festival
11/18/2024
Read about the most star-studded moments from Camp Flog Gnaw 2024.
11/18/2024
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Vince Staples, from what can be gathered from interviews and podcast appearances, isn’t a man who enjoys the unwavering intensity of the so-called white gaze, creating sonic soundscapes with a certain demographic in mind. During his set at this year’s Camp Flog Gnaw with Tyler, The Creator at the helm, Vince Staples flipped a crowd participation moment into an opportunity to bark on white fans in attendance.
Vince Staples, who enjoyed a solid 2024 on the creative side with the warm embrace of his eponymously named television series on Netflix and his latest studio album Dark Times, was on hand for the annual Camp Flog Gnaw festival in Los Angeles, now in its 10th year.
During his set, Staples, 31, paused his set to ask the crowd a particular question.
“Do y’all really like f*ck with that real n*gga sh*t,” Staples asks the crowd, which was comprised of several white fans who responded favorably to the shoutout but what came next was a classic retort from the talented Long Beach rapper and actor.
“A bunch of white people saying they like real n*gga sh*t”” Staples said. “It’s perplexing.”
Staples also called the crowd “stupid motherf*ckers” before launching into the rest of his set.
Vince Staples was one of the many standout acts at Camp Flog Gnaw with Erykah Badu, Action Bronson, Madlib, Sampha, Doechii, ScHoolboy Q, and more, including appearances from Sexyy Red, SZA, and others. There was also a segment of the festival dedicated to the memory of the late, great MF DOOM.
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The third and last day of the Corona Capital 2024 festival on Sunday (Nov. 17) turned into an old friends reunion, fulfilling the teenage dream of guitarist Jack White who, along with singer-songwriter St. Vincent, was invited by the legendary Paul McCartney to join him on stage in what was the ex-Beatle’s debut at a Latin American music festival and the grand finale of his tour in the region.
In his fourth performance on Mexican stages — and his first time at the famous festival in Mexico City — McCartney achieved the feat of gathering the largest number of attendees the Corona Capital has seen in its 14-year history, according to promoter Ocesa, with nearly 82,000 people.
On the Vans stage, iconic rocker Iggy Pop starred in one of the most anticipated moments, giving a masterclass of what a rock lion does at 77 years old alongside special guests including Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner.
Beck, the “güero” cherished by Mexicans, reaffirmed his connection with the country, where he reunited with dear friends and colleagues at the festival, and practiced his Spanish.
For her part, former Sonic Youth bassist Kim Gordon raised the bar for women and delivered an experimental show that captivated the audience. Jack White, one of the stars on the third day of the festival, also led one of the most anticipated performances and, at the start of his set, performed a cover of Iggy Pop’s classic “I Wanna Be Your Dog.”
In total, Corona Capital 2024 brought together about 225,000 people over its three days, counting 74,000 on Friday, 69,000 on Saturday, and Sunday’s 82,000.
Below are five of our favorite moments from Day 3 of the Corona Capital 2024 festival. (Here are the recaps for Day 1 and Day 2).
McCartney’s masterful closing with St. Vincent and Jack White
Paul McCartney made his Latin American music festival debut an epic moment. On Sunday (Nov. 17), the former Beatle invited St. Vincent and Jack White to join him on the main stage of Corona Capital in Mexico for a masterful performance of “The End” in front of nearly 82,000 attendees, according to concert promoter Ocesa.
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Living legend McCartney captivated generations with his performance at the Mexican music festival, marking the closing of the Latin American leg of his Got Back Tour.
“¡Hola México! ¿Quiúbole, banda? Tonight I’m going to try to speak a little Spanish. It’s awesome to be here again,” McCartney said as he greeted an ecstatic audience using Mexican slang. Parents and children gathered around the main stage, some of them dressed in colorful outfits that emulated the iconic cover of the Beatles’ 1967 album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.
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The British icon performed a repertoire that spanned his extensive career, from the classics of the Liverpool quartet to his solo hits. The setlist included songs such as “A Hard Day’s Night,” “Letting Go,” “Got to Get You Into My Life,” “Come On to Me,” “Let Me Roll It,” “Let ‘Em In,” “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da,” “Band On The Run,” and “Let It Be.”
The first guest of the night was St. Vincent, who took the stage to accompany him on guitar on “Get Back.” The artist had had a celebrated performance the day before, and with this number, she closed a masterful pass through Mexico and the Corona Capital.
