Victor Manuelle’s Music Career Celebrated by House of Representatives in Puerto Rico

It’s an enchanting time for Victor Manuelle

The 54-year-old Puerto Rican salsa singer, who was born in New York and raised in Isabela, Puerto Rico, was honored this week by the House of Representatives in Puerto Rico.

Victor ManuelleThe legislative body celebrated Manuelle’s 30-year prolific music career with an intimate ceremony.

“Honor to whom honor deserves […] Thank you Victor for always putting our island so high,” wrote a tourist Instagram account called “Enjoy Isabela Puerto Rico.”

“Puerto Rico! this would not have been possible if it were not for the love you have given me during these 30 years of experience,” Manuelle shared on Instagram. “Thank you for watching me grow as a performer and loving me so much! I will always be grateful to you.”

Manuelle, known for hits such as “Tengo Ganas,” “He Tratado,” and “Si Tu Me Besas,” is wrapping up a weekend of concerts at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico, as part of the commemoration.

Daddy Yankee Comes Out of Retirement to Release “Beachy” Single, Featuring Omar Courtz

Life’s beachy keen for Daddy Yankee

To everyone’s surprise, the 46-year-old Puerto Rican rapper, singer, songwriter and actor came out of retirement to release a new collaboration with newcomer Omar Courtz (who he discovered on Instagram).

Daddy YankeeDaddy Yankee and Courtz have teamed up for the summer-ready track called “Beachy.”

Co-written by Daddy Yankee, Courtz, Justin Quiles and BCA, the song — part of the upcoming LEGENDADDY Goat Edition album — narrates the story of a girl who’s getting tanned at the beach and enjoying the sun while she’s living her best single life.

The single, produced by Yankee, Dimelo Flow, BK and PM, fuses reggaetón with Afrobeats, backed by Daddy Yankee’s signature sugary vocals and Courtz’s raspier tones.

Cardi B Teams Up with Latto for “Put It On Da Floor” Remix, “Put It On Da Floor Again”

Cardi B is leaving it on the floor

The 30-year-old half-Dominican American Grammy-winning rap superstar has joined voices with Latto on her “Put It On Da Floor” remix, “Put It On Da Floor Again.

Cardi B, LattoAfter literally ripping Cardi B out of plastic in a video posted to Instagram on Wednesday (May 31), Latto used the opening line of her bouncy single “Put It On Da Floor” to announce a revamped remix with the “Bodak Yellow” rapper that dropped at midnight on Friday, June 2.

Following its April 20 release, the original track amassed over 100,000 video creations on TikTok, and came as a follow up to Latto’s pop-centric “Lottery.”

Now back in her rap bag, the Atlanta-made wordsmith is off to a good start, enlisting Cardi B for what may become the song of the summer.

While some fans attribute the choice to Latto’s recent beef with Cardi B’s arch nemesis Nicki Minaj, the “WAP” rapper has proven to be a no-brainer feature, most recently catapulting GloRilla’s “Tomorrow 2,” the single exploding thanks to Cardi B’s iconic verse.

“Big Latto Big Bardi ISSA REAL BTCH PARTY!!!” Latto wrote on an Instagram post sharing the single’s cover art, which shows a denim-clad Cardi and Latto striking a handful of playful poses, donning matching blonde hairdos.

Ryan Garcia Training with Derrick James Ahead of 140-Pound Title Campaign

Ryan Garcia has a new trainer…

The 24-year-old Mexican American star boxer will train with Derrick James in Dallas ahead of his campaign for a 140-pound title, Garcia announced on social media.

Ryan GarciaGarcia presented James as his trainer on Instagram, where he boasts 10.4 million followers. Garcia had parted ways with trainer Joe Goossen following a seventh-round KO loss to Gervonta Davis last month in Las Vegas.

That superfight, which netted $22.8 million in ticket sales, was contested at a 136-pound catchweight, but Garcia (23-1, 19 KOs), ESPN’s No. 6 boxer at 140 pounds, will compete at junior welterweight going forward.

“I’m searching for greatness,” Garcia told ESPN. “I’m looking to improve. I’m looking to be a champion with Derrick James. I feel he can guide me and mentor me.”

