 at age 79; and Maverick City Music will join Quavo for Quavo’s sentimental ballad “Without You” to honor Takeoff, who died on November 1 at just 28.

Also, Cardi B, who four years ago became the first female solo artist to win a Grammy for best rap album, will serve as a presenter on the show.

And the Grammys aren’t done celebrating hip-hop’s anniversary. In partnership with the Recording Academy, CBS will broadcast a special hip-hop music event later in 2023.

The 65th Annual Grammy Awards will air live from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles and will be hosted for the third year in a row by Emmy-winning comedian Trevor Noah. The show will be broadcast live on Sunday, February 5, at 8:00 pm ET/5:00 pm PT on CBS and will be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+.

Mariah Carey to Perform at This Year’s Lovers & Friends Fest in Las Vegas

Posted on January 22, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Mariah Carey will be celebrating with lovers and friends…

The 52-year-old half-Venezuelan American Grammy-winning singer will perform at this year’s Lovers & Friends Fest, presented by Usher.

The one-day only festival will take place on May 6 at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds; and it’s proving to be a star-studded smörgåsbord of nostalgia for Y2K natives and newcomers alike. The festival also recruited some 2010s and 2020s favorites for their 45-act festival.

In addition to Carey and Usher, featured artists and groups will include Christina Aguilera, Frankie J, Missy Elliott, Chris Brown, Nelly, Busta Rhymes, Flo Rida, Master P and No Limit Soldiers, Sean Paul, Shaggy, Beenie Man, Chris Brown, Ginuwine, Remy Ma, JoJo, En Vogue, Blackstreet, Jagged Edge, Next, Wayne Wonder, Kevin Lyttle, 702, Lumidee and many, many more.

The festival is perfectly positioned amidst the ongoing early 2000s obsession in popular culture, with TikTokers promoting over-the-ear headphones, low rise jeans, rhinestones and paper-thin brows–in other words, the Y2K starter pack.

This year’s Lovers & Friends will be promoted by C3 (Austin City Limits Music Festival and Lollapalooza), with general ticket sales available on loversandfriendsfest.com. Individual ticket prices range from $250 to $585.

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Anuel AA Earns Fourth No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums Chart with “Las Leyendas Nunca Mueren”

Posted on December 8, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Make that for in a row for Anuel AA.

The 29-year-old Puerto Rican rapper and singer has collected his fourth straight, and total, No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart as Las Leyendas Nunca Mueren debuts at No. 1 on the December 11-dated survey.

Anuel’s third studio album – a follow up to Los Dioses, with Ozuna, which also had a No. 1 debut (February 6-dated list) – is his second leader of 2021.

Las Leyendas Nunca Mueren opened with 22,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending December 2, according to MRC Data. Most of that sum (20,500) was driven by streaming activity, representing 30.2 million on-demand streams of the set’s 16 tracks, while a little over 1,000 units arrive from traditional album sales. The rest comprises track equivalent album units. (One unit equals one album sale, 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams for a song on the album.)

Las Leyendas is Anuel’s fourth leader in as many appearances on the all-Latin genre tally.

His first chart success arrived in July 2018 when album debut Real Hasta La Muerte bowed at No. 1 and held at the summit for two consecutive weeks (a 135-week run).

Emmanuel, which remains at No. 20 on the current ranking, concurrently opened at No. 1 less than a year later (June 13, 2020-dated chart).

Las Leyendas, released via his own label Real Hasta La Muerte, congregates a group of producers including Chris Jeday, Gaby Music, Tainy, Nelly “El Arma Secreta,” and Ovy on The Drums.

It likewise earns Anuel his fourth No. 1 on Latin Rhythm Albums among six entries. The set concurrently gifts Anuel his fourth entry on the all-genre Billboard 200, starting at No. 30.

Nine Leyendas cuts debut on the all-metric (airplay, digital sales, streaming data) Hot Latin Songs chart. However, the set was preceded by two songs: “Dictadura” (No. 12 debut and peak, Nov. 13) and “Leyenda” (No. 21 debut and peak, Nov. 27).

In total, Anuel places 12 titles on the current survey (including “Ley Seca,” with Jhay Cortez), the most since his pair-up with Ozuna on Los Dioses placed 13 simultaneous tracks (February 6-dated tally).

Here’s a recap of all Anuel’s titles on Hot Latin Songs (11 belonging to Leyendas):

No. 12, “Súbelo” (Greatest Gainer/ Airplay)
No. 16, “Ley Seca,” with Jhay Cortez
No. 24, “North Carolina” (debut)
No. 25, “McGregor” (debut)
No. 26, “Dictadura”
No. 31, “Real Hasta La Muerte” (debut)
No. 33, “Llorando En Un Ferrari” (debut)
No. 36, “Leyenda” (Greatest Gainer/ Sales & Streaming)
No. 39, “1942” (debut)
No. 41, “Rick Flair” (debut)
No. 44, “Pin” (debut)
No. 48, “Esa Cruz” (debut)

Victor Fontanez, aka VicBlends, Signs with William Morris Endeavor (WME)

Posted on November 23, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Victor Fontanez has new representation…

William Morris Endeavor (WME) has signed the 22-year-old part-Latino social media star, known commonly as VicBlends, for representation in all areas.

