Life in Spanglish

José Alberto “El Canario” joins Honey German on Gracias, Come Again for a funny, heartfelt conversation about his life, his legendary salsa career and the stories behind the music. 🇩🇴🎶🎙️

Loved by generations of Latinos, the Dominican salsa icon takes us from his childhood in the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico at just seven years old, then to New York City in the ’70s, where he built the foundation for an extraordinary career.

We revisit his early band days, his journey to becoming a solo artist, his Latin GRAMMY wins and 50 years in music, celebrated in 2025. From “Sueño Contigo” and “Discúlpeme Señora” to “Bailemos Otra Vez,” we’re talking about the songs that became part of our lives. ❤️

El Canario also shares how he earned his nickname, which means “the canary,” and the story behind his signature imaginary flute, including whether he actually practices it! 😂🪈

Plus, we get into love, marriage, his wife’s occasional jealousy, his skills in the kitchen and life in Florida. He’s so busy touring the world that he’s only used his pool once, for about 15 minutes! We also discuss the New Jersey street named in his honor, his upcoming October concert in Florida and the wisdom he shares in our Life Advice segment.

Stories, laughs and lessons from one of salsa’s GOATs. Listen to Gracias, Come Again on iHeartRadio and watch the full José Alberto “El Canario” interview on YouTube. 🔥

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Judy Torres, the legendary Queen of Freestyle, joins Honey German for a powerful, deeply personal conversation about her extraordinary life, groundbreaking music career and revealing new memoir, No Reason to Cry. In this episode, Judy reflects on her upbringing, entering the music industry as a young woman, signing her first record deal and becoming one of the most recognizable voices in freestyle music.

Honey also surprises Judy with one of her early vinyl records, leading to an emotional story about the first time Judy saw herself as beautiful. She opens up about being called the Queen of Freestyle, how she earned the title and whether she has fully embraced it. The conversation goes far beyond music. Judy shares why she wrote 'No Reason to Cry' entirely in her own voice, without a ghostwriter or artificial intelligence, and takes us inside the emotional process of revisiting her past. She also discusses her current book tour, special appearances and this exciting new chapter of her life. With remarkable honesty, Judy speaks about depression, living with multiple sclerosis, losing vision in one eye and only partially regaining it, surviving domestic abuse.

These difficult experiences are explored with care, compassion and the intention of helping anyone who may be navigating pain, trauma, illness or uncertainty. What begins as an interview becomes an inspiring life-coaching session led by Judy Torres and co-hosted by Honey German. Together, they discuss healing, self-worth, resilience, faith, forgiveness, setting boundaries and finding the strength to keep moving forward. This is more than the story of a freestyle icon. It is a conversation about surviving, rebuilding and learning to see your own beauty, even after life has given you every reason to cry.

Born and raised in the Bronx, Judy proudly represents her Puerto Rican and Cuban roots. Since the 1980s, she has built an enduring career as a singer, songwriter, producer, radio host, author and life coach. Subscribe to Gracias, Come Again for more inspiring conversations with the artists, creators and cultural figures shaping our community.

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Dominican-Italian artist YEИDRY joins us for a powerful conversation about her debut album, Como Agua, her Afro-Latina identity and the experiences that shaped her life and music.

Raised in a small town in Italy, YEИDRY opens up about staying connected to her Dominican roots while navigating life in Italy’s countryside as a brown girl experiencing racism and colorism. She shares how feeling different influenced her identity, artistry and decision to create music in Spanish, Italian and English.

YEИDRY also reveals that she has felt like an adult since she was only 9 years old. Because her Italian was stronger than her mother’s, she often helped her mom communicate and navigate life in their new country. Her family’s immigrant experience shared many similarities with the stories we often hear in the United States, except theirs unfolded in Italy.

That responsibility helped shape the fearless woman she is today. As YEИDRY says during the interview, “I’m not afraid of anything.”

Music also became one of her greatest teachers. YEИDRY learned English by translating songs from Jay-Z, Rihanna, Beyoncé and Nelly Furtado. Before having internet access at home, she would visit an internet café, print out the lyrics and study them. After building her life and career across Europe, YEИDRY moved to the United States in 2023 and now lives in Los Angeles.

The conversation gets deeply personal as YEИDRY discusses reconnecting with her father after he moved to New York when she was young. That experience inspired “Espejo,” meaning “mirror” in Spanish, a song about seeing herself reflected in her father and rebuilding their relationship.

Plus, YEИDRY reveals how COLORS unexpectedly reached out to her ad blew her up, reflects on how she landed NPR Tiny Desk and talks about her growing presence in music and fashion.

