3BallMTY to Headline the Billboard en Concierto Series

3BallMTY will be bringing the band’s unique sound to Texas and California this April…

The Mexican tribal music troupe – comprised of Erick Rincon, Sergio Zavala (Dj Sheeqo Beat) and Alberto Presenda (Dj Otto) – has signed on to be part of Billboard’s fourth annual Billboard en Concierto concert series.

3BallMTY

The acclaimed-seven city, invitation only music series, the lead up to the Billboard Latin Music Awards, kicks off April 2 and will feature live performances by 3BallMTY, as well as tropical superstar Tito El Bambino.

It’s the latest high-profile event for the group that earned nine prizes at the Billboard Mexican Music Awards.

As in years past, Billboard En Concierto was designed specifically with fans in mind. There is no cost for tickets, but fans can secure access to the shows by participating in promotions held by event sponsors and by tuning in to Telemundo stations and checking local station websites.

The initial Billboard En Concierto series in 2010 featured performances by Xtreme and Jencarlos Canela, while 2011 featured Mexican pop trio Camila. In 2012, Billboard En Concierto featured performances by Mexican trio Reik and diva Gloria Trevi.

This year’s series kicks off with four consecutive performances by 3BallMTY, beginning April 2 in Houston (House of Blues) followed by Dallas (House of Blues), Los Angeles (House of Blues) and San Francisco (The Fillmore). Tito El Bambino will close out the series with shows in Chicago (House of Blues), Miami (The Fillmore) and culminating Wednesday, April 10 in New York (Best Buy Theatre).

2013 Billboard En Concierto Music Series

04/02/12 3BALLMTY Houston, TX House of Blues
04/03/12 3BALLMTY Dallas, TX House of Blues  
04/04/12 3BALLMTY Los Angeles, CA House of Blues
04/05/12 3BALLMTY San Francisco, CA The Fillmore
04/07/12 TITO EL BAMBINO Chicago, IL House of Blues
04/09/12 TITO EL BAMBINO Miami, FL The Fillmore
04/10/12 TITO EL BAMBINO New York, NY Best Buy Theatre

3Ball MTY to Perform at Coachella…

Erick Rincon, Sergio Zavala (Dj Sheeqo Beat) and Alberto Presenda (Dj Otto) have lined up one of the biggest gigs of their lives…

The members of Mexico’s DJ collective 3Ball MTY, winners of the Best New Artist award at last year’s Latin Grammys, have been added to the lineup for the prestigious Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California.

3Ball MTY

It’ll be 3Ball MTY’s first appearance at the music festival after their banner year in 2012 that included winning nine awards at last year’s Billboard Mexican Music Awards and seeing their album Inténtalo named the breakthrough album of the year by iTunes editors.

Rincon, Zavala and Presenda will perform on Saturday, April 13 and Saturday, April 20.

But 3Ball MTY won’t be the only Latin acts performing at Coachella 2013, which will once again take place over two weekends (April 12-14 and 19-21).

Mexican-American singer-songwriter Sixto Rodriguez, the star of the Oscar-nominated documentary Searching for Sugar Man, will perform at Coachella, as previously reported. Rodriguez, who dropped out of sight after releasing two extraordinary albums in the early 1970s that didn’t sell well stateside, will perform on Sunday, April 14 and Sunday, April 21.

Rising star DJ Danny Avila will make his Coachella debut. The 17-year-old EDM wunderkind, who recently released the remixes for his smash single “Breaking Your Fall,” will take the stage on Sunday, April 14 and Sunday, April 21.

Mexican alternative rock band Café Tacvba, recipient of iTunes’ Best Album honors last year for El Objeto Antes Llamado Disco, will perform on Saturday, April 13 and Saturday, April 20

For the full Coachella 2013 lineup and information on purchasing three-day passes for either weekend, check out the fest’s official site.

3BallMTY: This Year’s Billboard Mexican Music Awards MVP

The members of 3BallMTY proved to be the beaus of the ball at this year’s Billboard Mexican Music Awards.

The Mexican tribal music troupe – comprised of Erick Rincon, Sergio Zavala (Dj Sheeqo Beat) and Alberto Presenda (Dj Otto) – earned the most awards of any artist/act during Thursday night’s nationally televised awards show, which honors regional Mexican music.

3BallMTY

This year’s 12-time nominee 3BallMTY picked up nine awards, including New Artist of the Year, Artist of the Year, Duo or Group; Song Artist of the Year and Digital Download Artist of the Year.

