WEBVTT - How I Made It: Draco Rosa

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<v Speaker 1>From Futuro Media and PRX. It's Latino Usa. I'm Marien

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<v Speaker 1>No Rosa Today. Puerto Rican singer and songwriter Draco Rossa

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<v Speaker 1>Robbie Draco Rossa, often known simply as Draco Rossa, burst

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<v Speaker 1>onto the music scene in the mid nineteen eighties in

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<v Speaker 1>a boy band you might have heard of, Menuda, was

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<v Speaker 1>a hugely popular teen group that was known for retiring

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<v Speaker 1>their singers at the ripe age of sixteen. When it

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<v Speaker 1>was time for him to leave Manula, Draco began a

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<v Speaker 1>prolific songwriting career, including writing hits for his close friend

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<v Speaker 1>and probably most famous Manula alum, Ricky Martin is the

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<v Speaker 1>songwriter behind Labida Loca and She Bangs, just to name

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<v Speaker 1>a few. But Draco has also managed to have a

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<v Speaker 1>very successful career as a solo artist, very different stylistically

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<v Speaker 1>from his pop songwriting. In nineteen ninety six, he released

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<v Speaker 1>his classic album Lacamundo, which Billboard magazine named as one

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<v Speaker 1>of the fifty Greatest Latin albums of the past fifty years. Then,

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<v Speaker 1>in twenty eleven, Draco Rossa's life would take a big turn.

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<v Speaker 1>He was diagnosed with non Hodgkins lymphoma cancer and while

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<v Speaker 1>he beat it. He relapsed in twenty thirteen, but he

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<v Speaker 1>was declared cancer free a second time in twenty and

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<v Speaker 1>this experience gave him a new perspective on life, one

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<v Speaker 1>that influenced his album Monte Sagrado, which would be translated

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<v Speaker 1>to Sacred Hill. Earlier this year, Draco Rosa released an

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<v Speaker 1>album titled Reflejos de Loterno, where he reflects on his

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<v Speaker 1>forty year career, and in July, Draco was awarded the

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<v Speaker 1>Latin Grammys' Lifetime Achievement Award. Latino USA sat down with

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<v Speaker 1>Draco Rosa in twenty eighteen and were happy to bring

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<v Speaker 1>him back to you today. In his own words, here's

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<v Speaker 1>Draco Rosa.

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<v Speaker 2>My name is Draco Rosa. I'm I mostly consider myself

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<v Speaker 2>a songwriter. And then I'm it's gotten better at singing. Holloah,

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<v Speaker 2>I got now. I started music early in a group

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<v Speaker 2>called Menudo Manudo, the Puerto Rican singing group made up

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<v Speaker 2>the big well afoul across the United States, becoming something

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<v Speaker 2>of a phenoma.

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<v Speaker 1>Hi we are, he's ricky and he's.

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<v Speaker 2>Robbing to singing group that you were in at a

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<v Speaker 2>certain agent out at a certain age. You know, it's

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<v Speaker 2>the right thing to do because they gave me a

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<v Speaker 2>chance to be and I have I would be nice

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<v Speaker 2>and give somebody else a chance, right, And it was

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<v Speaker 2>exciting it started. First show was at Radio City Music Hall.

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<v Speaker 2>I was, I guess the first memory actually quit And

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<v Speaker 2>I quit not because I was unhappy, you know, touring

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<v Speaker 2>and getting paid and all that, just because I wanted

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<v Speaker 2>to start writing songs. And I wrote my first I thought,

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<v Speaker 2>my first decent song. I thought I was sixteen. My

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<v Speaker 2>dad was big on classical music and salsa. That was

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<v Speaker 2>his thing. My mom was the other side about the Beatles,

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<v Speaker 2>Stephen Wonder. I grew up listening to the Who, Zeppelin,

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<v Speaker 2>sly Stone. I'm a consumer of music, right, and then

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<v Speaker 2>within that those parameters what you've consumed and what you

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<v Speaker 2>can handle, you make music. Initially I was had the

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<v Speaker 2>privilege of meeting Tomas Mugnons. I presented some poetry, some

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<v Speaker 2>drawings and paintings and some music and he gave me

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<v Speaker 2>a deal based on that. At this point, you know what,

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<v Speaker 2>we already had huge hits on the other side of

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<v Speaker 2>the songwriter, like Levy the logo, and so they were like, well,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, Draco, this time is going to give us