This episode is a heartfelt and fun conversation between two Dominicanas connecting through culture, family, identity and their shared love for the Dominican Republic.

'Como Agua' by YEИDRY is available now on all major streaming platforms. Her NPR Tiny Desk performance is also available to watch now.

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Salsa ICON Tito Nieves takes us back to the beginning of his career and shares personal memories of working with Héctor Lavoe, an artist he loved and deeply admired. He also explains why he believes El Cantante, the film starring Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez, focused too heavily on the darker parts of Lavoe’s life and failed to show who Héctor truly was beyond his struggles. The conversation also explores the lasting impact of “I Like It Like That,” including Tito’s version of the classic and its revival by Cardi B, Bad Bunny, and J Balvin.

Tito shares his thoughts on today’s rising salsa singers and reveals which new-generation artists he believes are helping carry the genre forward. You may recognize a few of their names from previous episodes of Gracias, Come Again! Beyond the music, Tito opens up about love, four marriages, and the happiness he has found with his current wife, who is also his business partner. He speaks candidly about addiction, going to rehab four times, and reaching 30 years of sobriety.

Drawing from his own recovery journey, he offers heartfelt advice and encouragement to anyone struggling with addiction. Tito also helps launch a new Gracias, Come Again segment called Life Advice, AKA Consejos de la Vida, where he shares wisdom on love, resilience, recovery, happiness, and making the most of life.

He also reflects on nearly 50 years in music, his Puerto Rican roots, his deep connection to New York City, and his upcoming La Historia Continúa concert at NJPAC on 09/26/26. This is Tito Nieves like you have never heard him before: honest, funny, emotional, grateful, and still passionate about salsa after five decades in the game. La Historia Continúa, and the legend is far from finished.

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Author Cleyvis Natera joins Gracias, Come Again to talk about her second novel, The Grand Paloma Resort, a gripping story set in the Dominican Republic that explores sisterhood, class, tourism, labor, exploitation, poverty, and the hidden cost of luxury.

Born in the Dominican Republic and raised in New York City, Cleyvis takes us inside the world of The Grand Paloma Resort, where tourists come for paradise, but the Dominican workers behind the scenes are the ones keeping that paradise alive.

The conversation also goes deeper into some of the book’s most uncomfortable and important themes, including crimes connected to tourism, tourists who travel to exploit vulnerable children, sex work surrounding hotels, poverty, and the circumstances that can push workers into degrading or dangerous situations simply to survive. Cleyvis and I also discuss the hotel workers and laborers across the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean whose work keeps the tourism industry thriving, even when they rarely get to experience the luxury they help create.

This is a conversation about far more than a book. It’s about Dominican identity, sisterhood, tourism, working-class women, exploitation, family, survival, and what really exists behind the beautiful resorts so many travelers never think twice about. We also get into Cleyvis Natera’s journey as an author, her Dominican roots, her life in New York, and how her own perspective helped shape this powerful story.

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Six-time GRAMMY-nominated artist Luis Figueroa joins Gracias, Come Again to talk salsa, Puerto Rican culture, family, and his journey from YouTube covers to becoming one of the genre’s brightest stars.

Luis shares how posting covers online led to being discovered by Marc Anthony, who became a major mentor in his career, and opens up about touring with Romeo Santos, where he fully embraced the Spanish language and went from not being fluent or confident speaking it to becoming fluent and even more connected to his culture.

We also revisit the moment Honey first discovered Luis performing in the Bronx alongside the legendary La India, singing her iconic duet originally recorded with Marc Anthony. Luis talks about keeping salsa alive for a new generation, his Puerto Rican roots, songwriting, family, and why carrying the culture forward means so much to him.

This is a conversation about music, identity, language, legacy, and why Luis Figueroa is no longer just considered the future of salsa, he is very much part of its present. 🎙️ Watch the full interview with Luis Figueroa on Gracias, Come Again.

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Jason Reyes is making history from the Bronx to the WORLD.

Born and raised in the Bronx to Puerto Rican parents, Jason is the founder and principal of the Bronx School of Hip Hop, the first hip hop high school in the world, opening in New York City in September 2026.

Before launching this groundbreaking school, Jason served as principal of MS 129 Academy and built his career around helping young people discover their identity, their voice, their brilliance, and their power. His journey was not easy. Jason grew up in foster care, experienced family loss and adversity, and still chose to dedicate his life to education and service.

His story is rooted in resilience, culture, strength, and a refusal to let obstacles determine what is possible. In this conversation, we talk about how the Bronx School of Hip Hop came to be, why hip hop belongs in education, what it means to build a school around culture and identity, and how Jason is handling criticism from people who are not happy about his role as principal. We also get into books, fatherhood, leadership, his love of hip hop, and of course, his top five hip hop artists of all time. 

