LATINOS IN THE ARTS

     Jennifer Lopez is an American singer, actress, and dancer. She has accomplished notable success over the years with her persistence and hard work. She did face her share of failures and struggles. But her never give up attitude has been her greatest assets throughout her path towards her success. Things didn’t go smooth for her and her success story didn’t happen overnight. She faced a series of setback in both her professional and personal life. But Jennifer Lopez was always determined to make the best of all and she is truly an inspiration to a lot of people who aspire to chase their dreams.

     Jennifer Lopez is an American singer, actress, and dancer. She has accomplished notable success over the years with her persistence and hard work. She did face her share of failures and struggles. But her never give up attitude has been her greatest assets throughout her path towards her success. Things didn’t go smooth for her and her success story didn’t happen overnight. She faced a series of setback in both her professional and personal life. But Jennifer Lopez was always determined to make the best of all and she is truly an inspiration to a lot of people who aspire to chase their dreams.  Jennifer Lopez’s early failures : Jennifer Lopez was naturally introduced to a group of Puerto Rican plummet. She took dance examples all through her adolescence and since the beginning had goals of distinction. This fire was in her right from an exceptionally youthful age and she continued running after building up he name across the world. She had an extreme adolescence in the Bronx that saw her moving out of their home as a youngster and managing her folks’ detachment. Lopez went out to seek after her fantasy about being an artist, dozing on the couch in the dance studio since her mom was against her dropping school for being a full-time artist. Following this she came to her fantasy.  Jennifer Lopez had learned at the Ballet Hispanico and at the Kips Bay Boys and Girls Club. She was even a backup dancer for New Kids on the Block in 1991.  

     Her mom objected to her turning into a full-time artist as opposed to setting off for college. She didn’t have a lot of help from her mom. They had an altercation, and Lopez had to rest on the couch in the dance studio. Anyway this ended up being a decent choice as she began getting openings. She got some work moving in Europe and when she returned she was reserved in the well known series, “Living Color“.  Jennifer Lopez moved to Los Angeles as a Fly Girl artist on the sketch satire show. This gave her the remarkable leap forward. She performed universally in stage musicals, and at age 16 she made her film debut with a little job in My Little Girl (1986). Her TV break came in 1990 when she was given a role as one of the “Fly Girls,” artists who showed up on the satire show In Living Color. After she left the show, she turned her concentration to acting, first in a few fleeting TV series and afterward in film jobs.  Jennifer Lopez confronted a little battle following her excursion. Anyway not once did she ponder venturing back. 

      Film achievement came rapidly, and by the mid-1990s she was showing up with such eminent entertainers as Robin Williams (Jack, 1996) and Jack Nicholson (Blood and Wine, 1997). Lopez actually remained fairly in the fringe of the public vision, in any case, until she handled the lead job in Selena (1997), a biopic of the killed Tejana vocalist. She was extremely diligent and continued to work all through her prosperity venture. Her prosperity venture is really a motivation to a few group who try to pursue their dreams.

    Jennifer Lopez has taught us about walking past our failure with utmost confidence. Failures and struggles are a part of life. What matters the most in life is staying confident and driving yourself to you passion. Never once choose to step back. When one stays determined to reach their goal, with hard work it is completely possible. Keep pushing yourself forward. Have a consistent goal in life. You are sure to taste the essence of success and pave your own success story when you are hardworking.

She is the only child of William Mebarak Chadid, a second generation Lebanese American, and Nidia Ripoll Torrado, a citizen of Colombia. Her father was born in New York and then immigrated to Colombia at age 5.

After her first two albums flopped, Shakira took the reins of her third album, becoming involved in every aspect of its production. Released in 1996, Pies Descalzos, meaning "bare feet," sold more than 3 million copies. The album featured her trademark sound, a blend of Latin, rock and Arabic musical styles. Her follow-up record, Dónde Están Los Ladrones? (1998), which translates as "Where are the thieves?", reached the top of Billboard's Latin charts. Not long after, Shakira won her first Grammy Award (best Latin pop album) for Shakira: MTV Unplugged (2000).

