Pitbull became the latest celeb to rip El Cangri for his very public endorsement of John McCain for president. Now, these two have a checkered past to begin with. Pitbull once confessed to us that he “had no respect” for Yankee, although he would not elaborate on his reasons. So, it comes as no surprise that El Cubanito blasted the reggaeton star when asked his opinion about Yankee’s infamous endorsement.

“That was bull****. That was a publicity stunt gone wrong. How can you sit there and make a debate about John McCain and Sarh Palin? There’s no way, shape or form for him to jump behind John McCain. Whoever on your team told you this s***, really f***** you up right now. Fat Joe called him out on it also. I don’t think he’s a bad guy. I just think it’s the wrong decision. I don’t know how you can sit up there and talk about John McCain’s immigration laws when you come from an island that’s U.S. territory.”  [Laughs]

To be fair to Daddy Yankee, he endorsed John McCain before the Senator had picked Sarah Palin to be his running mate. In addition, McCain’s immigration policy is not all that different from his rival Barack Obama’s. In fact, John McCain stood alone among Republicans in calling for a softer, more “humane” policy toward illegal immigrants. 

Still, it’s clear that Daddy Yankee’s endorsement has rubbed many of his peers the wrong way. It will be interesting to see how this story develops, and whether or not there will be other musicians openly criticizing Yankee’s decision in the weeks to come.

DON’T FORGET TO VOTE ON NOVEMBER 4TH. CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT WHAT TO DO ON ELECTION DAY.

The ambitious Mexican trio is back with a mature, well-balanced album that defies the dreaded teeny-bopper tag they earned with their debut a few years ago. Un Dia Mas is a huge stride for these Mexicali natives, and shows interesting depth, especially considering that 9 of the 11 tracks were written by the members themselves.

Listen to the album, and you immediately get the feeling that Reik is not so eager to break out of the stigma of “boy-band” status. Instead, they embrace it, and challenge you to look further. “Momentos” is a bonus track that was written specifically for a new Mexican TV series by the same name, and deals more with grown-up, real-life problems, rather than the lovey-dovey themes they’re known for. “Piel de Ciudad” is a nice departure for them as well, which tells the tale of a young man adrift in a Metropolitan city that seems oddly unrecognizable.  

All that said, the album relies heavily on its punchy guitar riffs, which make up 80% of the record. And that’s not a bad thing!

Reik is simply not ready to abandon the songs of heartbreak that have earned them a well-deserved place in Latin Pop. Un Dia Mas is filled with mushy sentiments that suit these young (but emerging) songwriters very well.  

We sat down with Reik during their trip to Los Angeles.  CHECK OUT THE INTERVIEW HERE.

Fresh off their 2006 Latin Grammy winning, Oye, the duo known as Aterciopelados continues to surprise their fans. There is the usual activist passion, the organic rock elements, and the sincere vocals of Andrea Echeverri. There are songs that flow like water (e.g. the title track, “Rio”), as well as some aggressive experiments, like their duet, 28, with rapper Gloria “Goyo” Martinez.

CHECK OUT OUR :60 SECOND ALBUM REVIEW OF “RIO” HERE.

Our favorite wild-child, La Chica Dorada, has confirmed that she is hard at work on her new LP. Keeping and unusually low profile these days can only mean that she’s doing what she was put on this earth to do, which is write catchy songs.  

Celebrating 16 years as a solo artist, Paulina will drop Pausión at the end of 2008, and will come out strong with a single that features pop star Aleks Syntek.

Latin Music’s finest were brought together last night at the Los Premios MTV held in Guadalajara, Mexico. The night was packed with energetic performances by Belanova, Julieta Venegas, Katy Perry (see below), Tokio Hotel among other rockin’ artists. MTV Latin america set the tone for a truly unique awards ceremony which included inventive award categories such as “Best Fan Club”, “Best Music in a Video Game” and “Best Ringtone”.