James is ESPN’s reigning Trainer of the Year. In 2022, the former boxer guided Errol Spence Jr. and Jermell Charlo to unification title wins, as Spence added a third welterweight title while Charlo became the undisputed junior middleweight champion.

Earlier this year, James began working with former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, and now the trainer has added a fourth marquee fighter to the mix. James is known for perfecting power punchers, so it’s a natural fit with the heavy-handed Garcia.

Garcia first teamed with Goossen as an amateur boxer in Southern California. Garcia was trained by his father, Henry, for many of his pro fights, but Eddy Reynoso took control of the corner in 2018.

Reynoso, Canelo Alvarez‘s longtime trainer, guided Garcia to five wins in five bouts, including his seventh-round TKO of Luke Campbell in January 2021. Following that career-best victory, Garcia was out of the ring for 15 months while he addressed his mental health and recovered from wrist surgery.

When Garcia returned in April 2022, there was a familiar face in his corner alongside his father: Goossen. Goossen, 69, trained Garcia for three fights: a decision win over Emmanuel Tagoe in April 2022, a sixth-round KO of Javier Fortuna in July and, finally, the loss to Davis.

Becky G Launching First-Ever Headlining Tour, “Mi Casa, Tu Casa”

Becky G is making headlines…

The 26-year-old Mexican American singer/actress will be heading out on her first-ever headlining tour.

Becky G“Mi gente… I cannot believe I get to finally announce MI CASA, TU CASA, my first ever headlining tour!!!” Becky G wrote on Instagram.

“I’ve been dreaming of this moment my entire career…I can’t wait to sing & dance with you guys, los quiero mucho mucho mucho y nos vemos pronto!”

The 16-date tour will run through the early fall, starting with a show September 14 at Roadrunner in Boston followed by stops in New York City, Atlanta, Orlando and more.

At the tail end of the month, Becky will spend consecutive nights across Texas by performing in Sugar Land, Grand Prairie, San Antonio and McAllen before playing El Paso’s Abraham Chavez Theatre.

After three dates through Southern California, the tour then caps off October 14 at the Arizona State Fair in Phoenix.

Tickets for Becky’s Mi Casa, Tu Casa Tour go on sale Friday, May 12 at 10:00 am local time via the Power Rangers actress’ official website.

Becky G is currently riding high with “Chanel,” her latest top 10 hit with collaborator Peso Pluma on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart.

In April, the duo debuted the track live for the first time during her Coachella set, which also included a surprise appearance by Natti Natasha, and later performed the song together at the 2023 Latin AMAs.

Zack de la Rocha & Rage Against the Machine Mates Voted Into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Zack de la Rocha is all the Rock and Roll rage…

The 53-year-old Mexican American musician, singer, songwriter, rapper and political activist and his fellow Rage Against the Machine band mates have made it onto the list of inductees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Zack de la Rocha x Rage Against the MachineIt took five tries, but the rebel rock fuse-lighters finally made it onto the inductee list.

The L.A. group whose incendiary sound mashed up the force of crunching hard rock with the social conscience and rhythms of hip-hop, the no f’s given attitude of punk and a topical lyrical attack indebted to 1950-60s folk songwriters reacted to the news that they’d gotten the nod in typically strident fashion.

In an Instagram message from the group on Wednesday morning (May 3), they wrote, “It is a surprising trajectory for us to be welcomed into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.”

The note from singer de la Rocha, guitarist Tom Morello, drummer Brad Wilk and bassist Tim Commerford then dipped into their biography as a band formed in 1991 by four people to “stand where sound and solidarity intersect.”

They described themselves as “a band who is as well known for our albums as we are for our fierce opposition to the U.S. war machine, white supremacy and exploitation. A band whose songs drive alternative radio to new heights while right wing media companies tried to purge every song we ever wrote from the airwaves.”

