Raul Malo & The Mavericks to Receive Trailblazer Award at This Year’s Americana Honors & Awards

Raul Malo and The Mavericks are officially trailblazers

The 56-year-old Cuban American singer, songwriter, guitarist and record producer and his fellow The Mavericks band mates will be honored with the Trailblazer Award, as part of the lifetime achievement awards at the upcoming 20th annual Americana Honors & Awards show on September 22 at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium.

The Mavericks

The Mavericks join a roster of honorees that includes Keb’ Mo’, the Fisk Jubilee SingersTrina Shoemaker and Carla Thomas.

Keb’ Mo’ will be honored with the Performance Award, the Fisk Jubilee Singers with the Legacy Award (which will be co-presented by the National Museum of African American Music), Shoemaker with the Producer-Engineer Honor and Thomas with the Inspiration Award.

The Honors & Awards ceremony serves as the highlight of the Americana Music Association‘s annual AMERICANAFEST, which will take place Sept. 22-25 in Nashville.

The Mavericks formed in Miami in 1989. In the 1990s they earned Top 20 hits on Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs chart, including “O What a Thrill” (peaked at No. 18), “All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down” with Flaco Jimenez (No. 13) and “There Goes My Heart” (No. 20). In 2000, the group went on hiatus and lead singer Raul Malo released a series of solo albums. The group reunited in the 2010s and last year, they released their first all-Spanish language album.

Singing group the Fisk Jubilee Singers, of Fisk University, were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2000 and were awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2008. The original Fisk Jubilee Singers formed in 1871. Their music broke racial barriers both in the United States and abroad, while helping the group raise money for the school.

Since Kevin Roosevelt Moore launched his career in the early 1990s (and was rechristened Keb’ Mo’ around 1994), he’s earned five Grammy honors. In 1994, he released his self-titled debut project, which contained “Come on in My Kitchen” and “Kindhearted Woman Blues,” both covers of songs from blues icon Robert Johnson. Keb’ Mo’ has since performed everywhere from Sessions at West 54th to the Crossroads Festival to the White House. His 2019 album, Oklahoma, earned the best Americana album honor at last year’s Grammy Awards.

Illinois native Shoemaker aspired to become a record producer, first working in Los Angeles and London before moving to New Orleans. Shoemaker was noticed by producer Daniel Lanois, who made her a tape op and then a full engineer. She worked on projects for Iggy Pop, Giant Sand and on Emmylou Harris‘ Wrecking Ball. Then she began working with Sheryl Crow on Crow’s self-titled album and subsequent The Globe Sessions album, which earned Shoemaker her first Grammy honors, including a trophy for her engineering. Shoemaker has recorded, produced and/or mixed for artists including Whiskeytown, Matthew Ryan, and Josh Ritter, as well as more recent work on The Secret Sisters‘ You Don’t Own Me Anymore and Tanya Tucker‘s While I’m Livin’. Shoemaker is also the first woman to win the Americana producer/engineer lifetime award.

Thomas made a string of recordings for Stax and Atlantic Records in the 1960s, incorporating soul, country and gospel. The daughter of DJ, singer and performer Rufus Thomas, she began singing as a child, joining WDIA‘s Teen Town Singers at age 10. She earned an early pop and R&B hit “Gee Whiz (Look at His Eyes).” Thomas appeared on American Bandstand and recorded an album filled with duets with Otis Redding months before he died in 1967. In 1993, the Rhythm & Blues Foundation honored Thomas with its exclusive pioneer award. The inspiration award has only been granted once before, to fellow Stax/Atlantic recording artist Mavis Staples.

“We are beyond humbled to recognize this group of artists with our highest awards,” said Jed Hilly, executive director of the Americana Music Association. “All of these artists have transformed the way we listen and experience music and have helped to build a perennial foundation for Americana music to prosper as an art form today. Our community looks forward to welcoming them with open arms on our biggest night of the year in September.”

FKA twigs Earns Libera Awards Nomination for Video of the Year

FKA twigs is celebrating a Sad recognition…

The nominees for the 10th annual A2IM Libera Awards, presented by Merlin, have been revealed, with the 33-year-old part-Spanish singer earning a nod in one of the top categories.

FKA-twigs

FKA twigs is up for Video of the Year for her “Sad Day” clip. The song appears on her chart-topping album Magdalene.

