Latino Heritage at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame & Museum

By Antonio Barrios, La Prensa Correspondent

August 25, 2013: A sign of good things to come for Latino Heritage Month (September 15 to October 15) was illustrated at The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame & Museum’s Latino Heritage Festival. Bringing together Latino talent from Cuyahoga County and beyond the evening was populated with young hopefuls looking to make a good impression.

Las Voces De La Calle—Keniel y KeV

The two local radio personalities—Benny “Dee” Pedraza and Joe “The Washington Party” Hernández—kept the afternoon flowing by working closely with the WNZN 89.1FM live radio (and Will Sánchez), the performers, and the stage crew.

The Boys and Girls Club Dance Troupe opened the festivities with folkloric dance routines, followed by a few “Drop it like it’s HOT” moves that had them gyrating all over the stage. Then the high-energy teens from the Cleveland City Rockers took over the floor presentations with true Hip Hop dance routines that left the audience asking for more.

The Rockers, in their fiery red t-shirts, brought their own DJ to spin the right music for the dance numbers that left the audience amazed at the spins, twists, and head stands, moves that at times seemed to defy gravity.
 

Ten member dance troupe Evolution & L.O.D. 4 Life entertained, breaking into smaller groups then coming back with all members pulsating as they flowed with the music. Brilliantly choreographed movements, with sharp in-sync execution, made the group stand out. In a blazing finale 9-year old Yilailah Rubi Malave, aka“Sparklez,” stole center stage as she kept  up the pace with her fellow teenage dance troupe members in a fast paced show-stopper.
 

One of the highlights of the afternoon was a two man thrill team: Don Jackson aka “Legend,” and Orlando Mercado aka “X-Factor,” who had all the other dance teams howling for more. They both moved in choreographed steps but broke out in solo Free-Styles that were incredible—heart pounding aerobics that left the audience breathless.

Coach, manager, and mentor, Angel Jiménez aka “Casanova,” informed La Prensa: “The kids are hard working, honor roll students that are staying off the streets and having fun with dance.”  Mr. Jiménez, working with the House of Hope, told La Prensa that his son Orlando Mercado aka “X-Factor” has just been selected as a new member of the Cleveland Cavaliers Scream Team. 

The Latin Jazz Players performed their eclectic jazz music.

The radio show host, Micka Nova, came on stage and sang a few numbers with the band Gozadera.  A surprise performance from former lead singer of the famous Cleveland group Fuego, Alexis Adrian, now working on his solo appearances, sang a nice number with Gozadera. 

In closing, the street rappers Las Voces De La Calle—Keniel y KeV—belted out a few original songs to end the evening.

In a fitting ending, the food truck “Jibaro” was outside the museum selling their incredibly delicious Latin Cuisine—like the Chorizo burger, fish soup, and platanos. The afternoon came to a close with a full stomach and tremendous day of music, culture, and entertainment.

Alexis Adrian	Boys and Girls Club Dance Troupe
Evolution & L.O.D. 4 Life	Evolution & L.O.D. 4 Life
Evolution & Sparklez	Voces de la Calle with Mika Nova
Artist Keny Medina
LOD Legend - X Factor

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Revised: 08/27/13 19:07:24 -0700.