The Realist Latina: Music Icons

09 July 2009

Music Icons

Here's a list of musical icons that have changed American music to include Latin@s. Some are Spanish-speaking, some not; all are pioneers in their own rights! Feel free to add more!

1. DJ Disco Wiz (Cuban/Puerto Rican- NY) - The first Latino DJ

2. Mellow Man Ace (Cuban - CA) - The first Latino hip-hop artist to include Spanish slang and Latin music beats

3. Carlos Santana (Mexico) - The pioneer of Latin rock; classic rock legend and humanitarian

4. Big Pun (Nuyorican) - Lyrical genius and Latino hip-hop artist

5. El General (Panama) - Father of Reggaeton

6. Celia Cruz (Cuba) - Most successful salsa singer of all time

7. Gloria Estefan (Cuba) - Award winning pop and Latin music singer

8. Tito Puente (Nuyorican) - Influential Latin jazz percussionist

9. Hector LaVoe (Puerto Rico) - Influential Salsa singer

10. Joe Cuba (Nuyorican) - Father of Boogaloo music

11. Joan Baez (Mexican/Scottish - NY) - Legendary folk singer

12. Jose Feliciano (Puerto Rico) - Legendary folk singer

13. Selena (Chicana - TX) - Legendary Tejano singer

14. Richie Valens (Chicano - CA) - Pioneer of Spanish language Rock and Roll music

15. Ricky Martin (Puerto Rico) - Pioneer of English Latin Pop

16. Menudo - (Puerto Rico) - Original Latino Boy Band

17. Shakira - (Colombia) - Bilingual pop star

18. Marc Anthony (Puerto Rican - NY) - Biggest selling Salsa artist of all time

19. Ozomatli (Multicultural - CA) - Eclectic band mixing all genres of music with a distinctly Latin flair

20. Rock Steady Crew (Multicultural - NY) - The foremost break-dancing crew around

21. Cypress Hill (Multicultural - CA) First Latino group to have platinum selling albums

22. Delinquent Habits (Chicano - CA) Chicano group with Latin-flavored rhymes/beats

23. Linda Ronstadt (Mexican/German/English/Dutch - AZ) -Popular entertainer winning awards in multiple genres including Rancheras

24. Hype Williams (African-American/Honduran - NY) - Pioneer music video producer

25. Christina Aguilera (Ecuador/Irish - NY) - Award-winning singer and songwriter

26. Tony Touch (Nuyorican) - DJ; B-Boy; Rapper - producer

27. Intocable (Chicano - TX) Award winning Tejano/Norteno music group

28. Ruben Blades (Panama) Latin jazz musician, actor, songwriter

29. Luis Miguel (Irish/Puerto Rico - Claims Mexican due to upbringing) - One of the most popular singers in Latin America

**Again, due to the number of musical icons of Latin American decent; these are just a few individuals/groups that have large appeal to Latin@s in the US.

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Definitions

For a greater understanding of this blog and my outlook on fashion, culture, and politics, a few definitions are necessary:

Chicana/o: Various scholars have defined Chicano/as as Mexican-Americans who view themselves as non-Anglo, proud of their indigenous culture, and politically active. For the sake of this blog, Chicano/as will be used to mean any Americans with Mexican decent.

Chicanismo: This term will be used to denote the political activism, cultural identity, and the connection to the indigenous heritage of the Aztec Empire by Chicano/as.

Latina/o: While used in the US to describe anyone of Latin American decent or citizenship, for this blog, Latino/a will encompass anyone who defines themselves as Latino/a. It does not matter whether they are US citizens or Latin Americans or Spanish, but live and contribute to US popular culture, politics and fashion.

Hispanic: WILL NEVER BE USED IN THIS BLOG! This term was a term given to individuals of Latin American decent by the US government in an effort to classify these individuals as a monolithic group for the Census.

Gendered Spellings: In the Spanish language, most nouns must have a gendered spelling. In order to avoid misrepresenting anyone or any group, I will use the following: "Latina/o" or "Latin@" to mean both men and women within a particular group. When just talking about women, you will see "Latinas" or "Latina".

Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that because of my own cultural identity, my knowledge of the histories of various Latin American groups in the US is limited. I apologize in advance if I have omitted important histories of my fellow herman@s. Feel free to add histories and individuals who you think fit within the contents of this blog.