Lido Pimienta has picked up a nod in the Best Alternative Rock Record category.

The 35-year-old Colombian Canadian musician, singer, and songwriter earned the nod for her acclaimed Miss Colombia album.

Raul Midon is nominated in the Best Jazz Record category.

The 55-year-old half-Argentine American singer-songwriter and guitarist earned the nod for his The Mirror album.

Bebel Gilberto has earned a nod in the Best World Record category.

The 54-year-old Brazilian American singer picked up the nod for her album Agora.

The Best Latin Record category features a competitive group of nominees, including Bad Bunny (El Último Tour Del Mundo), Gabriel Garzón-Montano (Agüita) and The Mavericks (En Español).

A2IM is the New York-based trade organization that works to strengthen the independent recorded music sector.

This marks the second year that the Libera Awards will be held as a livestreaming ceremony, open to the public. Produced by The Control Room, the June 17 show will feature performances from nominees as well as the presentation of this year’s Independent Icon Awards. This is the second year that Sweet Relief will serve as A2IM’s official charity partner for the Libera Awards. All proceeds raised during the show will be donated to career musicians and music industry professionals in need.

The Libera Awards are the culmination of Indie Week, the world’s largest independent music conference, taking place from June 14 to 17. Sponsored by SoundExchange, Indie Week features keynotes, panels, networking sessions and more. Indie Week 2021 will mark the second year A2IM will hold the event virtually.

“As we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the A2IM Libera Awards, it is extremely satisfying to see the remarkable growth of the independent sector,” said Richard James Burgess, A2IM CEO. “The A2IM Libera Awards is an acknowledgement, celebration and representation of everything independents work so hard to accomplish.”

The 2021 Libera Awards are presented by Merlin, the independent’s digital music licensing partner.

Voting is open to A2IM members until 11:59 p.m. ET on April 5. Follow A2IM on Instagram and Twitter for programming updates. RSVP to the Libera Awards by visiting A2IM’s YouTube page or liberaawards.com.To learn more about Indie Week 2021, visit a2im.org/indieweek.

Here’s a full list of 2021 Libera Award nominees:

Record of the Year
Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher (Dead Oceans)
Run the Jewels – RTJ4 (Jewel Runners, Inc.)
Perfume Genius – Set My Heart On Fire Immediately (Matador Records)
Yves Tumor – Heaven To A Tortured Mind (Warp Records)
Thundercat – It Is What It Is (Brainfeeder)
Waxahatchee – Saint Cloud (Merge Records)

Video of the Year
FKA twigs – “Sad Day” (Young Turks)
Perfume Genius – “Describe” (Matador Records)
Phoebe Bridgers – “Savior Complex” (Dead Oceans)
Run the Jewels – “Ooh La La” (Jewel Runners, Inc.)
Christine and the Queens – “La vita nuova” (Because Music)
ford. – “Fruit&Sun” (Foreign Family Collective)

Best Live/Livestream Act
Run the Jewels (Jewel Runners, LLC.)
Phoebe Bridgers (Dead Oceans)
Fontaines D.C. (Partisan Records)
Perfume Genius (Matador Records)
Arca (XL Recordings)

Breakthrough Artist/Release (Presented by Ingrooves)
Arlo Parks (Transgressive/[PIAS])
Bonny Light Horseman (37d03d)
Overcoats (Loma Vista Recordings)
Arlo McKinley (Oh Boy Records)
Orion Sun (Mom + Pop Music)

A2IM Humanitarian Award
Rev. Moose (Marauder/NIVA)
Killer Mike & El-P of Run the Jewels (Jewel Runners, Inc.)
Megan Thee Stallion (300 Entertainment)
Paul Redding (Beggars Group)
Kevin Liles (300 Entertainment)

Best Alternative Rock Record
Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher (Dead Oceans)
Soccer Mommy – Color Theory (Loma Vista Recordings)
Car Seat Headrest – Making A Door Less Open (Matador Records)
Lido Pimienta – Miss Colombia (Anti- Records)
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Sideways to New Italy (Sub Pop Records)

Best Americana Record
Bonny Light Horseman – Bonny Light Horseman (37d03d)
Kevin Morby – Sundowner (Dead Oceans)
Calexico – Seasonal Shift (Anti- Records)
Courtney Marie Andrews – Old Flowers (Fat Possum Records)
Lucinda Williams – Good Souls Better Angels (Highway 20/Thirty Tigers)

