Puerto Rico

This year's theme of the Banco Popular de Puerto Rico Christmas Special, "De Puerto Rico Para el Mundo" focuses on the very relevant topic of the Puerto Rican diaspora. The diaspora is a relevant topic because the number of Puerto Ricans…

Willie Colon launched his 50 Anniversary Tour in Puerto Rico, which made me reflect on the career accomplishments of this Salsa music legend. A mediocre musician per his own admission, Willie Colon became Salsa music star since his teen…

If you have less than 2 minutes and care about the Puerto Rican music rhythm of Bomba, here's a great snippet of Bomba history. A main Puerto Rican newspaper published a short article on 5 early influencers of Bomba. It was from these…

The 2015 "Serie del Caribe" brings together 5 Latin American countries that have great baseball and great music for a week of competition and entertainment. This spirit is embodied in Plena Libre's song "El Barrio Esta Encendido". Plena…

There are persistent rumors and signs that support them (I include a couple in this blog) that the recent retirement of Charlie Aponte from El Gran Combo is a symptom of dysfunction within the Puerto Rican Salsa group. The rumors started…

"Que Lindo es Puerto Rico" is the title of the 2014 Banco Popular Christmas special. This is a well-produced special where various types of music serve as frames for a tour around Puerto Rico. Tourism Central Theme in "Que Lindo es Puerto…

The Puerto Rican tradition of "parrandas", also known as an "asalto navideño" seems to be in steady decline. Although there are pockets where the tradition is still alive, the general Puerto Rican population is seeing less "parrandas".…

In case you're asking, Puerto Rican "bomba" is doing fine, thank you! The group "Hijos de Agueybana", a bomba music and dance group, is visiting Seattle spreading the good vibes to Puerto Ricans, Latinos, and the general public in the…

Not saying this is the first time El Gran Combo records social themes. “Los Mulatos del Sabor” have been recording a variety of messages on their Salsa music. This time, they want to provide a positive message with "Echar Pa' Lante".…