McCartney appeared happy during his performance at the marathon rock event. On several occasions, he paused briefly to explain some things to the audience. “This is the first song the Beatles ever recorded,” he said in Spanish before singing “Love Me Do.”
The excitement was at its peak when Jack White, who had performed on the Vans stage a couple of hours earlier, took the stage, showcasing his talent and guitar skills. Alongside McCartney and St. Vincent, he created an unforgettable moment and one of the most spectacular closings that Corona Capital has seen in its 14-year history.
The show ran until around 2 a.m. on Monday (Nov. 18), about 40 minutes longer than scheduled. This is something McCartney has done at other festivals when the moment calls for it, just as it happened at the 2009 Coachella festival in Indio, Calif.
With his participation in Corona Capital, McCartney concluded a busy week in Mexico with a series of concerts as part of his Got Back Tour. The tour began on Nov. 8 in the northern city of Monterrey and continued on Nov. 12 and 14 at the GNP Seguros Stadium in Mexico City.
The legendary musician began the Latin American leg of his tour on Oct. 1 in Uruguay, then visited Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Costa Rica and Colombia. The tour will continue in December to France, Spain and the United Kingdom.
Tyler, The Creator took a well-deserved victory lap and brought festival-goers along for a joyful ride down memory lane on Saturday (Nov. 16) when he headlined the first night of Camp Flog Gnaw at his Los Angeles hometown’s Dodger Stadium.
The ambient sounds of a shipping dock — deep-toned ship horns, squawking seagulls and crashing waves — play before Tyler marches onto the stage and incites “Chromakooooooopia” chants from the crowd. A single green light highlights the masked and military uniform-donning headliner standing atop a “Chromakopia” shipping container. Tyler introduced the album’s aesthetic exactly one month ago on Oct. 16, when he released the “St. Chroma” video. And already, he’s created another definitive character in the Tyler Cinematic Universe, where commitment to world-building is paramount for every one of his projects.
He forges ahead to the next three songs off CHROMAKOPIA’s track list. “The biggest out the city after Kenny, that’s a fact now,” he reaffirms on the subsequent track “Rah Tah Tah.” Kendrick Lamar and Baby Keem, who were billed as The Hillbillies, headlined the first night of Camp Flog Gnaw just last year. Tyler isn’t typically one to do the honors given the fact that it’s his festival (and he already rewards himself with the most performance time out of any other artist on the lineup). Giving other luminaries the primetime slot is a courtesy, but this year’s different because Tyler gradually ascends into a higher echelon of stardom with each album.
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He’s reached cult icon status without having a definitive “hit,” and now he’s earned his first three Billboard Hot 100 top 10s with an album that was released on an off-cycle Monday but has become Tyler’s biggest album to date. His star continues to burn even brighter, but the overexposure proves it can sometimes be destructive. “Noid” feels particularly poignant given his recent heated encounter with paparazzi as he was leaving the GQ Men of the Year party on Thursday night.
“No cameras out, please, I wanna eat in peace/ Don’t wanna take pictures with you n—as or bi—es,” he spits on the second verse with an extra splatter of vitriol.
But Tyler doesn’t marinate in the sour feeling. Over the instrumental outro of “Darling I,” he pauses to prematurely celebrate his album’s three-week No. 1 streak on the Billboard 200. “Thank all you motherf–kers for supporting me, man, for real. To do that, at my 10th carnival in my f—ing city, what’re we talking about?! I don’t even have no heartfelt message. I’m really filled with so much love and joy,” Tyler beams. “We did the new sh–, y’all clearly know it and like it. So if you don’t mind, I’mma go through my old sh– real fast.”
Tyler takes it back to last year with “WUSYANAME,” “LUMBERJACK” and “DOGTOOTH” from his Grammy-winning album Call Me If You Get Lost before rewinding all the way back to 2011 with “She” and “Yonkers” from his Goblin LP and splicing in cuts from 2013’s Wolf, 2017’s Flower Boy and 2019’s IGOR. He asks the audience to take over Playboi Carti‘s verse on “EARFQUAKE” because “this n—a in Vegas” headlining ComplexCon, but he’s slated to close out the second and final night of Camp Flog Gnaw on Sunday (Nov. 17).