Jason Reyes is not just opening a school, he is building a legacy. This fall, the Bronx School of Hip Hop will make history in New York City and around the world, and we are proud to celebrate the man behind the mission.

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DaniLeigh joins Honey German for a raw, emotional and revealing episode of Gracias, Come Again.

 The Dominican American artist, choreographer, dancer...opens up about her upbringing in Miami, her move to Los Angeles and the experiences that shaped the woman she is today.

DaniLeigh begins by sharing the incredible story of being discovered by Prince at only 18 years old. She explains how they met, what their relationship was truly like and how Prince trusted her with “Breakfast Can Wait.” Dani directed and starred in the music video, even stepping into the role of Prince.

She also reflects on the life-changing lessons she received from one of music’s greatest icons and how she felt when he passed away. The conversation continues with Dani’s 2019 collaboration with Chris Brown on the hit “Easy” remix and the pressure that comes with being publicly linked to other celebrities.

Dani then shares one of the most personal chapters of her life, her father’s battle with cancer and the heartbreak of losing him.  She becomes emotional while remembering the relationship they shared and the blessing of her father meeting her daughter, whom she shares with rapper DaBaby, before his passing.

Dani also speaks honestly about finding Jesus during a dark and anxious period following a serious accident and public scandal. Dani explains how faith, prayer, accountability and positivity helped her move forward, reminding listeners that our mistakes do not define us and that a comeback is always possible. Later, the family joins the conversation as we meet the ladies of Bella Dose, including one of Dani’s sisters, along with her brother, who is also an artist.

Together, they discuss their new single, “La Familia,” available now. This interview shows DaniLeigh in a completely different light, as a daughter, mother, sister, believer and artist determined to continue growing.

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Freestyle legend K7 of TKA sits down for an intimate, no-holds-barred conversation about the music, memories, heartbreak and hustle behind a career spanning four decades. K7 opens up about his childhood and the life-changing move from Ponce, PR to Spanish Harlem, New York, where he reunited with his mother and eventually found his path to music.

He takes us back to the beginning of TKA, from performing at neighborhood parties to landing a record deal with Tommy Boy Records, becoming one of freestyle music’s most influential groups, and ultimately reveals why the original TKA broke up. K7 also takes us inside the stories behind the music, including the FULL backstory of the TKA classic 'Maria' revealing that the song was actually inspired by two women he dated. He explains how writing became his way of expressing emotions he couldn’t always say out loud and how that pen helped establish him as one of freestyle music’s GOATs.

We also get into K7’s transition from freestyle into hip-hop, his massive solo success with records like 'Come Baby Come' and how he managed to evolve while building a career that has lasted nearly 40 years. K7 shares stories about his relationships with fellow Latino music icons La India, Marc Anthony and Ivy Queen, giving us a rare look at who La India and Ivy Queen really are when the cameras are off. He also revisits the early days of Lisa Lisa and Full Force, and his role in connecting the pieces that helped launch one of the most important careers of the freestyle era.

But this conversation goes far beyond music. K7 gets deeply personal about his wife’s battle with cancer, what it means to stand beside your spouse through sickness, and delivers a powerful message to men about showing up, becoming a true caretaker and honoring the commitment you made to your partner. He also reflects on his unexpected chapter in radio, why he ultimately walked away from it, the price of longevity, and what four decades in the entertainment business have taught him about friendship, family, love, loyalty and survival.

From Ponce to Spanish Harlem, TKA to K7, freestyle to hip-hop, this is the story behind the hits and the man who wrote them.

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In this episode of Gracias, Come Again, Honey sits down with Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, the son of Dominican immigrants who was born and raised in Los Sures, Brooklyn.

Reynoso opens up about growing up in a Section 8 apartment while his family relied on food stamps, and how education, a scholarship and a clear plan changed the direction of his life. His journey eventually led him into public service, first as a New York City Council member and later as the youngest borough president in New York City history. Elected to a four-year term, he also became the first Dominican to serve as a borough president in the city.

During this deeply personal conversation, Reynoso shares how his upbringing shaped his approach to leadership, why he entered politics and what it means to still live just three blocks from his childhood home, even as the neighborhood around him has transformed through gentrification.

He also reflects on the lasting influence of his mentor, Thomas, who taught him a lesson that continues to guide his life and career: “we don’t have the luxury of not having a plan”

This is a powerful conversation about Dominican identity, education, community, representation and the journey from Los Sures to Brooklyn Borough Hall.

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