A Latin music awards show is never complete without the presence of El Dios del Rock, Juanes. The Colombian pop king reigned over the awards snagging himself a respectable four lenguas including Artist of the Year and Best Solo Artist. Not trailing too far behind were the neon and bubblegum infused Belanova who took home both awards for Video of the Year and Best Artist-North. As honorable metions, Cafe Tacuba and Ximena Sariñana were able to leave their marks on the awards score board; each scoring one award a piece. However, the band that made the fans for wild would have to had been German transplants, Tokio Hotel. The boys took home a whopping four awards, including Best Fan Club–watch out Juanes!

MTV Latin America surely pleased their fans with this exhibition overflowing with beauty, talent, and music.

Alex Lora is in Los Angeles this week, getting ready to rock the Nokia Theater L.A. Live on October 25th. The hardest working man in rock, who hasn’t stopped since he started in the 60’s, gave us an exclusive interview and performed live in our studio.  BUT YOU’LL HAVE TO WAIT TO CATCH THAT!

In the meantime, you can catch his concert on the 25th. Click below for a special invitation from the man himself.

Also, check out a press conference that took place back in May.

Cafe Tacvba joins the force of nature Alejandra Guzman, as well as the current “it” girl of Latin Alternative, Julieta Venegas, as the first performers announced for the 9th annual Latin Grammy Awards. Also confirmed are Puerto Rico’s Kany Garcia, El Caballero de Salsa Gilberto Santa Rosa, and Olga Tañon.

The awards take place on November 13th in Houston, Texas.

CHECK OUT OUR LATIN GRAMMY NOMINATIONS SPECIAL HERE.

This has to be one of Cuba’s greatest natural resources. Mayra Veronica has been making jaws hit the floor for years, thanks to best-selling calendars, music videos (that get censored in several countries), and stunning magazine covers that should be regarded as the Gold Standard in the world of publishing.

Add to that a blossoming (no pun intended) career in music that has her singing alongside Pitbull, David Banner and others, and you’ve got a recipe for one of Latin music’s most diverse performers.

Yo! The girl is uber-hot, hard-working, confident and (best of all) unbelievably down to earth. She’s been to Iraq in support of the troops, rang the Nasdaq bell, and become spokesperson for UNICEF. All that, plus she continues to invade the dreams of MILLIONS of loyal fans all over the globe.

CHECK OUT OUR EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH MAYRA VERONICA HERE.

The best of Regional Mexican music came together with the head honchos of the digital world from October 6-8th at the third annual Billboard Regional Mexican Music Summit in Los Angeles. The summit was meant to help the Regional Mexican Industry tap into the mobile and broadband market.

Executives from various mobile and broadband companies took part in the summit to share their trade secrets on how to strike digital gold. Not only did the panel feature mobile and broadband execs, but it also featured leading artists in Latin Music.

We heard from Akwid, Tony Melendez (of Conjunto Primavera), Los Razos, Los Tucanes de Tijuana, Roberto Tapia and others.  

CHECK OUT PART ONE OF OUR COVERAGE HERE.

The once-rabid dog of Cypress Hill has seen a lot. He’s toured alongside Nirvana, Metallica, and just about every Rap/Hip-Hop artist under the sun. Now, Sen Dog is venturing into unchartered territory. His solo album, The Diary of a Mad Dog has the rapper exploring deeply personal experiences that go beyond the glory and the triumph of Cypress Hill. 

Surviving (as he put it) “a slight heart attack, a messy divorce…and child custody sh*t”, allowed Sen to write and co-produce an entire album dedicated to his own short-comings, his insecurities and his inner demons. This is not to say that this album is all doom & gloom. Far from it! Woven into the fabric of this very strong solo debut are songs of sheer rapper’s delight. Sen Dog’s thunderous voice and quick delivery is matched by stellar beats and solid hooks. 

B-Real and DJ Muggs are curiously absent from this album (except for a track produced by B-Real). But, perhaps, the album is better-served as a result. Sen Dog puts his stamp on this LP by attacking every track with ferocious honesty, making The Diary of a Mad Dog a must-listen.

CHECK OUT OUR EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH SEN DOG HERE.