“I wanted to build a place where n—as could just come and just be, and it’s beautiful to see that y’all have been rocking with me for real. All this s–t really be starting from my notebook. It’s f—ing crazy, bruh! N—as is really three weeks No. 1, and I’m like, ‘What the f— going on? This is crazy!’” he says. “This is a test run ’cause all the songs are so new. The first four went great, could I continue to do some new s—?”
He shushes the festival-goers’ affirmative response so they can pick up the introductory whistle of his Hot 100 top 10 hit “Sticky,” where B-roll of step teams and marching bands complement the song’s cheerful energy. But Sexyy Red‘s surprise appearance cranks it up a thousandfold. Tyler gasses her up while she twerks for the crowd, and he even throws it back and earns a satisfactory smack from her.
They match each other’s freak as well as the same IDGAF energy of their viral booty-popping, middle-finger-flinging photo. “I love you, girl. She’s so sweet,” Tyler sings her praises as she heads off the stage and repeats the “It’s gettin’ sticky!” hook. But the raunchy rapper can’t deliver more fitting final words than “He was sucking up on my coochie, y’all.”
Tyler invites more CHROMAKOPIA guests like ScHoolboy Q for “Thought I Was Dead” and the “motherf–king swamp princess” Doechii and “my motherf—ing brother” Daniel Caesar for “Balloon.” “This n—a helped me with this album, I get emotional when I see this n—a ’cause he came through for me for CHROMAKOPIA,” Tyler says of Caesar, who performed on the main stage just right before him and is featured on “St. Chroma” and “Take Your Mask Off.” It took a village to make his latest masterpiece, but he built an even bigger one right before his eyes.
Check out the full set list for Tyler, The Creator’s Camp Flog Gnaw headlining set below:
1. “St. Chroma”
2. “Rah Tah Tah”
3. “Noid”
4. “Darling, I”
5. “WUSYANAME”
6. “LUMBERJACK”
7. “DOGTOOTH”
8. “She”
9. “Yonkers”
10. “Tamale”
11. Boredom
12. “Who Dat Boy”
13. “I THINK”
14. “EARFQUAKE”
15. “Sticky” (with Sexyy Red)
16. “Take Your Mask Off”
17. “Thought I Was Dead” (with ScHoolboy Q)
18. “Like Him”
19. “Balloon” (with Doechii and Daniel Caesar)
20. “NEW MAGIC WAND”
21. “See You Again”
The first day of the 2024 Corona Capital festival on Friday (Nov. 15) celebrated the grand return of Green Day to Mexico after a seven-year absence with a performance that marked the American rock band’s last show of the year. As part of this exciting day, multiple sounds — from punk rock and progressive rock to indie, blues, funk, soul, pop and jazz — were heard in the voices of some of its most representative acts.
On its first day, the festival brought together over 74,000 attendees — according to the promoter Ocesa — who enjoyed shows by The Mars Volta, Warpaint, Cage The Elephant, The Vaccines, BadBadNotGood, Twin Shadow, David Kushner, Clairo, Zedd, French 79, Honne and others, who pleased even the most demanding music lovers gathered at the Curva 4, former headquarters of F1, in Mexico City.
One of the surprises that the festival brought this year was veteran rock band Toto, which attracted thousands of attendees from various generations to one of the main stages to sing at the top of their lungs classics such as “Africa,” “Hold The Line,” “Rossana” and “I’ll Be Over You.” Another of the highlights was the debut of the British singer Raye, whose charisma made her one of the most applauded acts.
The festival continues on Saturday (Nov. 16) with performances by Shawn Mendes, Travis, New Order, Melanie Martinez, Primal Scream, Explosions In The Sky, Black Pumas, Jessie Reyez, Del Water Gap, Michelle, and St. Vincent, who the day before released the Spanish version of her four-time Grammy-nominated album All Born Screaming — Todos Nacen Gritando — as a tribute to her Hispanic followers.
Below, five of our favorite moments from day one of the 2024 Corona Capital festival in Mexico City.
Green Day Rescues Fan in Epic Show
The Viña del Mar International Song Festival has its host duo for 2025. The event’s production reported Wednesday (Nov. 6) that presenter and journalist Rafael Araneda will join previously announced host Karen Doggenweiler for its 64th edition, which returns to Quinta Vergara from February 23 to 28.
