Contraportada
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Los Rakas
[Contraportada, April 3, 2012] Bay Area duo Los Rakas has been releasing tracks since members and cousins Raka Rich and Raka Dun were in their teens. In 2010 they were the darlings of alternative Latin music conference LAMC, and last August they released their “formal” debut, the vibrant EP Chancletas y Camisetas Bordada. In this interview for Contraportada,…
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Blood in the Eyes of Lina Meruane
[Contraportada, March 27, 2010] Chilean writer and NYU professor Lina Meruane came to Contraportada to talk about her new novel, Sangre en el ojo, a semi-biographical (she won’t tell how much) tale on a Chilean writer named Lina Meruane who loses her sight while living in New York. [Watch here]
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Contraportada Is Back
Contraportada, the arts and culture segment I conducted between 2007 and 2011 for NY1 Noticias is back on air. The show returned on January 6 with an interview to up-and-coming Colombian-roots rockers M.A.K.U. Soundsytem, and a few days later with an interview to Guatemalan star Gaby Moreno. This week, it was the turn of flamenco…
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CHIA’s Dance Party: Martín Vejarano’s New Ensemble
Martín Vejarano, restless explorer of Afro-Colombian music and leader of La Cumbiamba eNeYé has a new brainchild: CHIA’s Dance Party, an ensemble of percussion and brass that produces an exciting blend of Colombian rhythms, jazz and contemporary music. Here’s my interview with Vejarano on Contraportada.
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Moona Luna: Songs for a Bilingual Childhood
[Continue reading the article on the Daily News] …and here’s an interview with Moona Luna’s leader, Sandra Velásquez, on Contraportada:
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Pedrito Martínez Makes Noise the Old Fashioned Way
In recent years, Cuban percussionist Pedrito Martínez has become one of the most active Latino musicians in the city. Besides playing his drums for numerous other musicians, he has formed a band of his own Pedrito Martínez Group. With this outfit, he has created a devoted following the old fashioned way: playing energetic weekly gigs at…
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Calle 13: Lifting the Veil
Calle 13 came to Contraportada a few days before the official release of their much-anticipated fourth album, Entren Los Que Quieran. On their second visit to the show, Residente and Visitante talked about the process of creating the album while insisting on their political commitment.
José Manuel Simián 