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Raul Colon - photographer, digital marketer & writer living on the beach in Puerto Rico.

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Was J-Lo Imitating the Original Rump Shaker?

May 26, 2011 by Raul Colon

For those of you who watched American Idol last night, you were able to experience the presentation by Marc Anthony, Sheila E., and Jennifer Lopez.

This performance and a comment of one of my Facebook friends, Elisamaris, brought me memories of when I was a kid.

An 80's Icon, Iris Chacon

In the 80's almost every household tuned in to see a performer similar to what you saw JLo do last night. Yes, I am talking about what Puerto Rico's ultimate female artist would have done, Iris Chacon.

Iris Chacon Number 1 Fan

I remember my neighbor, who was around the same age as my grandfather at the time, would call me over to view Iris Chacon's show every week. Everyone's excitement intrigued me, and I made sure not to miss out.

What I enjoyed was listening to Spanish music presented to a primarily English speaking audience. Recently Ricky Martin sang in Spanish on Jay Leno as did @calle13oficial on the Jimmy Kimmel show.

American Idol and all these other mainstream shows who bring in performers to sing in another language are brilliant. It allows the right kind of energy to be conveyed about Latino culture.

Puerto Rico's Mainstream Ambassador

Iris Chacon was an  Ambassador of our culture who broke barriers and was able to make it to mainstream American television programs way before Jennifer Lopez, and Marc Anthony was known. She appeared on shows like Merv Griffin Show and David Letterman.

For those of You who don't know who Iris Chacon is... I have included a few videos of her performances and you can get the idea where JLo's was inspired to get her rump-shaking moves from.

Imitation as a Form of Flattery

They say an imitation is a form of flattery and you will see why Iris Chacon was the best at this body movement.

To keep up with the traditional introduction of Iris Chacon, I will switch to Spanish.

Peligrosa ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ Fabulosa ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ y con su movimiento.... ( OK just watch the videos).

Iris Chacon's Show

Iris Chacon's Coolant Ad

Iris Chacon On Late Night

Filed Under: Featured, Puerto Rico Tagged With: Authenticity, Calle 13, Community, Entertainment, Latino, Music, Puerto Rico, Quality, Video

No Crossover but @calle13oficial’s Message Was Powerful

May 11, 2011 by Raul Colon

Photos of Raul Colon Web Developer Puerto Rico

Here I go again with another post dedicated to the Musician and Artist that I mostly admire for his commitment with getting a message from his community to the masses.

Last night @lucymfel indicated that @calle13oficial was going to be on Jimmy Kimmel. Lucy who really initiated my love for @calle13oficial’s music is always watching out for me when he is making an appearance.  I stayed up to watch Jimmy Kimmel and to my surprise Good Old @calle13oficial was able to surprise many by tying his efforts towards things that are very dear to me and to some of his fans of Chile.

I think many of us with blogs can learn a thing or too on how to get our communities voice out.

Yesterday an article was posted where I collaborated along Mr. Nelson Alcantara from Eturbonews.com to facilitate an interview with the Director Of Tourism. The main purpose of the collaboration was getting to share some of the issues that have been pointed out from the real and online communities I participated directly to  the Puerto Rican Tourism Company management.

“Pal Carajo La Couta”

As I have written previously, the Puerto Rico Government imposed higher fees on students and it has been issue after issue where the government has violated Human Rights.

For those of you that saw his t-shirt that read “Pal Carajo la Cuota” (which translates into hell with the Tuition fee) that is the clear explanation.

“No al Gasoducto”

The next message was geared towards the Gas Line that the Puerto Rican Government wants to construct with the resistance of the people that live near where the line would be constructed. The government has tried to use social media and traditional media to make it look attractive but overall we can clearly see it only benefits the Puerto Rican Electric Authority and poses many environmental risks.

“Patagonia Sin Represas”

The last message he had written on himself was “Patagonia Sin Represas” which goes in line with the official twitter account of that effort @sinrepresas if you want to learn more on the effort feel free to go to the Official Website.

Once again Rene shows he is loyal to his followers and how he makes sure to use the platform he has to give his international community a voice. I would call him an expert in building and maintaining community.

Once again a big applause to @calle13oficial. And if you where not able to read his messages he made sure to scream them out during the performance that I have enclosed in the video below:

Video no longer available

Filed Under: Community, Featured, Politics, Puerto Rico Tagged With: Authenticity, Calle 13, Community, Entertainment, Latino, Music, Puerto Rico, Quality, Video

Fusion of Beats from Merengue to Bhangra that Unite

January 24, 2011 by Raul Colon

Photos of Raul Colon Web Developer Puerto Rico

We live in a world where people incline more in dividing themselves than uniting. It is a lot more difficult to unite than to divide and that is one of the reasons why I am a @calle13oficial fan. I have seen how this group has been able to fusion various types of music from various continents including in their last production Entren Los Que Quieran (amazon affiliate link)Photos of Raul Colon Web Developer Puerto Rico where his song “Bailes de Los Pobres” has a fusion of some Bhangra (Indian Music) sounds.

Previous productions have included other fusion which in my sense takes @calle13oficial to new levels increasing his reach to most spanish speaking countries because most of his productions have familiar sounds to them. Out of his last production Entren Los Que Quieran (amazon affiliate link)Photos of Raul Colon Web Developer Puerto Rico I really enjoyed his song “Vamos a Portarnos Mal” and was even more amazed with the video.

