Beat Latino with Catalina Maria Johnson

We celebrate our Pachamama with tunes from Bolivia, Peru, Chile, Guatemala, Colombia, Brazil and Latine musicians from the USA with roots in Ecuador, Mexico…throughout our lands, nuestra música shares the beauties of Pachamama and exhorts us to take good care of her! Happy Earth Day! ¡Feliz Día de la Tierra!

This week, Beat Latino celebrates immigrant workers, and honors the memory of Miguel Luna, Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, Dorlian Cabrera, José Maynor Lopez, Maynor Yassir Suazo Sandoval, Carlos LNU — Immigrant workers fixing potholes in the middle of the night on the Francis Scott Key Bridge, named for the author of the Star-Spangled Banner. They were killed when the bridge collapsed. Songs from musicians with roots in their homelands – Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador are the selection of this week’s Beat Latino. ¡Vivan all immigrant workers! 

It’s a very special edition of Beat Latino dedicated to the divine Femme, closing out a month dedicated to Women’s HerStory. Songs by, for and about women from Mexico, Argentina, Guatemala, Spain, Colombia, Chile, Peru and more spaces where nuestra musica thrives. Enjoy!

We have a change of seasons happening and lunar and solar eclipses coming up!. This week, we have songs centering the moon and sun for Eclipse Season on Beat Latino…from the romantic to the heart-broken to the joyful, a selection of tunes from Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Guatemala and beyond as we celebrate the sources of light in our skies and beauty on our earth. Enjoy!

This week’s Beat Latino goes Old School! A musical paseo and exploration of the classics: AfroLatine Divas of nuestra música from Cuba, Uruguay, Perú, México, Venezuela…and beyond. The amazing and legendary Divas whose songs are the soundtracks for generations of Latines. Enjoy! Featured photo: Omara Portuondo

This week’s Beat Latino is an exploration of Nuevo Folk Folklorico from LatinE lands! A selection of lovely, chill, folksy, rootsy tunes that take the strands of our folkloric and ancient traditions and weave songs anew for the 21st century! From Mexico, Colombia, Spain, Argentina, Dominican Republic, our folk folklórico is still a relevant part of our musical creativity. Sit back, sip an appropriate libation, and enjoy!

This week’s Beat Latino goes to the movies! A selection of classics from the past to today: Songs from the soundtracks of movies which were composed, produced, arranged and curated by Latines. Nuestra Música at the movies, making its mark on Hollywood and beyond! Feature photo: Oscar Statuette (The famous golden statue was inspired by Mexican actor and director Emilio Fernandez!) 

This week’s Beat Latino selection is new music by women for our celebration of International Women’s Day and Women’s Herstory Month! New music by femme-fronted artists from all over the Americas and Spain, with tunes about romance, power, resilience and joy. Enjoy!

his week’s Beat Latino celebrates Victor Jara, Chilean folk singer and founder of the Nueva Canción Movement with a selection of his and other folk singers’ classic protest songs from the 70’s onward. At the 50th year mark after his death, Victor continues to be an icon illuminating the way forward and was recently awarded the Legacy – Lifetime Achievement Award by Folk Alliance International. We also include comments from an insightful conversation we had with  Rodrigo Cepeda Planas, Chilean radio host and music journalist, Director of the Festival de Música del Mundo which is celebrated in Santiago, Chile. 

Featured photo: Victor Jara

This week’s selection for Beat Latino is a prime example of just why we do this! Amazing creative soundscapes from Ecuador and Switzerland (Hermanos Gutierrez) Mexico (Abel Ibañez) Guatemala (Gaby Moreno) Galicia (Baiuca) and Chile (Newen Afrobeat) and more! All new, all surprising as always – nuestra música latina! Enjoy!