The awards show was broadcast live on Telemundo from Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium and featured genre-breaking performances from 3BallMTY together with reggaetón duo J King & Maximán, as well as more traditional fare from Conjunto Primavera and Los Huracanes del Norte.

3BallMTY’s wins helped to shine a spotlight on the dynamic nature of regional Mexican music, the top-selling Latin sub-genre in the United States. The trio of DJs, who only released their debut album last year – and who had their network performance premiere on the first Billboard Mexican Music Awards – also won Songs Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for the single “Inténtalo,” featuring El Bebeto and América Sierra.

“In Mexico there have always been new waves,” said 3Ball MTY’s Zavala on the red carpet outside of Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium. “We brought something fresh with the electronic sound [and] tribal is really growing.”

 

Meanwhile, last year’s big winner, norteño star Gerardo Ortiz, picked up seven awards, including Artist of the Year and Artist of the Year, Male. Ortiz’s album Entre Dios y el Diablo also won the Album of the Year Award.

A special award for the evening was given to ranchera singer/songwriter Pepe Aguilar, who received Billboard‘s Legacy Award in recognition of his lengthy and rich musical trajectory that has influenced the genre and its artists.

Legendary ranchera singer Vicente Fernández, currently on a farewell tour, swept the ranchero/mariachi category, winning Ranchero/Mariachi Album of the Year for Otra Vez, Song of the Year with “El Vestido Blanco” and overall Ranchero/Mariachi Artist of the Year.

Jenni Rivera won Artist of the Year, Female and Banda Album of the Year for her album Joyas Prestadas.

Billboard Mexican Music Awards finalists and winners are determined by chart performance as chronicled in Billboard Magazine and on Billboard.com during the eligibility period of August 27, 2011 through August 18, 2012. Award categories are based on album and digital track sales data provided by Nielsen SoundScan and radio airplay monitored by Nielsen BDS.

For a full list of winners, click here.

Lovato: The Top-Ranking Latweeno on Billboard.com’s 21 Under 21

Billboard.com is back with its list of this year’s hottest minors in music, with five Latweeno artists/groups making the cut… And Demi Lovato isn’t only the highest ranking Hispanic artist, she’s also the top-ranking female…

The 20-year-old part Mexican singer/actress, who ranked at No. 7 last year, moved up four spots on Billboard.com’s latest 21 Under 21 installment, which ranks the most powerful minors in music.

Here’s a look at the Latweenos making the grade this year:

No. 3: Demi Lovato
Following the personal problems that threatened to derail her career two years ago, Lovato has come back Unbroken, which happens to be name of the album she released last year. It’s an album that’s still garnering attention. The album’s first track Skyscraper” recently picked up an MTV Video Music Award, while follow up single “Give Your Heart a Break” has resulted in Lovato’s first-ever No. 1 on the Billboard charts.

But that’s not all… Lovato scored a high-profile primetime television gig by joining Fox’s The X Factor, where she’s currently judging other aspiring artists alongside Simon Cowell and Britney Spears.

Throw in a popular summer tour with Hot Chelle Rae and hosting gigs at the Teen Choice Awards and MTV’s live New Year’s Eve Special, and 2012 is proving to be the year the former Disney Channel star is reaching new heights in her already impressive career.

Scotty McCreery

No. 4: Scotty McCreery
Scotty McCreery is holding steady on the 21 Under 21 list, coming in at No. 4 once again. That’s probably because the 18-year-old part-Puerto Rican country singer’s career has been going full steam ahead since he won American Idol in 2011. McCreery, who graduated from high school this year, saw his debut album Clear as Day reach No. 1 on the Billboard charts.

Even though he hasn’t placed a single in the top 10 on the country charts, McCreery has developed a very loyal fan base at a young age. Clear as Day helped him claim prizes from the American Country Awards, the Academy of Country Music Awards and the CMT Music Awards.

McCreery even toured with Brad Paisley and performed on the CW’s Hart of Dixie.

McCreery is following up his debut album, which was certified platinum, with a holiday set, Christmas with Scotty McCreery, will hit stores on October 16.

No. 6: Selena Gomez
She may have dropped three spots on the 21 Under 21 list, to No. 6, but Selena Gomez has not fallen off the radar. In the last year, she’s released another hugely popular album (When the Sun Goes Down), which spawned the hit singles “Who Says” and “Love You Like a Love Song,” which earned Gomez her first-ever MTV Video Music Award nod. And the 20-year-old half-Mexican American singer/actress performed the album’s third single, Hit The Lights, on Dancing with the Stars.