Best Blues Record
Bobby Rush – Rawer Than Raw (Deep Rush Records/Thirty Tigers)
Don Bryant – You Make Me Feel (Fat Possum Records)
Robert Cray Band – That’s What I Heard (Nozzle Records/Thirty Tigers)
Fantastic Negrito – Have You Lost Your Mind Yet? (Cooking Vinyl Ltd.)
Sonny Landreth – Blacktop Run (Provogue Records)

Best Classical Record
Erik Hall – Music for 18 Musicians (Steve Reich) (Western Vinyl)
Paul Moravec – Sanctuary Road (Naxos American Classics)
Echo Collective – The See Within (7K!)
Niklas Paschburg – Svalbard (7K!)
Vitamin String Quartet – Vitamin String Quartet Performs Lana Del Rey (CMH Label Group/Vitamin Records)

Best Country Record
Margo Price – That’s How Rumors Get Started (Loma Vista Recordings)
Waxahatchee – Saint Cloud (Merge Records)
Colter Wall – Western Swing & Waltzes And Other Punchy Songs (La Honda Records/Thirty Tigers)
Various Artists – Willie Nelson American Outlaw (Live At Bridgestone Arena/2019) (Blackbird Productions)
Jaime Wyatt – Neon Cross (New West Records)

Best Dance/Electronic Record
Caribou – Suddenly (Merge Records)
Arca – KiCk i (XL Recordings)
Ela Minus – acts of rebellion (Domino Recording Co.)
Yaeji – What We Drew (XL Recordings)
Actress – Karma & Desire (Ninja Tune)

Best Folk/Bluegrass Record
Ben Harper – Winter Is For Lovers (Anti- Records)
Angel Olsen- Whole New Mess (Jagjaguwar)
Gillian Welch – Boots No. 2: The Lost Songs (Acony Records)
Jason Molina – Eight Gates (Secretly Canadian)
Laura Marling – Song For Our Daughter (Partisan Records)

Best Hip-Hop/Rap Record (Presented by Virgin Music)
Run the Jewels – RTJ4 (Jewel Runners, Inc.)
clipping. – Visions of Bodies Being Burned (Sub Pop Records)
Little Simz – Drop 6 (AGE101/AWAL)
The Koreatown Oddity – Little Dominiques Nosebleed (Stones Throw Records)
Naeem – Startisha (37d03d)

Best Jazz Record (Presented by Qobuz)
Gil-Scott Heron & Makaya McCraven – We’re New Again – A Reimagining by Makaya McCraven (XL Recordings)
Jeff Parker – Suite for Max Brown (International Anthem)
Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Adrian Younge – Azymuth JID004 (Jazz Is Dead)
Christian McBride – The Movement Revisited: A Musical Portrait of Four Icons (Mack Avenue Music Group)
John Carroll Kirby – My Garden (Stones Throw Records)
Raul Midon – The Mirror (Artistry Music)
Jyoti – Mama, You Can Bet! (SomeOthaShip/eOne)

Best Latin Record
Bad Bunny – El Último Tour Del Mundo (Rimas Entertainment)
Gabriel Garzón-Montano – Agüita (Jagjaguwar in partnership with Stones Throw Records)
The Mavericks – En Español (Mono Mundo Recordings/Thirty Tigers)
Buscabulla – Regresa (Ribbon Music)
Jungle Fire – Jungle Fire (Nacional Records)

Best Metal Record
Architects – “Animals” (Epitaph Records)
HUM – Inlet (Earth Analog Records)
Ghostemane – Anti-Icon (Blackmage)
Ingested – Where Only Gods May Tread (Unique Leader Records)
Pyrrhon – Abscess Time (Willowtip Records)

Best Outlier Record (Presented by The Orchard)
Khruangbin – Mordechai (Dead Oceans)
Oneohtrix Point Never – Magic Oneohtrix Point Never (Warp Records)
Yves Tumor – Heaven To A Tortured Mind (Warp Records)
Beverly Glenn-Copeland – Transmissions (Transgressive/[PIAS])
Mary Lattimore – Silver Ladders (Ghostly International)
Moses Sumney – Græ (Jagjaguwar)

