Highly Relevant Podcast

This week we’re focusing on Spanish-language news. As you might have already heard, Univision news anchor Maria Elena Salinas announced her departure last week and it has left many unanswered questions: Why is she really leaving? What triggered her departure? Where is she going? Does Salinas already have a job lined up with an English-language network? Veronica Villafañe, editor-in-chief of Mediamoves.com and Hispanic media reporter for Forbes Magazine, joins me to discuss her exclusive interview with Salinas herself and what does not only her future hold, but what is the future of Spanish-language news as we know it? 

Also, can you imagine NY’s El Diario La Prensa, the country’s oldest Spanish-language newspaper, written in English? I chat with Rafael Cores, VP of Digital Content for Impremedia, about how the paper is modernizing its ways and defying the challenges of its demographics and business marketplace. 

That plus the latest in music, movies and tv on the Highly Relevant Podcast!

EPISODE SUMMARY

Veronica Villafañe talks Maria Elena Salinas - 1:23

Thoughts on Salinas' next step 2:02

Why English-language media didn't cover Salinas with the same zest as NBC's Tom Brokaw? 4:45

Salinas' chances of working in English 7:04

Reasons why Salinas might have left 15:39

How will Univision News fare without Maria Elena Salinas? 21:17

Afro-Latina Ilia Calderon as replacement could make a major statement to POC in Spanish news 23:39

What is the future of Spanish-language news? 25:14

JackedIN (recap of pop culture stories) - 30:18

Rafael Cores on 'El Diario La Prensa' and the state of Spanish language newspapers - 32:15

What is Impremedia? 33:09

Rafael's start in the media business: 34:34

Challenges of the Spanish-language newspaper business 37:10

How to transform a print business to digital 39:38

Has the new modern approach alienated older readers 43:45

Hispanics use Facebook for news more than any other platform 45:06

Should newspapers disappear and be converted directly to digital? 46:42

Will 'El Diario La Prensa' go English someday? 51:02

Thoughts on New York Times en Español 56:07

Thoughts on Maria Elena Salinas departure 58:48

This week's music playlist - 1hr

Internacionales - Bomba Estereo

What About Us - Pink

X - Prince Royce (feat. Zendaya)

Singer Pedro Capó on become a professional singer and songwriting inspiration - 1hr 1m

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On the podcast this week, we talk MTV's TRL reboot and how they need to seize the Latino music opportunity to be successful, plus, we discuss HBO and it’s controversial new slave series CONFEDERATE with the creator of the #OscarSoWhite April Reign. She and four women have now created the #NoConfederate campaign to boycott the show. Will HBO succumb to social media pressure?

Also, Venezuela has spun into utter chaos and the US has imposed financial sanctions that could cripple it for good. Rafael Bernal, reporter for The Hill Latino, joins me to discuss how these sanctions will affect gas prices in the US and if Venezuela will ever regain its prosperity. 

And if you’re interested in knowing what to watch this month, I had a chance to visit the TODAY Show with my August Preview of what to see in theaters and on TV. 

EPISODE SUMMARY

MTV's TRL reboot and the Latino opportunity :15

The Hill Latino's Rafael Bernal on Venezuela and its murky future 4:33

JackedIN (recap of pop culture stories) - 22:11

April Reign discusses her new social media campaign #NoConfederate against HBO - 23:39

This week's music playlist - 31:05

Unforgettable (Latin Remix) - French Montana (feat. J Balvin) 

Rollin - Calvin Harris (feat. Future and Khalid)

Gran Ciudad (Barzo Remix) - Debi Nova 

TODAY Show August Movie and TV Preview 32:10

Univision's Jorge Ramos TED Talk on Journalism 35:34

Would you like to get in touch with us? Email us at [email protected] and help us spread the word on social media:

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On this episode, we talk J Balvin's 'Mi Gente'. Many people are already calling it the next 'Despacito' phenomenon for its potential to become #1 on the HOT 100. So... can it make it to #1? 

We also review Romeo Santos' new album 'Golden' with Isabela Raygoza, Rolling Stone Magazine’s Latina music critic, who also discusses with us her Q&A with Romeo and whether he can make Bachata mainstream in America. 

And, how is the Prince Royce tour going? I speak with singer and good friend, Cáthia, who is currently touring with him as his back-up singer, on an impromptu phone call where she tells me the inside details of her sexy solos she performs with Royce every night, how she got the gig and how she felt to sing in her front of her hometown NY at MSG.