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This will be the first time that Doggenweiler serves as co-host of the Chilean festival, while Araneda returns after seven years, having hosted before between 2011 and 2018.
Produced this year by Bizarro Live Entertainment, the Festival de Viña begins a “new era” on the channel Mega, after having previously been broadcast on Canal 13 and Televisión Nacional de Chile.
“Today, it is an honor, it is a privilege, it is a gift that music gives me, that life gives me, to be able to return in this new era of Mega and Bizarro doing the Viña del Mar Festival,” Araneda told Billboard Español this week. “[I have] great memories, and great expectations for the future.”
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“I am tremendously lucky to participate in this edition,” said Doggenweiler. “Viña is not only a festival, it is a global movement of music and entertainment, of human connection.”
With almost three decades of career in radio and television, Araneda has hosted journalistic spaces, primetime shows, realities and contests, in addition to his eight years at the helm of the Viña del Mar Festival. In recent years he has developed his career in Mexico City (TV Azteca) and Miami (Univision), where he currently hosts the show Enamorándonos.
Doggenweiler, with more than a quarter century on the Chilean screens, has also hosted entertainment shows in various formats, including primetime programs, morning shows, family shows, game shows, reality TV and festivals. Over the years she has had a close connection with the Festival de Viña, which she not only covered as a reporter, but for which she also served as a judge.
Launched in 1960, the Viña del Mar International Song Festival is held annually at the Quinta Vergara, a 15,000-seat amphitheater located in the Chilean city of Viña del Mar, in the central coastal region of Valparaíso.
Over six days, the event features a mix of superstars, emerging singers and local artists competing for Silver, Gold and Platinum “Gaviotas” (Seagulls). These awards are decided by a jury with the help of viewers from their homes, although the so-called “monster” — the audience present at Quinta Vergara — undoubtedly has great power of influence with its ovations and occasional boos.
Below, Karen Doggenweiler and Rafael Araneda, the official hosts of Viña del Mar 2025, answer questions from Billboard.
Karen, this is your first time as a host of the most important television event in Chile. How do you feel now that this moment is approaching?
I am tremendously fortunate to participate in this edition of the festival. Viña is not only a festival, it is a global movement of music and entertainment, of human connection. We are going to have cutting-edge technology, there is a commitment to sustainability as well and a show that we hope will illuminate the entire summer [in the Southern Hemisphere]. I feel that it comes at a very, very special moment in my career.
Together with Rafael, we hope to put our own stamp on it. We know that for 65 years other channels have had it too… and well, now we are here and of course we hope that it becomes an endearing festival in this new version that we have prepared, in this change of era that we are working with so much love and dedication.
Rafael, what does it mean to you to return to Viña as host after seven years?
Indeed, I was member of the jury on two occasions at the Viña del Mar Festival, and then I had the opportunity to host it in eight consecutive editions. It was an extraordinary experience, personally and professionally, given that we work with the best technology in terms of making television, of doing what we are passionate about. We work on a 360 multimedia concept where there are different audiences, not just the people on television — there is the radio, the written press, today social media is very strong, and also digital broadcasts that can even give you a personalized festival experience. In that sense, it was always a nice challenge.
Today, it is an honor, it is a privilege, it is a gift that music gives me, that life gives me, to be able to return in this new era of Mega and Bizarro doing the Viña del Mar Festival. [I have] great memories, and great expectations for the future.
What would you say has been your favorite moment in Viña?
Karen: So many! I was able to go as a spectator when I was little with my mother, with my sister. I have also been part of the jury, and on related satellite programs, I participated as a reporter, waiting for the artists who arrived at the airport to interview them. For so many years I have witnessed it from different places. I think I was just missing being a host! So I think my favorite moment in Viña is yet to come. Although I treasure each of these other moments in a very important place in my heart, I think Viña 2025 is going to be my favorite moment in Viña del Mar.
Rafael: There are many particular moments, there are many behind-the-scenes emotions — but I stick with the prior preparation, on a personal level. And also observing from backstage, from a unique point of view, the nerves of world-class stars before going onstage — or when they are introduced — they look nervous, they look eager, you see them vocalizing, doing exercises, talking and refining details with their crew. And there you realize that we are all people, that we all want to give always the best version of ourselves, and that what happens there is unique, truly wonderful.
Karen, you mentioned attending the festival as a spectator with your mother and your sister. What does your family tell you now that you will be hosting Viña del Mar?