With the success of her albums, Shakira became a music superstar in the Spanish-language markets, known for her strong vocals and incredible hip-shaking belly dance moves.  

While hugely popular throughout much of the rest of the world, Shakira had not yet achieved a major record on the U.S. pop charts. In an attempt to increase her American fan base, in 1997, at the age of 20, the singer moved with her family to Miami, Florida, and taught herself to write songs in English. There, she enlisted Emilio Estefan, of Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine fame, to act as her manager and producer.  In 2001, Shakira released her first English-language album, Laundry Service, which quickly brought her the success in the United States she had been waiting for. The album reached No. 3 on the charts, selling more than 200,000 copies in its first week of release. Laundry Service's big hits included "Whenever, Wherever" and "Underneath Your Clothes."

 By 2012, Shakira's U.S. album sales had reached nearly 10 million and her worldwide album sales had reached more than 70 million, making her the highest-selling Colombian artist of all time, and the second most successful female Latin singer after Gloria Estefan.

In 1997, Shakira founded the Pies Descalzos Foundation, a Colombian charity with special schools for poor children all around Colombia. 

Shakira has opened seven schools to give young children educational opportunieis in her home country of Colombia! Teaming up with FC Barcelona and La Caixa Banking Foundation, 1.2 million euros will be donated to build the new school, which will be named “Institución Nuevo Bosque.” The Colombian Ministry of Education and the City of Barranquilla have also volunteered to donate the remaining balance of the project.  Shakira noted that by providing education to children shackled down by their economic status, they are being liberated and having their minds opened to things they could never have imagined. In addition, the singer hopes that the opening of a new school will help provide jobs, security and peace to the conflict-ridden town.  With the construction of her seventh school, set to be finished in 2019, Shakira will be providing education in one of the darkest corners of Colombia. 

 – Amira Wynn, NBC News  

He has starred in Hands of Stone opposite Robert De Niro, and in Safe House opposite Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds. Blades has played memorable roles in films with such acclaimed directors as Robert Redford in The Milagro Beanfield War, Robert Rodriguez in Once Upon a Time in Mexico, Spike Lee in Mo’ Better Blues, Alan Pakula in The Devil’s Own, and Jack Nicholson in The Two Jakes. He was nominated for three Emmys for his roles in the television movies The Josephine Baker Story, Crazy From The Heart, and The Maldonado Miracle. His work has been honored with Cable ACE, Independent Spirit, and ALMA Awards, and honored with the Raúl Juliá HOLA Founders Award and the Hispanic Heritage Foundation’s Arts Award.  Beyond Blades’ artistic success, he holds degrees in political science and law from the University of Panama, and an LLM from Harvard Graduate Law School. He ran for President of his native Panama in 1994 and served as Minister of Tourism 2004-2009. The Loeb Music Library at Harvard University formed The Rubén Blades Archives in 2008 to collect his work and papers. 

New York University Steinhardt appointed him Scholar in Residence for the 2018/2019 academic year.  In 2021 Blades, with Panama’s Roberto Delgado Orchestra, released SALSWING!, offering up both salsa and jazz tracks, as well as SALSA PLUS! with the salsa tracks, and SWING! with the jazz tracks, for genre purists. He and the Delgado Orchestra will return to touring in the U.S. in November and December.   Blades was born in a rooming house in a small Latin American country, but he refused to see limitations or barriers; his work has crossed geopolitical borders, cultures, and genres and has made an impact throughout the world. He says he has “more past than future” – but he’s not done yet.  

Served  as General Administrator of the Authority of Tourism in Panama and  Minister of Tourism of Panama, from September 1st 2004, until June 30th  2009

Founder of the Papa Egoro political party in the Republic of Panama (1992)  He  was a candidate for President of the Republic of Panama in 1994, coming  in third place, with 18% of the vote in the election, among 27 parties  and 7 presidential candidates 

Blades  plans to tour with Roberto Delgado Salsa Big Band through Latin  America, the United States, and Europe, while continuing his activities  in film and television, writing his articles of opinion published in his  social media pages and his blog La Esquina de Rubén, and preparing new  productions in other musical genres and styles.