Many locally (Puerto Rico) can get past of what should be accepted as appropriate conduct. Some people might not be able to get past the title of “Vamos a Portarnos Mal” (Let’s Misbehave). I think @calle13oficial has done an excellent job at bringing many issues of discrimination in what many think  is not acceptable conduct. If you watch the videos you see how he spotlights spiritism, santeria, police brutality, homosexuality, and many other topics everyone else does not want to talk about them. The reason those things are not accepted are because they are of no benefit to a few people who control the Island (press, economy,religion, politics, and the list can continue).

There are continuos efforts to tarnish @calle13oficial’s image given his reputation of projecting the truth and being very loyalto his values. I applaud @calle13oficial in bringing us his point of view which many of us can relate to. It is admirable in this day and age how he is willing to accept the consequences that come behind his actions.

Uniting with Music

Once we get past the message we also have to give @calle13oficial credit for using merengue once again to unite two cultures (Dominican and Puerto Rican) who in many occasions are very divided. It really brings me a lot of joy when I see them playing Vamos a Portarnos Mal  in the Dominican Republic as symbol of how similar our cultures are and how close we should be.

I was not always a Big Fan of @calle13oficial

I remember in the summer of 2005 when I heard the song of “Sandwich de Salchicha” and the first few times I heard it I really did not get the message. Maybe it was because I quickly judged @calle13oficial’s music as one more inclined to Reggaeton and other purposes that where not aligned with my values. Later that year I started listening to his songs from his first production “Calle 13” and I started getting his message.

The real fan of @calle13oficial was @lucymfel which in summer of 2006 convinced me to go watch them in Central Park in New York City which they where performing for the public (entrance fee was whatever you wanted to donate). That day @calle13oficial was going to play before Soda Stereo Vocalist Gustavo Cerati at Central Park. We arrived early at sat listening to a terrible Mexican Electronic Band. I am a big fan of a lot of Mexican Talent with diverse backgrounds ranging from Tijuana No, Cafetacuba, Victimas del Dr. Cerebro, to Luis Miguel, and Juan Gabriel (reason my dog is named Juanga) but this band was terrible.

When @calle13oficial finally arrived on stage I was amazed on the energy they brought up stage and how they energized me and the rest of the crowd. The fusion of music and the message they where sharing made perfect harmony in my ears. They played for the crowd  in New York City and also created awareness of some of the injustices the FBI had committed on the Island by singing “Querido FBI” in front of a crowd of people who might not have expected it. After that moment I have to call myself a @calle13oficial fan and they really won my respect.

Years later I have to say I have been to various of there concerts including their last one in Puerto Rico and I usually pre-order there productions to make sure I get to listen to them once they are available.

The most amazing talent I admire from @calle13oficial and @visitante13 is their ability to unite and fusion music and make it their own. The message I wanted to project in What makes U original from @calle13oficial & @visitante13 was how they use their creativity to get their message out. I honestly have to say they have done it again with Entren Los Que Quieran.

Filed Under: Featured, Puerto Rico Tagged With: Calle 13, Music

What makes U original from @calle13oficial & @visitante13

October 27, 2010 by Raul Colon

5 New Definitions on Authenticity

Reading other blogs, I find great ideas from other bloggers but I rather comment on the there blog than writing a separate blog post about it (unless I think that I can put a spin on it).

I was trying to find what is authentic is about. I see in most occasions how being authentic has long term benefits.

People I consider successful are very original & genuine. Although I try every day on making it a great day, my priority is being Genuine. I would love to have the writing skills of the bloggers which I daily read their blogs.  (I highly recommend you to the same, although I am sure that you already do)

@chrisbrogan http://chrisbrogan.com
@thebrandbuilder http://thebrandbuilder.wordpress.com/
@suzannevera http://kherize5.com/blog/
@Louispagan http://louispagan.com/
@modernmami http://www.modernmami.com/

While auditing my authenticity, I ran into this interview of @calle13oficial (VIDEO) on which taught me a few things that I have listed below the video:

 

5 Definitions on Originality from Rene @Residente & his brother @visitante13

New Definition of Originality – Not trying to be original, just trying to flow with your creativity.~ @visitante13. Being uncool is not being original.~@calle13oficial  In my words be yourself & don’t copy others.

Being Honest  & Consistent – Being able to communicate your beliefs. @calle13oficial has expressed in the past and this video what he feels about our current governor (Puerto Rico). Many people might disagree, but at the end, if more people where as honest as him things would be very different not only in Puerto Rico but outside.  However, I rather criticize and attack a person’s ideas than them as a human being.

What Style is? – For @calle13oficial being yourself is your style.

Learning and Investing time with Family – They get inspiration from family and have the opportunity to work with them blending work and personal time. I think for many working with family might not be an option. So being able to operate as a business and a family in their industry makes them even more unique.

Diversity – By learning something new from a different culture, another type of music, another country, or just learning about various subjects you can actually fusion being yourself into being someone very original. That is why I think they create great music because of the diverse environment and the various people they have around them.

I am going to take a bit of what I learned today from this video and try to keep on doing what I was doing previously finding my inspiration into what I can call my creations.

The only question has he compared Ruben Blades with Bob Dylan, did he take away from Ruben’s Authenticity. What do you think?

What makes you different?
What types of music do you like? Food have you tried out?
What inspires you?

Filed Under: Professional Development, Puerto Rico Tagged With: Authenticity, Calle 13, Music, Puerto Rico, Quality, Video

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