Karen: My family feels proud, happy, and of course supports me in this important instance. We experience the affection of each of the Chileans that we encounter every day, of our compatriots, in every step we take on the street, through the screens, through the radio. Of course our family also adds to that. And I am convinced that with Rafael it is the same. I know his family, I love them very much. And well, we are already working very closely to make it an unforgettable festival, so that we truly reflect this change of era, so that we can surprise, and so that everyone transforms each of these six nights in something that remains forever in the hearts.
Rafael, what is going to be different for you after seven years of absence?
Rafael: I think that the signature that Mega and Bizarro are going to give it. And in that sense, together with Karen — with whom I had the opportunity to work for many years on Chilean television in different formats, at different times, and we enjoyed it, we had a great time — I think that will be the hallmark. Having the possibility of meeting her again after so many years of accumulated experience is going to be very rich. Hopefully that chemistry and maturity that we have both gained over the years will come through. I have no doubt that this is how it will be.
But the signature will also be connected to energy, which is a central concept for Viña 2025. The energy generated by the music, the energy generated by the Viña del Mar experience, the energy generated by making a broadcast that each of us makes it our mission, not only the media. People today will have access to technological platforms to see the festival from wherever they want to see it, and however they want to see it. I hope they see it with their family — the lineup is going to be along those lines. It will be family-friendly crossover artists, and obviously and proudly massive. That’s Viña del Mar.
Pop superstars Olivia Rodrigo and Justin Timberlake are set to headline the 14th edition of the Pa’l Norte festival, the massive music party held annually in the Mexican city of Monterrey. The lineup, announced on Tuesday morning (Oct. 29), includes other major international acts such as Charli XCX, Green Day, Massive Attack, Kings of Leon, Black Keys and Caifanes.
This will be the first time that Rodrigo and Timberlake, who have previously visited Mexico, will participate in a Mexican festival. Timberlake has already performed in the country and has two upcoming shows scheduled at the Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City on Feb. 7-8. Rodrigo — who recently completed the 2024 dates of her Guts World Tour, which did not include Mexico — had not previously performed in concert in the country.
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The acclaimed festival will take place April 4-6 in Parque Fundidora in this city bordering the U.S.
SEVENTEEN, Garbage, Fall Out Boy, Benson Boone and electronic music stars Gesaffelstein, The Chainsmokers, Claptone, Sasha & John Digweed, and Deep Dish are also part of the Tecate Pa’l Norte 2025 lineup.
The 14th edition of the festival, one of the most acclaimed in Latin America, will feature more than 180 musical acts across nine stages, according to the organizers. The three-day event draws about 100,000 people per day, a few thousand more than the EDC electronic music festival, one of the most populous in the country.
In partnership with promoter Ocesa, acquired by Live Nation in 2021, Tecate Pa’l Norte has become one of the largest and most diverse festivals in Mexico. It annually attracts thousands of fans from around the world, with a capacity greater than other mega-festivals in the Mexican capital such as Vive Latino and Corona Capital, which gather about 80,000 people per day, according to their organizers.
Situated in Parque Fundidora, the festival’s lineup celebrates a rich fusion of genres ranging from rock and indie to regional Mexican music, reggaeton and electronic music, featuring some of the biggest international acts.
Its stages include Tecate Light, which hosts the main acts; Tecate Original stage, which embraces a mix of musical genres; Oasis Stage, dedicated to the popular genres of reggaeton, hip-hop, and trap; while Villa Maravilla offers the best in techno, afro house, and house music. The Club Social stage brings conventional sounds and EDM.
The Fusión stage is designated for Latin acts, and the Acústico stage offers a unique show with “unplugged” sets throughout the weekend, while the Sorpresa stage offers surprise performances and the Pilos stage, named after a legendary bar in Monterrey, has hosted the biggest stars of northern music since its inception.
In its 14 years of existence, Pa’l Norte has established itself as the “most important musical entertainment event in northern Mexico,” according to the Ministry of Tourism of Nuevo León.
In previous editions, the festival featured artists such as Billie Eilish, Foo Fighters, Caifanes, Maná, Tame Impala, The Killers, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, and 50 Cent. The 2024 edition was headlined by Peso Pluma, Blink-182, Imagine Dragons, Maná, and Fuerza Regida.