The agency will build his business across non-scripted television, podcasting, speaking, brand partnerships, licensing and beyond.

Fontanez, a barber and entrepreneur, has grown his side hustle from cutting hair in his mom’s garage to becoming a renowned celebrity barber and business mogul.

In under a year, he has amassed more than 9M followers and over 100M likes on TikTok. He also has a significant following on Instagram with 1.2M followers and YouTube with 555K subscribers.

Fontanez recently got off tour with Lil Baby, and his client list includes NLE Choppa, Nelly, Trae Young and Polo G. He is a barber by trade, but changing lives is his mission. On social media he shares inspiring videos of him giving out free haircuts to unassuming strangers. During these cuts, he engages in deep conversations from home life to personal dreams to sports to relationship advice. Giving back to his community and leaving a legacy are two major goals for Fontanez, which prompted him to launch Vic Blends Academy.

His barber school, The Vic Blends Academy, is an online curriculum for the next generation of barbers. Also he recently announced the launch of the first licensed barber schools in California prison history. This program, created with producer and social justice advocate Scott Budnick, will give prisoners the opportunity to obtain their barber’s license while incarcerated with hopes of setting them up for success upon release.

Fontanez previously was represented by A3 Artists Agency.

Fat Joe to Perform at Mexico’s Golden Sand Music Festival in January

Posted on September 8, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Fat Joe is heading south (of the border) for the winter…

The 51-year-old Puerto Rican and Cuban American rapper has been added to the throwback lineup for the Golden Sand music festival, which will hit the beach from January 12-16 in Maya Riviera, Mexico.

In addition to Fat Joe, who will face off against Ja Rule in an all-new Verzuz battle this month, the fest will feature a mix of classic R&B and hip-hop stars including 50 Cent, Flo Rida, Kelly Rowland, Lil Kim, Ludacris, Nelly, Sean Paul, T-Pain and TLC.

The site for the Pollen Presents produced event promises to “throw it back to sunnier days and simpler times. 4 days and 4nights in a 5* resort with all food and drink included, featuring the biggest names from the 90s and 00s.”

Among the other promised experiences at the 18+ event are an: opening ceremony, three daytime pool parties, daily yoga, meditation and wellness sessions, sunset beachside cookout, Saturday cartoons & cereal, throwback video game lounge, film screenings with a twist, adventure park with ATVS & more and a COVID-19 money back guarantee.

Visitors at the festival on the Caribbean coastline of Mexico’s northeastern Yucatán Peninsula will stay at the Barceló Riviera Maya resort, which is spread across the Maya Riviera, Maya Beach and Maya Caribe. The event features a COVID-19 money back guarantee, which offers a complete refund if the experience is canceled by Pollen, it is rescheduled to a later date the ticket buyer doesn’t want to attend, the ticket buyer tests positive for COVID-19 within 14 days of the start date and there is a quarantine rule in effect six weeks prior to departure and the ticket holder doesn’t wish to travel.

Adrian Quesada & His Black Pumas to Perform at Milwaukee’s Summerfest

Posted on May 9, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Adrian Quesada has some big summer plans…

The Grammy Award-winning producer and guitarist and his Black Pumas will be performing at one of summer’s staple events, Milwaukee’s Summerfest.

The festival is back this year with a packed lineup after taking 2020 off due to the global coronavirus pandemic. After canceling for the first time in its 53-year history, organizers announced the star-studded roster of acts slated to perform over three weekends: September 2-4, 9-11 and 16-18.

In addition to Quesada’s Black Pumas taking the stage, the nation’s biggest music festival will feature headline sets in the 23,000-capacity American Family Insurance Amphitheater from Miley Cyrus, Luke Bryan, Chance the Rapper, the Jonas Brothers, Chris Stapleton, and Dave Matthews Band, as well as performances from Sheryl Crow, the Zac Brown Band, Gabby Barrett and 24kGoldn.

Others on tap to play are 311, Run the Jewels, Brett Eldredge, G-Eazy, Wilco, Diplo, Charlie Wilson, Pixies, ZZ Top, Rise Against, Fitz and the Tantrums, Dirty Heads, Jake Owen, Bleachers, Flo Rida, Lindsey Stirling, Goo Goo Dolls, T-Pain, Ludacris, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, The Struts, Nelly, Cam, Blanco Brown, Sugarhill Gang, Psychedelic Furs, Maddie & Tae, Liz Phair, Claud and many more.

“We could not be more excited to unveil the lineup for Summerfest,” Milwaukee World Festival Inc. President/CEO Don Smiley said in a statement. “From first-timers, including Chance the Rapper, Miley Cyrus, and Run the Jewels, to Fest favorites including Dave Matthews Band, T-Pain, Styx and Chris Stapleton, our lineup continues to be one of the most diverse and unique in the industry.”