The multi-slide post went on to tick off some of Rage’s career high points: shutting down the New York Stock Exchange for the fist time in its 200-year history when they stormed it to shoot the 1999 video for “Sleep Now in the Fire”; as a group targeted by “police organizations who attempted to ban us from sold-out arenas for raising our voices to free Mumia Abu Jamal, Leonard Pelteir and other political prisoners; one that sued the U.S. government for their “fascist practice of using our music to torture innocent men at Guantanamo Bay”; funding and organizing delegations to stand with Mexican rebel Zapatista communities to expose the Mexican government’s war on indigenous people and the band that “wrote rebel songs in an abandoned, industrial warehouse in the Valley that would later dethrone Simon Cowell’s X Factor pop monopoly to occupy the No. 1 spot on the UK charts and have the most downloaded song in UK history (“Killing in the Name”).”

“A band whose experimentation in fusing punk, rock and hip-hop became a genre of its own,” they added. “Many thanks to the Hall of Fame for recognizing the music and the mission of Rage Against the Machine. We are grateful to all of the passionate fans, the many talented co-conspirators we’ve worked with and all the activists, organizers, rebels and revolutionaries past, present and future who have inspired our art.”

RATM released just four albums during their initial 1991-2000 run before reforming for live dates from 2007-2011 and against in 2019 for a series of shows that were first interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and then by singer de la Rocha’s leg injury.

This year’s other inductees include: Kate Bush, Sheryl Crow, Missy Elliott, George Michael, Willie Nelson, The Spinners, DJ Kool Herc, Link Wray, Chaka Khan, Al Kooper, Bernie Taupin and Soul Train host Don Cornelius.

Peso Pluma & Eslabon Armado Make History as “Ella Bala Sola” Reaches No. 1 on Billboard Global 200 Chart

Peso Pluma is officially a global phenomenon…

The 23-year-old Mexican singer’s collaboration with Eslabon ArmadoElla Baila Sola” has surged to No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 chart dated April 29.

Eslabon Armado x Peso PlumaIt’s the first leader on the list for each act, as well as the first for the Regional Mexican genre.

Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma’s “Ella Baila Sola” ascends 3-1 to crown the Billboard Global 200, with 95.2 million streams (up 27%) and 3,000 sold (up 74%) worldwide April 14-20.

It’s also the fourth all-Spanish-language leader on the list, following Karol G and Shakira’s “TQG,” which ruled for a week upon its debut in March; Bizarrap and Quevedo’s “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 52” (four weeks, 2022); and “Dákiti” by Bad Bunny and Jhay Cortez (now Jhayco; three, 2020).

“We didn’t expect for the song to make so much noise!” Pedro Tovar, Eslabon Armado lead singer and sole author of “Ella Baila Sola,” recently told Billboard of the track, which concurrently becomes the first regional Mexican top five hit ever on the Billboard Hot 100. “I really liked the song when I first wrote it, but I didn’t really expect it to be such a big hit. I previewed it on my stories on Instagram and, two days after, it went viral on TikTok, and that’s when I knew that the song was going to do big numbers.”

“Normally I don’t expect to chart with songs,” Peso Pluma marveled. “We just enjoyed the process of doing it.”

Meanwhile, marking more moves for Regional Mexican, Grupo Frontera and Bad Bunny’s “Un x100to” launches in the top five on the tally.

“Un x100to” blasts onto the Global 200 at No. 5 with 67.4 million streams and 4,000 sold worldwide in its first week. Regional Mexican sextet Grupo Frontera, from Texas, achieves its first top 10 on the chart, while Bad Bunny adds his 13th.

The Billboard Global 200 survey ranks songs based on streaming and sales activity culled from more than 200 territories around the world, as compiled by Luminate. The Global 200 is inclusive of worldwide data, including the United States.

Chart ranks are based on a weighted formula incorporating official-only streams on both subscription and ad-supported tiers of audio and video music services, as well as download sales, the latter of which reflect purchases from full-service digital music retailers from around the world, with sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites excluded from the charts’ calculations.

Anitta Signs with Republic Records

Anitta is joining the republic…

The 30-year-old Brazilian superstar has signed with Republic Records, according to Billboard.

AnittaThe news comes just weeks after Anitta and Warner Music Group agreed to part ways. The two parties released a joint statement to social media on April 4 announcing the news.

“After eleven years of successful partnership, we’ve agreed to go our separate ways,” the post read. “Anitta would like to thank the Warner Music team for all their support. And the Warner team wishes Anitta all the best in the future.”

