Latino USA Folgen

Alejandra Ghersi, the experimental musician from Venezuela known as Arca, has been at the forefront of a movement that has pushed the boundaries of the pop music landscape. Since dropping her first mixtapes in 2011, she has produced album after album of boundary-defying music, and has been tapped as a producer for Kanye West, Bjork and FKA twigs. In this episode Arca talks with Maria Hinojosa about growing up in Venezuela, her philosophies around music, and about finding herself as a trans woman.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Growing up as a Nuyorican kid in the Bronx, Bobby Sanabria first watched "West Side Story" in the movie theaters, on the 10th anniversary of the film's release. "I was mesmerized," said the Latin Jazz drummer and composer. In 2017, the Broadway classic celebrated its 60th anniversary and to honor this milestone, Sanabria re-envisioned what Latino New York City actually sounds like. The result was his album, "West Side Story Reimagined." Maria Hinojosa talks to the drummer and composer about what the iconic musical means to him and how he paid tribute to its legacy. This story originally aired in September of 2018.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the early 70s, Miguel Angel Villavicencio was focused on making his most ambitious dream possible: to become a famous singer in Bolivia and across the world. And he was halfway there—his love songs were on the radio and he was appearing on TV. But to take his singing career truly international, he needed money. So he decided to work for Bolivia's most powerful drug cartel in the 80s—a major supplier for Pablo Escobar. Choosing this path would lead him on a journey of self-destruction, unexpected betrayal and finally, redemption. This story originally aired in January of 2019.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.