Best Punk Record
IDLES – Ultra Mono (Partisan Records)
Protomartyr – Ultimate Success Today (Domino Recording Co.)
METZ – Atlas Vending (Sub Pop Records)
Viagra Boys – Common Sense (YEAR0001/AWAL)
Porridge Radio – Every Bad (Secretly Canadian)

Best R&B Record
Thundercat – It Is What It Is (Brainfeeder)
Khruangbin & Leon Bridges – Texas Sun (Dead Oceans)
Robert Glasper – “Better Than I Imagined” (feat. H.E.R. & Meshell Ndegeocello) (Loma Vista Recordings)
Son Little – aloha (Anti- Records)
Orion Sun – Hold Space For Me (Mom + Pop Music)
Steve Arrington – Down To The Lowest Terms (Stones Throw Records)

Best Rock Record (Presented by Mitchell; Silberberg & Knupp LLP)
Fontaines D.C. – A Hero’s Death (Partisan Records)
King Krule – Man Alive! (True Panther Sounds/Matador)
Bartees Strange – Mustang (Single Memory Music)
Bob Mould – Blue Hearts (Merge Records)
Caroline Rose – Superstar (New West Records)

Best Spiritual Record
Sun Ra Arkestra – Swirling (STRUT)
Lecrae – Restoration (Reach Records)
Jon Hopkins – “Singing Bowl (Ascension)” (Domino Recording Co.)
Thad Cockrell – If In Case You Feel The Same (ATO Records)
Wande – EXIT (Reach Records)

Best World Record (Presented by Redeye Worldwide)
Antibalas – Fu Chronicles (Daptone Records)
Bebel Gilberto – Agora ([PIAS])
Altin Gün – “Ordunun Dereleri” (ATO Records)
Songhoy Blues – Optimisme (Fat Possum Records)
Emel – The Tunis Diaries (Partisan Records)

Best Re-Issue
J Dilla – Donuts (Jelly Edition) (Stones Throw Records)
Pylon – Pylon Box (New West Records)
Hiroshi Yoshimura – GREEN (Light In The Attic)
Pixies – Bossanova 30th Anniversary Reissue (4AD)
Motorhead – Ace of Spades 40th Anniversary (Sanctuary Records)
Elliott Smith – Expanded 25th Anniversary Edition (Kill Rock Stars)
Grandaddy – The Sophtware Slump 20th Anniversary Collection (Dangerbird Records)

Best Sync Usage
Run the Jewels (Jewel Runners, Inc.) – “Ooh LA LA” – Season three of Netflix’s Ozark
Black Pumas (ATO Records) “Colors” – Samsung Galaxy S20
Brittany Howard (ATO Records) “You’ll Never Walk Alone” – Johnnie Walker’s #KeepWalking Campaign
Blood Orange (Domino Recording Co.) “Tuesday Feeling (Choose to Stay)” – Season four of HBO’s Insecure
IDLES (Partisan Records) “Grounds” – Watch Dogs: Legion

Creative Packaging
Soccer Mommy – Color Theory limited edition back to school binder (Loma Vista Recordings)
Black Pumas – Black Pumas (Deluxe Edition) – ATO Records
Perfume Genius – Set My Heart On Fire Immediately vinyl (Matador Records)
Pylon – Pylon Box [CD Box Set](New West Records)
IDLES – Ultra Mono (Partisan Records)

Independent Champion (Presented by Merlin)
Bandcamp
SoundExchange
Secretly Distribution
TuneCore
The Orchard

Marketing Genius
Jewel Runners, LLC – Run the Jewels x Cyberpunk2077 “No Save Point”
Beggars Group – Supporting Indie Retail #loverecordstores Campaign
Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher (Dead Oceans)
Light In The Attic – Social Media & Digital Marketing
Perfume Genius – Set My Heart On Fire Immediately Campaign (Matador Records)

Label of the Year (Big) (Presented by ADA)
Partisan Records
Sub Pop Records
Warp Records
Stones Throw Records
Ninja Tune

Label of the Year (Medium)
Light In The Attic
Sacred Bones Records
Matador Records
Ghostly International
Rough Trade Records

Label of the Year (Small) (Presented by Spotify)
Daptone Records
Innovative Leisure
Fire Talk Records
International Anthem
Hardly Art
Oh Boy Records

The Mavericks Release First-Ever Spanish Language Album, “En Español”

The Mavericks are switching tongues…

The Grammy-winning country band that blends Tex-Mex, neo-traditional country music, Latin and rockabilly influences has released its first-ever Spanish language album, En Español.