Mexican festival Vive Latino will celebrate its 25th anniversary with an eclectic lineup headlined by acts including Caifanes, Raphael, Scorpions, Aterciopelados, Keane, Molotov, Mon Laferte, Eden Muñoz, Los Ángeles Azules, Zoé and Duncan Dhu, who will light up the great Hispanic rock party to be held March 15-16, 2025, at the GNP Seguros Stadium in Mexico City, promoter Ocesa announced Friday (Oct. 25).
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The lineup also includes other Latin and English speaking soloists and bands such as Sepultura, Draco Rosa, Nortec: Bostich + Fussible, Kany García, Meme del Real, Little Jesus, Los Planetas, Rüfüs Du Sol, La Lupita, Vilma Palma e Vampiros, Cuarteto de Nos, Siddhartha, División Minúscula, Arde Bogotá, Él Mató a un Policía Motorizado, and León Benavente.
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According to the organizers, the presale for Citibanamex cardholders will take place next Wednesday (Oct. 30), with the regular sale for the general public opening the next day.
The Vive Latino will be returning to its original home at GNP Seguros Stadium (formerly Foro Sol), after the 2024 edition had to be held at Curve 4 of the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, the same site where Formula 1 and the Corona Capital and Arre festivals are held annually, due to renovations of the venue.
Since its inception in 1998, the Ibero-American Festival of Musical Culture, better known as Vive Latino, has had a transgressive personality that has challenged stigmas: It was the first to incorporate pop, reggaeton, cumbia, and regional Mexican music artists into its lineup; it had an edition lasting four days; it added English-speaking bands despite being the ultimate celebration of rock es Español, and it is the first in Latin American festival to have its own edition in Spain.
The Vive Latino festival debuted on November 28-29, 1998, at the Foro Sol, on the east side of Mexico City. Since then, it has been held annually, except in 1999, 2002, and 2021, the latter due to the COVID pandemic.
Check out the full official lineup for the 2025 Vive Latino festival below:
Nuestros Sonidos, Carnegie Hall‘s ambitious season-long celebration of Latin music and culture, got off to a spectacular start on Oct. 8 under the baton of the Venezuelan virtuosic conductor Gustavo Dudamel — Billboard‘s cover star this month — and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Kicking off during Hispanic Heritage Month, the festival boasts an impressive lineup, featuring talents such as Mexican singer-songwriter Natalia Lafourcade, Cuban funk artist Cimafunk, Colombian indie pop band Monsieur Perine, salsa legends Grupo Niche and Chilean jazz virtuoso Claudia Acuña.
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One of the most eagerly awaited highlights of the festival is the Carnegie Hall debut of Ivy Queen, the formidable reggaetón superstar known for her fierce advocacy for women’s empowerment within the male-dominated genre. “Being on this stage allows me to celebrate not only reggaetón but also the essence of what it means to be Latino, our roots, and our global musical influence,” Ivy Queen expresses to Billboard Español. “It is an honor to be part of this representation and to continue taking our music to every corner of the planet.”
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Carnegie Hall’s executive and artistic director Clive Gillinson and Adriaan Fuchs, director of festivals and special projects, articulate that Nuestros Sonidos aims to shine a spotlight on Latin music that has deeply influenced both American culture and the world at large.
“Latin music was something that has had such a huge effect [not just] on American culture, but on culture around the world,” Gillinson notes. “It was something really important to do. We look at who are the greatest experts in the field so that we make sure all the ideas that we’re considering and exploring come from people who are leaders in thinking, knowledge, experience and background.”
Gustavo Dudamel & Natalia Lafourcade at Carnegie Hall
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Fuchs adds, “We work with curatorial councils and advisors who help put these festivals together. They include Latin music experts, ethnomusicologists, cultural and societal experts in terms of how culture in America has developed. In conjunction with them, we decided that we wanted to cover a range of different genres one would expect, such as salsa, reggaetón, Latin jazz, classical music, and so forth. We really wanted to focus on those genres that have played a key role in the American cultural landscape, and in America, particularly.”
As Nuestros Sonidos unfolds throughout the season, it promises a diverse array of Latin musical styles and expressions, inviting audiences to explore the powerful narratives that have shaped the past, present, and future of Latin music.
Read our Q&A with Ivy Queen and Carnegie Hall’s Clive Gillinson and Adriaan Fuchs below:
What inspired Carnegie Hall to launch Nuestros Sonidos, and what do you hope to achieve with this initiative?