And Gomez has broadened her appeal while taking a break from recording music. This spring, she launched a brand new fragrance and focused on her film career. Her voice will be heard in the animated film Hotel Transylvania, and she’s set to appear in two films that could help shatter her Disney image: Spring Breakers with James Franco and the crime drama Getaway.

And she’s currently dating the No. 1 on the 21 Under 21 list, Justin Bieber, which has resulted in countless tabloid placements. Selena Gomez and the Scene will hopefully be back soon, but in the meantime, she continues to leave her indelible imprint on pop culture.

3BallMTY

No. 17: 3BallMTY
3BallMTY may not be huge in the United States, but they could be very soon. The Mexican DJ collective, comprised of 19-year-old Erick Rincón, 19-year-old Alberto Presenda (DJ Otto) and 20-year-old Sergio Zavala (DJ Sheeqo Beat), have managed to turn their hobby into a huge business that’s reached a global audience thanks to their signature “tribal guarachero” sound. They’ve achieved success via radio airplay and synch deals with brands like Pepsi. And they recently dominated the list of finalists for the upcoming Billboard Mexican Music Awards. Despite their newfound fame, 3BallMTY has kept a cool and down-to-earth attitude about the group’s ascent in the music business. This past summer they opened up for Justin Bieber in a special concert at the famous Zócalo, the main square in the heart of historic Mexico City in front of about 200,000 music fans. “It was a bit nerve-wrecking,” says Rincón, “but once we were out on stage it was an amazing experience that we will never forget.”

Victoria Justice

No. 21: Victoria Justice
Victoria Justice has taken a tumble on the 21 Under 21 list, dropping from No. 10 to No. 21. But that has nothing to do with the 19-year-old half-Puerto Rican singer/actress’ talent. The star of had a relatively quiet recording year. She’s the breakout star of the Nickelodeon hit show, even while co-stars like Ariana Grande are seeing their stock rise. The release of the show’s latest soundtrack, Victorious 2.0, coincided with the release of Justice’s recent solo single, “Make It In America,” and in August Justice embarked on her first solo tour in support of the pop tune.

With Victorious ending it’s run on cable, Justice will be setting her sights elsewhere. She has a new film Fun Size coming out this October; and she plans to release a solo album shortly after that.

Click here to see this year’s complete list of music’s hottest minors.

3Ball MTY Receives 12 Billboard Mexican Music Award Nominations

The three members of 3Ball MTY are probably blowing Besos al Aire to their fans after earning the most Billboard Mexican Music Award nominations.  

3Ball MTY

The Mexican DJ collective, which is comprised of Erick Rincon, Sergio Zavala (Dj Sheeqo Beat) and Alberto Presenda (Dj Otto), earned nods in 12 categories. 3Ball MTY’s mix of cumbia and electronica is currently at the forefront of the new tribal music movement.

3BallMTY, who had its national television debut at last year’s Mexican Music Awards, broke ground with their infectious single “Inténtalo,” a finalist in the Song of the Year, Song of the Year-Vocal Event and Duranguense/Grupero/Cumbia Song of the Year categories.

Following right behind 3Ball MTY: hard-hitting corrido singer/songwriter Gerardo Ortiz, a finalist in 11 categories, and eclectic singer/songwriter Espinoza Paz, with 11 nods in 10 categories (he competes against himself in the Banda Album of the Year category).

Other leading finalists include perennial hitmakers La Arrolladora Banda el Limón de René Camacho, competing for nine awards, including Artist of the Year and Songs Artist of the Year. La Arrolladora’s hit “Llamada de mi Ex” is also a finalist for Song of the Year and Banda Song of the Year. La Arrolladora’s director, Fernando Camacho Tirado is also a finalist in the Producer of the year category, an award he won in 2011.

Meanwhile, Julión Alvarez y Su Norteño Banda received six nods-including Artist of the year-Duo or Troup and Airplay Artist of the Year– and América Sierra, the featured vocalist in 3BallMTY’s hit “Inténtalo” with five. Alvarez is also a finalist for Producer of the Year.

Finalists up for four awards include Jenni Rivera, Shaila Durcal, Vicente Fernandez and Joan Sebastian. Those up for three awards include Banda el Recodo de Cruz Lizarraga, El Bebeto and Tierra Cali.

The second annual Billboard Mexican Music Awards will be broadcast live from Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium on Telemundo Oct. 18.

The Billboard Mexican Music Awards are the only nationally televised awards that exclusively honor regional Mexican music. Finalists and winners of the 33 awards are determined by chart performance as chronicled in Billboard Magazine and on Billboard.com. Award categories are based on album and digital track sales data provided by Nielsen SoundScan and radio airplay monitored by Nielsen BDS.