(Taken from Rubén Blades' website)

Spanish singer and songwriter whose romantic image, magnetic stage presence, and expressive music made him one of the best-selling artists of all time. By the early 21st century he had sold hundreds of millions of albums in more than a dozen languages.

Iglesias was born and raised in Madrid, where his family lived in an upper-middle-class neighbourhood. After finishing his secondary education, Iglesias went on to study law at the urging of his father. At the same time he played on the junior reserve squad of the popular Real Madrid professional football (soccer) club. However, his aspirations of becoming a professional football player ended when he became partially paralyzed in his early twenties because of a benign spinal tumour. During his lengthy recovery, Iglesias was given a guitar by one of his nurses, and he taught himself to play by accompanying songs on the radio. After he had sufficiently recovered mobility, Iglesias was sent to study English in the United Kingdom. During that time he penned his first single, “La vida sigue igual” (“Life Goes on as Usual”), with which he won a Spanish song competition in 1968.

After the competition Iglesias continued to write and perform music, releasing his first album, Yo canto, in 1969. This marked the beginning of a steady stream of albums and LPs over the following decades. In 1970 he won the honour of representing Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest with his song “Gwendolyne.” Though Iglesias did not win that competition, his song became a major hit in Europe and rocketed him to stardom. By 1973 he had sold 10 million albums, including albums in German, Portuguese, French, and Italian. In 1981 Iglesias’s Spanish version of “Begin the Beguine” by Cole Porter became the first all-Spanish song to reach number one on the British music charts.  His English-speaking audience grew over the next few years, and in 1984 he released his breakout hit English-language album, 1100 Bel Air Place. The album, which went on to sell some four million copies in the U.S. alone, was an eclectic mix of styles that included duets with popular American artists such as Willie Nelson and Diana Ross. His song with Nelson, “To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before,” reached the top 10 on the Billboard charts. Subsequent collaborations included duets with Dolly Parton, Art Garfunkel, Stevie Wonder, Luciano Pavarotti, and Frank Sinatra. Though his touring schedule slowed during the 1990s, Iglesias remained popular into the 21st century, performing at sold-out stadiums around the world. He also continued to record, and by the late 2010s he had released more than 80 albums.

Iglesias was the recipient of numerous honours and awards, including Grammy Awards for best Latin pop performance for Un hombre solo (1987; “A Single Man”) and for lifetime achievement (2019). In 2001 he completed his law degree at Complutense University in Madrid. His autobiography, Entre el cielo y el infierno (“Between Heaven and Hell”), was published in 1981. Two of Iglesias’s sons, Julio, Jr., and Enrique, followed their father into pop music stardom.   (Brittanica)

Spanish singer and songwriter whose romantic image, magnetic stage presence, and expressive music made him one of the best-selling artists of all time. By the early 21st century he had sold hundreds of millions of albums in more than a dozen languages.

Iglesias was born and raised in Madrid, where his family lived in an upper-middle-class neighbourhood. After finishing his secondary education, Iglesias went on to study law at the urging of his father. At the same time he played on the junior reserve squad of the popular Real Madrid professional football (soccer) club. However, his aspirations of becoming a professional football player ended when he became partially paralyzed in his early twenties because of a benign spinal tumour. During his lengthy recovery, Iglesias was given a guitar by one of his nurses, and he taught himself to play by accompanying songs on the radio. After he had sufficiently recovered mobility, Iglesias was sent to study English in the United Kingdom. During that time he penned his first single, “La vida sigue igual” (“Life Goes on as Usual”), with which he won a Spanish song competition in 1968.

