Notes From A Native Daughter

In the realm of music and international arts relations, Claudia Norman is a legend. Period. Sweet as pie and as serious as any true diplomat out there Claudia is a risk taker and a champion of culture. Some of her fierce credits including working with the legendary Sheldon Soffer, serving as Artistic Director of the Latino Cultural Festival at Queens Theater in the Park, Public Programming Producer for Lincoln Center Out of Doors and Midsummer Night Swing festivals, and La Casita, a festival celebrating oral traditions, poetry, hip-hop and global sounds. She’s served on many panels, worked with hundreds of artists from across the Northern and Southern American continent including the late and beloved Chabela Vargas. But goes beyond the region and one can say she has come across artists from all over the world. Her Celebrate Mexico Now Festival will be 17 this fall. Art funding will be as hard today as it has always been, she says, and she’s optimistic. Me, not so much, at least not today. Notwithstanding

Arnaldo J. López is brilliant. Brilliant. His capacity to synthesize the underpinnings of almost any topic you present to him is uncanny. Now, all this brilliance I talk about, would never-ever-ever be spilled on you as condescension, which is what sets Arnaldo apart. Truly. Anyone that knows him will tell you that it’s so. And, one of the reasons I simply love him. He is dear to my heart for that and more... I can bounce ideas off him and he takes them in. He listens. He makes sense of them and helps you navigate towards a conversation that is filled with depth and substance. And, those who know me well know I love deep and intense. Can’t help it. This episode is about art, culture, artists, the structures that bind, build, and help the field stay afloat. We go deep and broad but it’s specific of the field and the reality that is creation, presentation, scale, access, identity and going at it in an ever changing financial and cultural landscape and now, a bellicose political climate. #Art #Culture #Sc

Beatríz Ramos and Judy Mam rolled-out DADA for the digital age with DADA (dot) NYC. The original DADA movement, galloped onto the scene in the early 20th Century, to among other things, protest war and strife. Fancy that. DADA is stuff of myth for modern art history and beyond. Plenty has been studied, philosophized, and written about it. But this is not that. It is and it isn’t. DADA (dot) NYC, is a platform where people can go draw and paint. What people draw is up to them. Beartíz imagined it as a collaborative rather than a competitive space. It is sort of like creating a Mandala. You put the time to create it, only, in the end, the symbol, the art does not get erased. Chances are someone else will come to your board and add on to it and the painting gets built together in a language without words. We talk a lot in this episode 33, for an episode on invisible but palpable communication. But, no one is perfect...DADA (dot) nyc is for everyone. Go Look. Open up your heart. Draw. Resist. #DADAnyc #r

Powerful, determined, stand-up, a woman of her word, an award-winning filmmaker, actress, and director, Paola blows people away. She does, she’s got that something…I met her back when I was with my Falco Ink family as a film publicity and got the chance to do P.R. for her film Entre Nos. I know her story very well. I wrote this piece for her book, The Ones Who Don’t Stay (Los Que No Se Quedan), for the Huffington Post. Her track record has enough substance for several episodes, from refugee camps in Kenya to immigration detention centers, Paola does not relent when it comes to immigrant rights. I also wrote this piece for the Huffington Post about her and the fabulous Gloria LaMorte, one of Paola’s creative and life sisters. In this episode, we talk about the Women’s March. I asked her where her sense of duty comes from for the sake of those who don’t know her. Listen to her words. Hopefully, she’ll inspire you to stay the course and stand on simple but essential principles of humanity. I, like her, and

I marched with the Brick x Brick brigade. Brick x Brick is a public art performance that builds human “walls” against misogyny. We were a fabulous group of 120+ men and women and a marching band! Pictures of my instagram feed @soldanelarivera. Brick x Brick Believes... Standing in solidarity against any actions that threaten civil and human rights. We are indivisible. One nation; one for all. Every life and every voice are equal. Misogyny, xenophobia, Islamophobia, racism, sexism, anti-Semitism, homophobia and bigotry have no place in our White House or in society. Black Lives Matter People with disabilities’ rights are human rights. LGBTQIA people's’ rights are human rights. Indigenous peoples’ rights are human rights. Immigrants’ rights are human rights. Women’s rights are human rights. Environmental rights are human rights. #womensmarch #womenrightsarehumanrights #brickxbrick #climatechange #artsaves #resistneofascism #lovetrumpshate

