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Two stars from FIMgdl

As I wrote last week, I spent four days at the FIMgdl Latin Music Industry conference at the University of Guadalajara’s Santander Arts and Culture Complex in Zapopan. FIMgdl (International Music Fair)  brings together music executives from throughout Latin America, Spain, the United States, and Canada. Senior Executive teams from Spotify and other platforms also attend to recruit new talent and to take the pulse of the second fastest-growing music market in Latin America and the third fastest-growing genre in the United States.

But for me, the highlights were the musicians. There were 25 bands on the outdoor stage of the Santander and the two indoor stages at the C3 nightclub in Colonia Americano, rented out for the conference. Several really ones stood out to me, including Nicole from Chile and Marilia Monzón from Spain.

Nicole has been a prominent figure in Chilean music for more than 30 years, but at 47 she is as young and fresh, and innovative as artists 20 years younger. She has maintained her edge by being not only creative and tireless but daring, – she is not afraid to assemble new sounds, new combinations,  new chords, and musical textures. And she does it on stage with the energy of a small nuclear reactor.

Since recording her first single in 1989 she has explored all avenues of pop, including the classic album Esperando Nada (1994) and the surprising Sueños en Tránsito (1997), produced by Gustavo Cerati.

Born Denisse Lillian Laval Soza, her voice and stage name are recognized throughout Chile.  She midwifed the birth of the local pop industry with her debut “Maybe I’m Falling in Love “(1989)  and she recorded on the BMG label in the mid-1990s with more than 120 thousand copies sold of her albums. She earned a Latin Grammy nomination. She started her own label – and thereby owns her songs, something many top stars can’t say.

From the other side of the world, and the other end of the age spectrum is  Marilia  Monzon, 24,  born in the Canary Islands. Sweetness and originality are the hallmarks of her songs and her voice, but as you can see from the video, she powers it up and rocks the house. At FIMgdl she sang both the sweet and gentle and the booming power, both to rousing cheers.

With the release of her debut album, Prenderé una Velita she begins a new career stage with ten songs full of authenticity that draw on pop and folk from both her homeland, the Canary Islands, and much of Latin America.  

She got her start as a contestant on the Spanish television song competition Operación Triunfo and went on to release songs like “Todo Bien” and “Hasta La Raíz. Prolific touring and more releases allowed her to build a Spotify following topping 50,000.  Her appearance at FIMgdl was just one stop on her current Latin tour through Mexico, Spain, and Columbia.

Rather than say more, check out the videos filmed live at FIMgdl.

Patrick O’Heffernan, PhD., is a music journalist and radio broadcaster based in Los Angeles, California, with a global following. His two weekly radio programs, MusicFridayLive! and MusicaFusionLA are heard nationwide and in the UK. He focuses on two music specialties: emerging bands in all genres, and the growing LA-based ALM genre (American Latino Music) that combines rock and rap, blues and jazz and pop with music from Latin America like cumbia, banda, jarocho and mariachi. He also likes to watch his friend drag race.

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