The Mavericks

The new album by The Mavericks, comprised of Raul Malo,Eddie PerezJerry Dale McFadden and Paul Deakin, sees original member and lead singer Melo embrace his Latin roots.

En Español features a collection of their own Spanish language originals, as well as classic Latin tracks from which they drew inspiration.

“Even if you’re not fluent in Spanish, the rhythms, phrasing, and melodies are universal,” says the band of the 12-track album. “[It’s] a vibrant, sit-up-and-take-notice album… with mighty musicianship to get you out of your seat.”

Here’s a look at the track list:

En Español

  1. La Sitiera – Writer: Rafael López González
  2. Recuerdos – Writers: Raul Malo, Alejandro Menéndez Vega
  3. No Vale La Pena – Writer: Alberto Aguilera Valadez
  4. Poder Vivir – Writers: Raul Malo, Alejandro Menéndez Vega
  5. Sombras Nada Maìs – Writers: José María Contursí, Francisco J. Lomuto
  6. Mujer – Writer: Raul Malo
  7. Me Olvideì De Vivir – Writers: Pierre Abel Billon, Julio Iglesias, Jacques Able Jules Revaud
  8. Pensando En Ti – Writers: Raul Malo, Cynthia Susana Medina
  9. Sabor A Miì – Writers: Alvaro Carrillo Alarcón
  10. Suspiro Azul – Writers: Raul Malo, Alejandro Menéndez Vega, Lisset Diaz Guevara, Miguel Comas
  11. Cuando Me Enamoro – Writers: Mario Panzeri, Daniele Pace, Roberto Livraghi
  12. Me Voy A Pinar Del Riìo – Writers: Néstor Manuel Pinelo Cruz

https://open.spotify.com/album/30DQiI9l9HMsebReRC9BC8

Additionally, The Mavericks are launching their first-ever pay-per-view web concert series, The Mavericks Show, in partnership with NUGS.TV, beginning on Saturday, August 22.

Raul Malo & The Mavericks Cover Freddy Fender’s Classic “Before the Next Teardrop Falls”

Raul Malo is celebrating his band’s anniversary with the help of a Latino country music legend…

The 54-year-old Cuban American country singer/guitarist and his The Mavericks mates have covered Freddy Fender’s iconic “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” for their next album.

Raul Malo & The Mavericks

The band recorded the late singer’s song because the track holds special meaning to frontman Malo.

“When I was a kid, that song meant a lot to me, and it meant a lot to my dad,” Malo tells Billboard of the song, a platinum 1975 single for Fender, one of only a half-dozen songs that year to top both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Hot Country Singlescharts. 

“We would be driving around Miami listening to it, and I remember it being a really proud moment whenever it was played. Even though my family’s Cuban and Freddy’s Mexican, just the fact there was a Latin male on the pop charts and on TV singing this beautiful song, it was a source of pride.”

Malo adds, “It had a verse in Spanish, and it was on the pop charts and on the country charts. You think, ‘My gosh, how does that happen?’ Of course, those are the mysteries of the music business. That’s why we love it and hate it at the same time, but [the song] was a sweet miracle, for sure.”

Malo says “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” will be part of a covers set due out this fall, likely late October or early November, that commemorates the Mavericks’ 30th anniversary, which the group has been touring to celebrate all year. The genre-hopping group has already released a rendition of John Anderson‘s “Swingin‘,” and Malo says the rest of the album will feature “a collection of songs that have meant something to us — there are some classic country music songs in there, obviously, and there’s a few surprises thrown in there for good measure.”

The group is continuing to play live and celebrate an eclectic, idiosyncratic career that began with three straight top 10 country albums and a Grammy Award, as well as a resumption in 2012 — following an eight-year hiatus — that’s  brought four more albums and the launch of the group’s own Mono Mundo Recordings label in 2017.

“I feel like an old vampire that has all this wisdom, but I’m still in the game and it’s been an amazing ride,” Malo says. “The Mavericks have been counted out, almost sort of the outsider. That’s been frustrating, but I realized a while ago it’s a good place to be, and we can turn that to our advantage however we want to. I like the paths we’ve taken, and our willingness to take chances. When you live a little outside the rules and outside of the game, you can really do whatever you want. That’s what works for us and what works for our fans as well.”