EPISODE SUMMARY

Can J Balvin's 'Mi Gente' Become #1 on Billboard's HOT 100? :28

Rolling Stone Magazine's Isabela Raygoza reviews Romeo Santo's new album "Golden" 4:33

Lack of Latina music critics 4:58

How did she started writing for Rolling Stone Magazine 7:02

The business of crossing over artists to the mainstream in print 9:04

Reviewing Romeo Santos' "Golden" album 10:11

Isabela's impressions of the album: 11:53

Why Romeo has no interest in singing in English or crossing over: 13:26

What Romeo ultimately want to achieve as an artist: 17:50

Favorite tracks from "Golden": 21:02

Does Romeo's arrogance turn people off: 22:20

Jesse Reyez and Romeo's new sonic explorations: 24:30

JackedIN (recap of pop culture stories) - 27:03

Cáthia discusses being back-up singer and singing solo with Prince Royce on Five World tour - 28:59

This week's music playlist - 40:42

Bella y Sensual - Romeo Santos (feat. Nicky Jam and Daddy Yankee)

Sit Next To Me - Foster The People

Edge of the Night - Sheppard (feat. Colombian Sebastian Yatra)

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On episode 41, we talk Despacito with Senior Media Reporter from the NY POST, Claire Atkinson, to breakdown for me how the song became that big and how much $$ she thinks Justin Bieber made from this summer hit. Also, Colombian director Tomas Reyes, who did an English language documentary about healthy living called BEYOND FOOD, stops by to discuss how you can improve your health by making more educated decisions.

On today’s episode 40, all our guests are once again diverse and we pride ourselves in that. We talk to Wilson Morales, Editor-in-Chief of Blackfilm.com to discuss the Best Movies of 2017... So Far. Did Wonder Woman make our cut?

Then, we talk War For Planet of the Apes. I sat down with American-Honduran actor Gabriel Chavarria, who plays the Preacher in the film, to talk his emotional reaction of being cast in the film, the time he quit acting, what it means to be an American Latino and where he gets his confidence when dealing with rejection.

And finally, it’s been a crazy week in sports. We had MLB’s HomeRun Derby and All-Star Game, the ESPY’S, The Gold Cup and the rumors about the Knicks Puerto Rican star, Carmelo Anthony, being traded to the Houston Rockets. ESPN’s Cristian Moreno recaps everything you need to know.

EPISODE SUMMARY

Takeaways from HBO's 'The Defiant Ones' Documentary :47

1. Absurd work ethic: Bruce Springsteen and Bono took Jimmy Iovine to his physical limits and that’s where he learned that to be truly successful, you have to live your job or project. You can’t half-ass it.

2. Believing in your work: Dre experienced unanimous rejection for his album The Chronic, but he knew he had something special and after knocking on dozens of doors, he met Jimmy Iovine and the rest is music history.

3. Gut Feeling: Dre and Jimmy always had taste and a nose for talent. They listened to their gut and it brought them to the promise land.

4. Pure luck: This is what you heard Dre say at the beginning of the podcast. Without luck, you will see results with the aforementioned factors, but with luck, you’ll go supernova. 

Wilson Morales on the 'Best Movies of 2017... So Far' - 3:07

Our Top 5 Movies

JackedIN (recap of pop culture stories) - 27:44

Gabriel Chavarria Interview on 'War For Planet of the Apes' - 30:15

This week's music playlist - 50:34

Me Llamas - Piso 21 (feat. Maluma)

Sorry Not Sorry - Demi Lovato

Por Un Beso de Tu Boca - Silvestre Dandong

ESPN's Cristian Moreno on Carmelo Anthony trade rumors, Aaron Judge, State of Baseball, Gold Cup 51:31

Would you like to get in touch with us? Email us at [email protected] and help us spread the word on social media:

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On today’s episode 39, we talk Spider-Man Homecoming with Grae Drake, Senior Editor of Rottentomatoes.com, who joins us to review and dissect the new reboot. We think its better than Wonder Woman.

We also chat with Angelica Celaya, the star of Telemundo’s new Jenni Rivera biopic, Mariposa del Barrio, about the challenges in becoming Jenni, handling the love and hate from Rivera’s fanbase and how bilingual latino actors still have a hard time not being seen as real Latinos.

And finally, the New York Latino Film Festival is back from the dead and Dennis Williams, Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Social Responsibility at HBO, joins us to talk about why they brought back the festival, what’s in it for HBO and can this Latino festival ever become as big as Sundance? 

EPISODE SUMMARY

Grae Drake, Senior Editor of Rottentomatoes.com, on 'Spider-Man: Homecoming' - 3:35

This week's music playlist - 24:44

Ni Tú, Ni Yo - Jennifer Lopez feat. Gente de Zona

Switch - Iggy Azalea

Get Low - Zedd feat. Liam Payne

Angélica Celaya on Telemundo’s new Jenni Rivera biopic, 'Mariposa del Barrio' - 25:36

Dennis Williams, Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Social Responsibility at HBO talks return of New York Latino Film Festival - 43:11

Would you like to get in touch with us? Email us at [email protected] and help us spread the word on social media:

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This week we’re focusing on Spider-Man: Homecoming and how everyone has been raving about how diverse it is. We’ll talk to our intern Andrea Huswan, who attended the press conference in NYC on our behalf and set off a chain of diversity questions that ultimately got us covered by NewYorkMagazine.com!