Clive Gillinson: We try to look at things that are important issues and areas of culture. Last season, we looked at the Fall of the Weimar Republic: The Fragility of Democracy, because we felt that’s a very major issue in the world today. The year before, we looked at Women in Music, and before that, Afrofuturism. [In 2021], we looked at [Voices of Hope] Artists in Times of Oppression; artists who wrote despite the most horrific circumstances — be it in the Holocaust, slavery, the Soviet Union, and so on. They still wrote things that were about hope and aspiration.
Latin music was something that has had such a huge effect [not just] on American culture, but on culture around the world. 11 years ago, we did Voices from Latin America, which looked specifically at the music of three Latin American countries. The emphasis was to look at the influences of Latin music on American culture, particularly. We felt it was something really important to do, something that maybe hasn’t been looked at enough in terms of the way people look at culture in America.
Ivy, as a pioneering figure in reggaetón and an advocate for female empowerment in the music industry, what does it mean for you, on a personal and professional level, to debut at Carnegie Hall with the Nuestros Sonidos series?
Ivy Queen: For me, debuting at such an iconic place as Carnegie Hall represents both a personal and professional validation of the path I have traveled in my career. I have fought to open doors for women in a genre that has historically been dominated by men. Being on that stage not only represents recognition of my years of work and effort but also proves that reggaetón, a music born from the streets, has a legitimate place in the most prestigious spaces in the world. It is an achievement that celebrates the resilience, strength, and talent of all the women who have been part of this movement.
How does Nuestros Sonidos intend to impact the local New York community and the broader Latin music scene?
Gillinson: We want this to be meaningful for devotees, advocates and people who come from the Latin music background so that they feel represented. They feel that their culture is given center stage. To make sure that all of these areas of music also reach people who maybe it has not been their background, and where they trust Carnegie Hall as a curator to take them on a journey of exploration.
Fuchs: New York had such a huge role to play, in terms of Latin music flourishing this country throughout the decade. We wanted to make sure that we have programming that addresses all of that. In putting together the concerts at the Hall, we were very much aware of the Latin communities that exist in New York City: the Puerto Rican community, Colombian community, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Cuba, etc. We made sure that we had artists representing those different cultures, musical genres, and styles as part of the festival.
The range of partners that are involved are the Cuban Cultural Center of New York, the Colombian Film Festival of New York, the Association of Dominican Classical Artists. Then we also have iconic New York institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City Center, New York University’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development all participating in this festival. It’s really an exciting citywide celebration of Latin culture.
Ivy, how do you see this opportunity in terms of promoting and celebrating the diversity of Latin music and its impact on the global music scene?
Ivy Queen: This opportunity at Carnegie Hall is an incredible platform to showcase the richness and diversity of Latin music in all its forms. Latin music is not a single genre; it is a universe full of rhythms, cultures, and stories that connect with audiences around the world. Being on this stage allows me to celebrate not only reggaetón but the essence of what it means to be Latino, our roots, and how we have influenced music on a global level. It is an honor to be part of this representation and to continue taking our music to every corner of the planet, demonstrating that Latin music is much more than a passing trend: it is a cultural and artistic force that continues to transform the global music industry.
Are there any particular performances or elements within the series that you’re especially excited about?
Fuchs: We’re really excited about Ivy Queen on November 20. It was important for us to find a big headlining artist like Ivy Queen to be part of the festival because of the fact that she’s such a trailblazing female artist within the industry. Really in terms of, obviously reggaetón and hip-hop, she stands out as someone who forged her own path and is someone really to be celebrated for her achievements in a very male-dominated field. We wanted to make sure that she appears at Carnegie and as part of Nuestros Sonidos.
We’re also really excited about Grupo Niche. They’re just an extraordinary ensemble that have pioneered and pushed the envelope in terms of salsa music for so long. It’s exciting to have them at Carnegie Hall for the first time. Monsieur Periné, who will be part of the festival on February 22, are such a funky and interesting group. I’m sure that people are going to be getting up and dancing when they start to play. It’s going to be such a joyful concert. Then the incredible Chilean jazz vocalist, Claudia Acuña, who is bringing a very interesting program. Songs in jazz that have stood the test of time through various decades. It’s a moment for us to celebrate the Latin songbook.