In this episode 30, I speak with the profoundly creative Sarah Sandman. My heart simply opened up to her as soon as I met her back in 2011 at Hostos Community College. She works with big concepts. She creates experiences, through games and special assignments, where human capital is built and valued by doing the work. Sarah was selected a 2015 TED Fellow and is Co-Director of Public Displays of Affection, a Brooklyn based agency engaged in works that ignite social and environmental causes through experiential design. She found a serendipitous partner in award-winning costume designer Andrea Lauer, and together they developed the creative and political protest experience, brickxbrick. Two other partners came on board for Sarah and Andrea, TED Fellow, singer-songwriter, Kyra Gaunt; and TED Fellow and creative producer, Joey Foster Ellis. Project description Brick x Brick is a public art performance that builds human “walls” against misogyny. During the wall performances, participants wear brick-patter

One of my favorite projects ever is Cinema Tropical. Equally a favorite of mine, is Carlos Gutiérrez, its co-founder and executive director. In this episode 29, I welcome him with sincere gusto. I admire him tremendously and love him with a bit of teenage innocence. We talk about life, fluid identity, film, and how and why Cinema Tropical champions Latin American cinema. Cinema Tropical has matured holistically, fueled by Carlos’ admiration for filmmakers, using cinema as a tool to interpret the world, and his respect for the artistic, cultural, and civic voice of Latin America. Carlos Aguilar of IndieWire published (December 26, 2016) “20 Latin Americans Making a Difference for American Independent Film Today, Meet the unsung heroes keeping Latin American film alive in the United States.” Great piece and Carlos is there, top left in the title image composite. Next Friday, January 13, 2017, the 7th Cinema Tropical Awards. Visit the page for a full slate. Captivated by “Embrace of the Serpent” and “Th

This episode 26, is a Spanish podcast with an English intro. Here is my mom, pops and I sitting around mom’s dining table a few days ago. In this episode dad and I talk about one of my theories on why I’ve lost my “joie” for holidays in general, his love for Christmas, his Pido Paz album, childhood and Christmas in Puerto Rico in the 1950s, a song for Sister Isolina Ferré, and all the while Bebe, my mother, throws her wisdom of historical references. She didn’t “want to be” interviewed but she spoke anyway. ‘Tis her style to let her voice be heard. I owe her so much I can’t even, I’ll save her for Mother’s Day. Dad is incredible. At 71 his voice is solid, mature, profound and uncracked. A beast. He’ll get more episodes, I mean he’s a series onto itself. Later today, I’m spending Christmas with my parents for the first time in over 35 years. Amazing and beautiful. I’m verklempt and grateful. Here’s to wishing you all a Merry season and a prosperous and bountiful year 2017. Resist neo-fascism

Here in New York City Louis Perego Moreno, also known - far-and-wide - as Tio Louie, is a staple character of the hustle and bustle Latino arts and entertainment scene. He supports and champions filmmakers, actors, and musicians, but really all the arts. He’s hell-bent on arguing his point on how Latinos are not at the table at almost every turn. And, while I do agree with Louis on several points, I favor other equally and arguably more important points, regarding Latinos “at the table,” mostly that, I think we can do a better job of telling and presenting our stories. It’s a big one and a conversation that Louie and I and others can continue to have and expand. Don’t expect a cat fight here, we’re civil, loving, and listen to our conversation. #Latinos #arts #entertainment #tiolouis #ourstories #film #television

Innocence and wisdom shine out of Trina’s eyes when she speaks. Trina is an American, Venezuelan, and Italian extract, who from dancing to cycling to producing, does it all with gusto and bravado. El flamenco is one of the greatest loves of her life. Because of it, she holds to el duende (sprite) as a means to sustain living with meaning and purpose. We talk about that, her Made in NY fellowship year, Habla, Latino Media Works, and Flamenca Films. #habla #hbolatino #hablayvota #flamencafilms #duende #latina #director #flamenco

Episode 24 is part two of two, of my conversation with Elba Cabrera. Here In New York City, Elba Cabrera is an esteemed figure of the Puerto Rican diaspora. Of strong stock, with strength and honor, she’s of one of those people everyone here knows. Her sister, the beloved and legendary leader hailed as the mother of the Bronx was Evelina López Antonetty. She personifies cultural legacy. She greeted me with homemade banana bread, coffee, and quiche, and then gave me a tour of her apartment while she went on about her paintings and pictures. Her eyes and times have seen much.

