Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York

Fania Records is changing. Co-owner Jerry Masucci wants to sell the company but his partner Johnny Pacheco refuses to sell. Tensions rise between the two, until an alleged betrayal sets them on very different paths. The end of Fania Records doesn’t spell the end of salsa though. The artform these underdogs created lives on. Listen to the Music Behind Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York playlist here.Archival courtesy of Craft Recordings, a Concord company, Doc Stanley, Mary Kent’s Salsa Talks interviews, Aurora Flores Hostos Interviews, Jeanne Montalvo Interviews and Maria Hinojosa for Latino USA. This episode also utilizes fair use clips from HITN Television and TelevisaUnivision. Want to support our independent journalism? Join Futuro+ for ad-free listening, early-access and exclusive bonus episodes with the chisme behind Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York and all our podcasts: www.futuromediagroup.org/joinplus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At the height of Fania’s success, the label’s artists are invited to Zaire to perform at a highly anticipated boxing match. For many of these Black artists, this is the first time they are stepping foot on African soil. Welcomed by a rapturous crowd, the Fania All Stars give a legendary performance and many of them connect with their roots.  Listen to the Music Behind Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York playlist here.Archival courtesy of The Bronx County Archives at The Bronx Historical Society, Mary Kent’s Salsa Talks interviews, Aurora Flores Hostos Interviews, Craft Recordings, a Concord company, and Maria Hinojosa for Latino USA. This episode also utilizes fair use clips from Hemdale Leisure Productions, ESPN, Ora TV, Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Antidote Films, and PolyGram Filmed Entertainment.Additional music this episode also courtesy of SONGS of Media Creature.Want to support our independent journalism? Join Futuro+ for ad-free listening, early-access and exclusive bonus episodes with the chisme behind Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York and all our podcasts: www.futuromediagroup.org/joinplus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

By 1973, drummer Ray Barretto is determined to make a high-stakes comeback and to make a political statement about the role of Salsa in the activism of the time. He’s set on performing at Fania’s most ambitious concert yet, at Yankee Stadium. The day of the concert, a frenzy erupts. But despite the wild turn of events, this night cements Fania as the leading label for salsa music. And whether the label wants to be or not, the very presence of Latino youth in Yankee Stadium – one of the most storied venues in the city – makes Fania political. Listen to The Music Behind Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York playlist here.Archival courtesy of The Bronx County Archives at The Bronx County Historical Society Research Library, Maria Hinojosa for Latino USA, Mary Kent’s Salsa Talks interviews, Aurora Flores Hostos Interview and Craft Recordings, a Concord company. This episode also utilizes fair use clips from US National Archives, American Archive of Public Broadcasting, ABC, Internet Archive / formerly Radio Aeropuerto, Rockefeller Archive Center, Third World Newsreel Film Collective, Manhattan Neighborhood Network, WNET, and WMCA Radio. Want to support our independent journalism? Join Futuro+ for ad-free listening, early-access and exclusive bonus episodes with the chisme behind Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York and all our podcasts: www.futuromediagroup.org/joinplus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the mid 1960s, young musicians Joe Bataan and Willie Colón are quickly owning the boogaloo scene in East Harlem and the Bronx. The problem—Morris Levy, the mob boss who owns hit-making labels, is one of the few routes to stardom. Bataan and Colón have to figure out how to avoid Levy, while projecting a gangster image themselves.Listen to the Music Behind Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York playlist here.Archival courtesy of The Bronx County Archives at The Bronx County Historical Society Research Library, Buyout Footage, Craft Recordings, a Concord company, and Mary Kent’s Salsa Talks interviews, Maria Hinojosa for Latino USA, Martin Cohen Congahead Archives. This episode also utilizes a fair use clip from NBC Boston. Want to support our independent journalism? Join Futuro+ for ad-free listening, early-access and exclusive bonus episodes with the chisme behind Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York and all our podcasts: www.futuromediagroup.org/joinplus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 1964, an Italian-American ex-cop and a Dominican musician in New York City opened Fania Records, the “Motown of Salsa.” The artists from Fania toured the world, sold millions of records and changed culture forever. But Fania Records also became mired by royalty divisions, lawsuits and falling-outs. This is the story of the birth of salsa in Nueva York and the rebellious, seductive and political label that defined it: Fania Records.Hosted by Oscar and Emmy-nominated actress and Brooklyn native Rosie Perez and produced by Pulitzer Prize-winning Futuro Media. It is the most comprehensive audio narrative yet made about the birth and wild heights of salsa, a genre that continues to shape global culture today.Series premieres Tuesday, May 26. Join Futuro+ and listen early and ad free. Follow the show and don’t miss an episode!Want to support our independent journalism? Join Futuro+ for ad-free listening, early-access and exclusive bonus episodes with the chisme behind Our Thing: The Birth of Salsa in Nueva York and all our podcasts: www.futuromediagroup.org/joinplus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.