After the competition Iglesias continued to write and perform music, releasing his first album, Yo canto, in 1969. This marked the beginning of a steady stream of albums and LPs over the following decades. In 1970 he won the honour of representing Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest with his song “Gwendolyne.” Though Iglesias did not win that competition, his song became a major hit in Europe and rocketed him to stardom. By 1973 he had sold 10 million albums, including albums in German, Portuguese, French, and Italian. In 1981 Iglesias’s Spanish version of “Begin the Beguine” by Cole Porter became the first all-Spanish song to reach number one on the British music charts.  His English-speaking audience grew over the next few years, and in 1984 he released his breakout hit English-language album, 1100 Bel Air Place. The album, which went on to sell some four million copies in the U.S. alone, was an eclectic mix of styles that included duets with popular American artists such as Willie Nelson and Diana Ross. His song with Nelson, “To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before,” reached the top 10 on the Billboard charts. Subsequent collaborations included duets with Dolly Parton, Art Garfunkel, Stevie Wonder, Luciano Pavarotti, and Frank Sinatra. Though his touring schedule slowed during the 1990s, Iglesias remained popular into the 21st century, performing at sold-out stadiums around the world. He also continued to record, and by the late 2010s he had released more than 80 albums.

Iglesias was the recipient of numerous honours and awards, including Grammy Awards for best Latin pop performance for Un hombre solo (1987; “A Single Man”) and for lifetime achievement (2019). In 2001 he completed his law degree at Complutense University in Madrid. His autobiography, Entre el cielo y el infierno (“Between Heaven and Hell”), was published in 1981. Two of Iglesias’s sons, Julio, Jr., and Enrique, followed their father into pop music stardom.   (Brittanica)

Spanish singer and songwriter whose romantic image, magnetic stage presence, and expressive music made him one of the best-selling artists of all time. By the early 21st century he had sold hundreds of millions of albums in more than a dozen languages.

Iglesias was born and raised in Madrid, where his family lived in an upper-middle-class neighbourhood. After finishing his secondary education, Iglesias went on to study law at the urging of his father. At the same time he played on the junior reserve squad of the popular Real Madrid professional football (soccer) club. However, his aspirations of becoming a professional football player ended when he became partially paralyzed in his early twenties because of a benign spinal tumour. During his lengthy recovery, Iglesias was given a guitar by one of his nurses, and he taught himself to play by accompanying songs on the radio. After he had sufficiently recovered mobility, Iglesias was sent to study English in the United Kingdom. During that time he penned his first single, “La vida sigue igual” (“Life Goes on as Usual”), with which he won a Spanish song competition in 1968.

After the competition Iglesias continued to write and perform music, releasing his first album, Yo canto, in 1969. This marked the beginning of a steady stream of albums and LPs over the following decades. In 1970 he won the honour of representing Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest with his song “Gwendolyne.” Though Iglesias did not win that competition, his song became a major hit in Europe and rocketed him to stardom. By 1973 he had sold 10 million albums, including albums in German, Portuguese, French, and Italian. In 1981 Iglesias’s Spanish version of “Begin the Beguine” by Cole Porter became the first all-Spanish song to reach number one on the British music charts.  His English-speaking audience grew over the next few years, and in 1984 he released his breakout hit English-language album, 1100 Bel Air Place. The album, which went on to sell some four million copies in the U.S. alone, was an eclectic mix of styles that included duets with popular American artists such as Willie Nelson and Diana Ross. His song with Nelson, “To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before,” reached the top 10 on the Billboard charts. Subsequent collaborations included duets with Dolly Parton, Art Garfunkel, Stevie Wonder, Luciano Pavarotti, and Frank Sinatra. Though his touring schedule slowed during the 1990s, Iglesias remained popular into the 21st century, performing at sold-out stadiums around the world. He also continued to record, and by the late 2010s he had released more than 80 albums.

Iglesias was the recipient of numerous honours and awards, including Grammy Awards for best Latin pop performance for Un hombre solo (1987; “A Single Man”) and for lifetime achievement (2019). In 2001 he completed his law degree at Complutense University in Madrid. His autobiography, Entre el cielo y el infierno (“Between Heaven and Hell”), was published in 1981. Two of Iglesias’s sons, Julio, Jr., and Enrique, followed their father into pop music stardom.   (Brittanica)