We also preview Univision’s Premios Juventud with Hilda Garcia, VP of Digital Entertainment at Univision.com the new innovative elements that are establishing the event as the most modern award show in Spanish language TV. 

But we begin with an interview with Puerto Rican director Miguel Arteta, who filmed Salma Hayek’s Beatriz at Dinner. It is considered “the first movie of the Trump era”, and we discuss the difficulties of directing movies starring Latinas, the single reason Latinas are connecting with the film, and his explanation on its controversial ending that has angered and even baffled moviegoers.

That plus all the top headlines in US Latino pop culture in our popular original segment - "JackedIN".

EPISODE SUMMARY

Miguel Arteta on directing Salma Hayek in "Beatriz at Dinner" - 2:14

• Puerto Rican’s didn’t think of him as Puerto Rican 1:48
• How does Hollywood view him from a cultural point of view 3:34
• How Puerto Ricans didn't think of him as a Puerto Rican 4:38
• How much of the film is about him? 5:19
• Is this a Trump movie for Latinos? 7:22
• Why independent film are so crucial to our culture 8:44
• Difficulties in making a movie with a Latina star 9:49
• The secret to how Salma Hayek got the money to make "Beatriz at Dinner" 10:48
• How is Salma different than other Hollywood actresses? 11:25
• A full length explanation on the controversial ending of "Beatriz at Dinner" 12:36

JackedIN* - 19:10

Univision's "Premios Juventud" preview, Hilda Garcia, VP of Digital Entertainment at Univision.com - 21:47

• What Premios Juventud has done to become innovative 23:00
• How Univision used a team mentality to make Premios Juventud the best award show possible 25:56
• How Premios Juventud is approaching social media this year 28:39
• A focus on bilingualism and mainstream artists 33:42
• Social causes on award shows 34:56

July 4th music playlist - 37:57

Don’t Quit - DJ Khaled, Calvin Harris, Travis Scott, Jeremih

Dilo Como Yo - Chico Mann

Tamó Happy - Ilegales

"Spider-Man: Homecoming" press conference, diversity chatter with our intern Andrea Huswan - 38:49

Would you like to get in touch with us? Email us at [email protected] and help us spread the word on social media:

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Thanks for listening to episode 37 of the Highly Relevant podcast. This week we’re talking Latino MMA with former WWE Champion Alberto del Rio, who is now the President of Combate Americas, one of the biggest rivals of the UFC. They’re doing a huge fight event in Miami on July 27th around the Real Madrid/Barcelona soccer classico and its a game-changer for the company. Alberto will tell us all about it.

And we also tackle the new Transformers: The Last Knight movie. Is it so bad that its good or is it so bad that it’s… well, bad! 

That and a recap of the top headlines in US Latino pop culture happening this week!

EPISODE SUMMARY:

Alberto El Patrón, former WWE Champion and now President of Combate Americas, talks Latin MMA Combate Clasico event in Miami on July 27th: 1:09

JackedIN: 8:31

Mike Sargent, Chief FIlm Critic of WBAI Radio, discusses why Transformers 5 was so bad: 10:50

Playlist songs: 20:30

-Feels - Calvin Harris, Pharrell Williams, Katy Perry, Big Sean

-Películas - Cohetes

-Perfect Places - Lorde

Would you like to get in touch with us? Email us at [email protected] and help us spread the word on social media:

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In addition to fútbol, we talk comedy. HBO Latino is presenting their first Latino stand-up comedy special Friday June 16th and we chat with Mexican comedians Esewey and Monica Escobedo about how they’re universalizing Mexican comedy for all Latinos. That and a recap of the top headlines in US Latino pop culture this week!

EPISODE SUMMARY

Confederations Cup 2017 with Luis Miguel Echegaray 1:15

JackedIN (Pop culture recap) 21:21

*HBO Latino 'Entre Nos Part 1' Comedy Special chat with Ese Wey and Monica Escobedo (Interview done in Spanish) 23:51

Movies coming out this weekend 45:23

You'd like to give us your feedback or get a shout-out? Email us at [email protected] and help us spread the word on social media. If you enjoyed this episode head on over to iTunes and kindly leave us a rating, a review and please subscribe.

We also tackle Pixar’s new Latino movie 'Coco'. The trailer and cast announcements were released this week and we talk to Kellvin Chavez, former owner of LatinoReview.com and now Editor-in-Chief (EIC) of SplashReport.com to discuss if white audiences will go out in droves to watch a Mexican Pixar movie. That and a recap of the top headlines in US Latino pop culture this week!

EPISODE SUMMARY

'The Mummy' review with Mike Sargent 1:14

JackedIN (Pop culture recap) 26:56

Latino film critic Kellvin Chavez discusses Pixar's 'Coco' 29:34

What I'm listening to this week 47:11

You'd like to give us your feedback or get a shout-out? Email us at [email protected] and help us spread the word on social media. If you enjoyed this episode head on over to iTunes and kindly leave us a rating, a review and please subscribe.