Here In New York City, Elba Cabrera is an esteemed figure of the Puerto Rican diaspora. Of strong stock, with strength and honor, she’s of one of those people everyone here knows. Her sister, the beloved and legendary leader hailed as the mother of the Bronx was Evelina López Antonetty. She personifies cultural legacy. She greeted me with homemade banana bread, coffee, and quiche, and then gave me a tour of her apartment while she went on about her paintings and pictures. Her eyes and times have seen much. Episode 23 is part one of two, and this first part of our conversation plays unedited because is nuanced - history bits and in-between the lines…

Lucía Castellano Vega and Inés Mongil Echandi is the team of directors behind the lovely short doc., Clubman 13.3.13. The piece trails one man whose work ethic, dignity, and elegance reveals itself by his own words and actions. For over sixty-years, this man devoted himself to men’s wear. His sense of honor and duty reflected. The story is so simple it feels like a caress, a gesture. What gets us up each day? How come we live and for what? What is our purpose? How does time change and alter what we do and focus on? What happens when circumstances change and we must take a different course? Clubman 13.3.13 addresses these themes. A poetic story about lifelong commitments but also about a changing labor market and workforce. The protagonist holds to his work ethic because he knows only it, will save him. As long as he has his will to live there is always something to do. Inés and I talk life, finding stories, elegance, and dignity. #clubman13313 #clubman #santurce #shortdoc #womendirectors #work #mens

Melissa Montero is an Ecuadorian-Puerto Rican warrior, activist, filmmaker who dances the hustle. Automatic five stars, in my book. Her moral compass directs a lot of her creative efforts. We talk dance, the hustle, salsa, discipline, Oscar Lopez Rivera, and Isabel Rosado. Melissa is one of the core committee members of the 35 Mujeres NYC X Oscar, a group of 35 women of different ideologies, faiths, and backgrounds who gather in neighborhoods throughout New York City the last Sunday of every month to rally until Oscar Lopez Rivera is pardoned and released from prison. She’s been working on a documentary, Mi Madrina Revolucionaria (My Revolutionary Mother) for several years, about her search for a deeper sense of her identity as a Nuyorican through her encounters with Isabel Rosado, a woman whose life encompassed the history of Puerto Rico over the last century, and whose struggle reflects the politics that have divided Puerto Ricans to this day.  #freeoscarlopezrivera #PuertoRico #film #art #identity

If last week I smiled, this week I cried. Not sure which of the drops was the last drop that kicked it out me, but inspired by T.S. Eliot’s “The Hollow Men” and during my sleepless night of Thursday I wrote. And, a letter to President Barack Obama came out of me, which I sent to The White House and the Council of Environmental Quality on Friday morning. Later in the afternoon, I recorded myself reading it - 3 minutes and 50 seconds long. #IStandWithStandingRock #poetry #TheFuture #climatechange #SOS #beforetheflood

This is episode 20 of Notes From A Native Daughter. My guest is Puerto Rican award-winning actress, writer, and filmmaker Kisha Tikina Burgos. In our second go at recording, we end up having a heart-to-heart philosophical conversation about creativity and purpose. Lovely. On November 9th, her award-winning film “Antes que cante el gallo” (Before the Rooster Sings) directed by Ari Maniel Cruz, opens the International Puerto Rican Heritage Film Festival (IPRHFF) here in New York City. Among other awards, “Antes que cante el gallo” just received the Mejor Pelicula de Infancia 2016 by UNICEF Colombia during the 33rd edition of the Bogotá Film Festival. This is very cool and head over to Google translate to learn what this is all about. The film’s executive team are all a bunch of super Puerto Rican pros. Also very cool. So be on the lookout for streaming and listen to us if you wish. This is a Spanglish podcast. #antesquecanteelgallo #IPRHFF #artist #woman #filmmaker

My dear Francisco Serrano, who is one of those people I consider a genius, calls me up a few weeks back to tell me I have to listen to the guy that his little daughter Isabel (3) is obsessed with. “She just can’t get enough of him.” Parents and love, love, love…I am not a mother, but I love enthusiastic parents. So I went ahead and listened and tuned in for a few hours of Google video watching. Turns out that 123 Andrés (Andrés Salguero) has a Spanish/English music shtick, with substance, for kids and he’s etching a himself a respectable career. So much so that, for two consecutive years he’s been a Latin Grammy ® nominee for Best Children’s Album. Last year with his debut album ¡Uno, dos, tres Andrés! and this year with Arriba Abajo (Above Below). 123 Andrés is not a one-man band, Christina Sanabria, his wife, completes the power house team behind all the fanfare. The band expands and “shrinks” depending on the gig and though they themselves are Colombians, their other bandmates represent Latin America a

There’s so much I want to say about Eduardo Alegría, and yet I'm out words. Eduardo’s artistry was the first light I saw at the end of a dark tunnel. A performance artist, writer, dancer, vocalist, philosopher and band leader. Una Estrella, a star. He calls Se Nos Fue La Mano a musical “novelette.” The album is an outstanding piece, a Spanish alternative-rock gem for the ages. In the episode: Poneletreros and El Recipiente/Tsunami. His words, music, queer life, Clowns Caress Me, Puerto Rico’s quagmire, made in the sea…