Summerfest has traditionally run from late June to early July over an 11-day stretch, but this year organizers have pushed it back to the fall as the nationwide COVID-19 vaccine roll-out continues and the nation attempts to reach herd immunity.

Jennifer Lopez Ends 2020 with Powerful & Emotional “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” Performance

Posted on January 1, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Jennifer Lopez has ended the year as the belle of the (crystal) ball…

The 51-year-old Puerto Rican superstar closed out 2020 with a powerful and emotional performance on Thursday night, while taking the stage in New York’s Times Square.

Lopez, who headlined the 49th annual Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve With Ryan Seacrest 2021 on ABC. began by standing on a 20-foot tall column with a white coat covered in six large white feathered layers that cascaded all the way to the ground. JLo donned a glittery diamond head mask before taking it off, tossing off the massive coat, and showing off a glittering tight pants and a blazer with dramatic shoulders.

While performing her latest single “In the Morning,” J.Lo took a moment to reflect on the challenging year and remember the people we lost during the pandemic.

“2020 is almost over. We made it. We made it,” she said before getting teary-eyed. “If this year taught us anything, it taught us to be grateful for what we do have — to cherish every moment. We lost too many. Too many.”

Lopez also performed a montage of her hit songs, including “Dance Again” and “Waiting for Tonight,” and delivered a dazzling cover of Aerosmith‘s “Dream On.”

“Tonight we’re going to live, we’re going to love and we’re going to dance again,” she added, referring to her 2012 song “Dance Again.” “And we’re going to keep on dreaming. Twenty years ago, I sang this song, and we never needed it more than tonight.”

In addition to Lopez, the New Years Rockin’ Eve special also featured performances by Miley Cyrus, Billy Porter, Cyndi Lauper, Nelly and others.

Justina Machado to Compete on ABC’s Upcoming Season of “Dancing With The Stars”

Posted on September 2, 2020 by Tom Castaneda

Justina Machado’s ready to paso doble her way into your hearts…

The 47-year-old Puerto Rican actress, who currently stars on PopTV’s One Day at a Time, will compete on ABC’s Dancing With The Stars this season.

Machado will compete against Tiger King’s Carole Baskin, rapper Nelly, Selling Sunset’s Chrishell Stause and NBA legend Charles Oakley among others for the coveted DTWS mirrorball trophy.

The ABC celebrity ballroom dancing competition series, based on the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing, will premiere on September 14 with new host Tyra Banks.

This season’s other competirors include Monica Aldama, star of Netflix’s Cheer, Disney Channel actress Skai Jackson, The Real’s Jeannie Mai, Catfish’s Nev Schulman, Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir, Super Bowl champion Vernon Davis, Anne Heche, Backstreet Boys member AJ McLean, and The Bachelor’s Kaitlyn Bristowe.

This season’s professional dancers include Brandon Armstrong, Alan Bersten, Sharna Burgess, Cheryl Burke, Artem Chigvintsev, Val Chmerkovskiy, Sasha Farber, Jenna Johnson, Daniella Karagach, Keo Motsepe, Peta Murgatroyd, Pasha Pashkov, Gleb Savchenko, Emma Slater and Britt Stewart.

In addition to hosting, Banks will also serve as an executive producer this season. She replaces Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews as the show’s host in season 29.

One of the challenges for this season is to ensure that the production adheres to COVID-19 protocols, a trickier move for a dance competition format than many other productions. Details of the health and safety protocols and other format refreshes are expected imminently.

Ryan Vasquez to Star in Ross Golan’s Musical “The Wrong Man”

Posted on July 26, 2019 by Tom Castaneda

Ryan Vasquez is in the Wrong…

The Latino actor/singer has been cast in the world premiere in New York this September of multi-platinum songwriter Ross Golan’s musical The Wrong Man.

Vasquez will star opposite Tony-nominee Joshua Henry and Ciara Renéein the musical.

The Wrong Man is set in Reno, Nevada, and tells the story of Duran, a man just scraping by, who is accused of a murder he says he didn’t commit.

Golan’s first stage musical was initially conceived as an acoustic solo piece, but over a decade has grown to include a full-length concept album and an animated film.

Previews begin on Wednesday, September 18, with an opening night of October 7, at the Off Broadway MCC Theater.

Golan (book, music, lyrics) has written massive hits for a massive roster of artists including Maroon 5, Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj, Lady Antebellum, Michael Bublé, Selena Gomez, Keith Urban, Ariana Grande, Flo Rida, One Direction, Idina Menzel, Nelly, Demi Lovato, Jason Derulo, Meghan Trainor, Cee Lo Green, 5 Seconds of Summer, Prince Royce, Snoop Dogg, Gavin DeGraw, Colbie Caillat, Andy Grammer, James Blunt, Big Sean and Travis Barker.

Vasquez has appeared on Broadwayin Hamilton, Waitress and Wicked, and on television in The Good Fight, Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Code.

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