Anitta signed with Warner Records in the United States in 2020 after previously linking with Warner Music Brazil in 2013. She had long voiced concerns about her relationship with WMG, from the label refusing to produce a video for an underperforming song to advising young artists to pay closer attention to what they sign.

During an Instagram livestream last May, Anitta said Warner only invested in her work “after it pays off on the internet. Unfortunately, there are things I can’t get, that’s why I don’t buy millionaire cars, because when I want to do something, I pay for it.” She added that Warner “is very tied to TikTok, to what goes viral, and if they don’t get a hit right away, they say ‘later.’”

The singer followed that with a tweet thread last month in which she blasted Warner, saying she regretted signing with the label and would have “auctioned off her organs” in order to be released from her contract.

During her run at Warner, Anitta scored a global breakthrough with her trilingual album, Versions of Me, which last year hit No. 1 on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart with its TikTok-driven single, “Envolver.” The song’s music video won in the category of Best Latin at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards. That same year, she also performed at Coachella and the Latin Grammy Awards.

Anitta will now join a superstar roster at Republic that includes Taylor SwiftAriana GrandeThe WeekndNicki Minaj and more. Sources say Jesús López, chairman/CEO of Universal Music Latin America and Iberian Peninsula, and Paulo Lima, president of Universal Music Group Brazil, will work closely with the artist.

Anitta is managed by S10’s Brandon Silverstein globally.

Nashy-Nashai Wins Netflix’s Latin Music Competition Series “La Firma”

It’s a special signing for Nashy-Nashai

The aspiring Argentine artist has been declared the winner of Netflix’s La Firma, the streaming services first-ever Latin music competition show.

Nashy-NashaiLa Firma starred Rauw Alejandro, Tainy, Nicki Nicole, Yandel and Lex Borrero.

“The NEON16 team signs Nashy-Nashai for her performance on #LaFirmaNetflix, with a mission to build her presence in the music industry. Stay tuned for what’s coming in 2023 for Nashy-Nashai!” says an official Instagram post.

In a similar spirit as The Voice and Making The BandLa Firma placed 12 hopeful contestants in a mansion, and followed them for the chance to secure a record deal with Neon16 — a talent incubator founded by Borrero and Tainy.

Spectators were introduced to budding talent from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Perú, and the U.S.

Christina Aguilera Joins Playground Lube Brand to Help Promote Sexual Wellness

Christina Aguilera is breaking new (play)ground

The 42-year-old half-Ecuadorian American Grammy-winning singer, a long-time advocate for female empowerment, has taken on a new role as co-founder and chief brand advisor for the sexual wellness brand Playground.

Christina AguileraThrough this collaboration, Aguilera is hoping to de-stigmatize the conversation around intimacy via a range of products that includes scented personal lubricants with names such as “Love Sesh,” “Date Night” (champagne & vanilla scented) and “Mini Escape” (coconut & sandalwood).

“Sex is an essential part of our overall wellness, and @hello.playground is here to remind you that EVERY part of your body, not just your hair or your face, deserves to be pampered,” Aguilera wrote in an Instagram post announcing her collaboration.

In another post, Aguilera said she’s spent her whole career encouraging everyone, “but especially women,” to feel empowered while owning their sexuality. “The better you feel about yourself, the better you can live your life and own EVERY capacity of it!” she wrote. “I am so proud to be a co-founder of @hello.playground an amazing women-owned brand that’s committed to making sexual wellness products more accessible and ✨FUN✨ for all!”

The products from the woman-owned brand — which also include the musk and oxwood-scented “After Hours” lubricant — can be ordered discreetly from home. In a statement on their site, the company promises that their “full-sensory” products spark “all five senses and multiple erogenous zones — enhancing your mood, mind and libido. Intentionally designed for a woman’s unique needs and desires, our proprietary formulas contain innovative biotech formulations and chemistry-enhancing ingredients.”

The plant-based products feature natural ingredients, are pH-balanced, vegan and 100% transparent, so users can see what they are putting into their bodies. They are also sustainably sourced, with bottles and caps that are made of 50% post-consumer recycled plastic and boxes made from 30% post-consumer waste.