Name: Juancho Herrera
Age: I forgot..
Roots: Colombian-Venezuela
Where do you live now?: New York City
Started playing guitar at age: Venezuelan Cuatro at age 9, Guitar at age 15
…when your musical idol was: Silvio Rodriguez and Prince
Describe your sound in 3 words: Rhythmic, Funky, South American
Writing & singing in Spanish vs. English vs. Portuguese: Somehow in English I tend to be sarcastic and humorous, where as in Spanish and Portuguese my darker side comes out.
Musical influences: Bjork, Ruben Blades, John Coltrane, Prince, Aquiles Baez, Caetano Veloso.
Do we need tradition in order to move forward into the future?
It is like trees; no strong roots no way of growing upwards
Best gig of 2004: Concert at the Kennedy Center with Crossroads Ensemble on Nov. 6, 2004
…Best Collaboration: my upcoming album with producer/engineer Fernando Aponte
Which musicians would you want to play in your dream band?:
either the Spice Girls,or the band behind Robert Palmer’s 80’s videoclip “Addicted to love”
Last 3 CDs you bought:
-Thievery Corporation “The Cosmic Game”
-The Essential Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble
-Bjork “Medulla”
Favorite thing about NYC: the music scene
What you hate about NYC: the music business
Favorite place in NYC: lower east side
Least favorite place in NYC: Wall Street
The ideal day in the city would be doing: going to the Whitney and having chocolate cake at Cafe Lalo
If you didn’t live in NY, you’d live in: Caracas, Venezuela or Barcelona, Spain.
Upcoming projects: CD realese party of my new album in the summer.
Upcoming gigs: Tour in Japan, Puerto Rico and the U.S. with Nestor Torres, Concert at SOB’s with Cuban diva Yordamis on May 27th.
What does “cosmopolatino” mean anyway?
It is either a marketing word used in order to simplify latin culture, or a drink, just like the cosmopolitan, but with “aguardiente” in it…
Check out Juancho’s guebsite for more information on his work and his upcoming gigs.