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<v Speaker 2>this marketable, sort of pop, mainstream thing, and I said, sure, right,

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<v Speaker 2>because I just wanted to go record, and I thought

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<v Speaker 2>maybe at that moment, you know, yeah, I could do

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<v Speaker 2>that for myself. But you know what happens is I

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<v Speaker 2>spent tying myself and I start getting real and I

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<v Speaker 2>started feeling bad about it. So I wrote him a

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<v Speaker 2>long letter saying, like, I understand if you want to

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<v Speaker 2>pull the plug, you know, I'm not probably going to

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<v Speaker 2>deliver the album that you're expecting. If he writes back, hey,

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<v Speaker 2>you know you need to be yourself like I'm here

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<v Speaker 2>for you.

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<v Speaker 1>I deliver it.

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<v Speaker 2>And I went to see my mom in Florida, and

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<v Speaker 2>then the bad news came in. You know, everybody hated

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<v Speaker 2>it the album, and they thought it was strange. Nobody's

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<v Speaker 2>getting in and they thought it was dark. Those meetings

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<v Speaker 2>went on for a while and they were going to

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<v Speaker 2>drop me from the label. There's all this talking.

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<v Speaker 3>One day, I'm.

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<v Speaker 2>Crushed at home, why, you know, and thinking I did

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<v Speaker 2>all the right things in my mind. You know, I

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<v Speaker 2>was myself. I spoke to the guides, you know, I

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<v Speaker 2>was honest about everything. In the end, they put the

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<v Speaker 2>record out as I was starting promotion actually ago, everything

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<v Speaker 2>was canceled. If I show up with you know, Cuban too,

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<v Speaker 2>African Americans in the Puerto Rican ready to hit my

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<v Speaker 2>tiegra on live TV. We had all these interviews set

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<v Speaker 2>up and shows and it was all canceled just like that.

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<v Speaker 2>So it was a tough ride up. I'm hanging in there,

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<v Speaker 2>but a little of a depression and concern about what's

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<v Speaker 2>going on, not understanding. But I showed up to Columbia

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<v Speaker 2>to agot Bodeka under my surprise, people were singing yeah.

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<v Speaker 2>And I remember I showed up devastated by everything that

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<v Speaker 2>happened pre that show, you know, and then I found

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<v Speaker 2>this crowd that was singing along. Wow. I think that

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<v Speaker 2>was a nice turning point, giving me a little strength

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<v Speaker 2>to stick with it. It's amazing because you know, twenty

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<v Speaker 2>one years later, last year, I was at drougot VIDK

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<v Speaker 2>and it was one hundred and twenty dollars and people

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<v Speaker 2>singing the.

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<v Speaker 1>Songs and let me be that serlessly.

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<v Speaker 2>You know, when I look back on some of the recordings,

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<v Speaker 2>like what was important was the craft trying to build

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<v Speaker 2>these songs, Like how do you get this to matter

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<v Speaker 2>to other people other than yourself. There's gooo bab Since

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<v Speaker 2>day one. One of the things my grandmother was like,

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<v Speaker 2>you believe in yourself, You stick to your passion and

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<v Speaker 2>that thing will take care of you.

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<v Speaker 1>That was singer and songwriter that I called Rosa. This

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<v Speaker 1>episode was produce us by Gini Montalbo and Amandel Cantra.

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<v Speaker 1>It was mixed by Ginni Montalbo. The Latino USA team

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<v Speaker 1>includes Julia Caruso, Jessica Ellis, Victoria Estrada, Renaldo Leanoz Junior,

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<v Speaker 1>Stephanie Lebou, Andrea Lopez, Gruzsado, Luis Luna, Loni, mar Marquez,

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<v Speaker 1>Marta Martinez, Mike Sargent, Nor Saudi and Nancy Trujuillo. Penilee

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<v Speaker 1>Ramidez is our co executive producer. I'm your co executive

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<v Speaker 1>producer and host Marino Hosa. Join us again on our

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<v Speaker 1>next episode. In the meantime, I'll see you on all

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<v Speaker 1>of our social media, you know, JNS, Dagram, Dick Dog, Eggs, Lube,

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<v Speaker 1>See you there, nottyes Bay.

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<v Speaker 3>Funding for Latino USA is coverage of a culture of

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<v Speaker 3>the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Latino USA is made possible

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<v Speaker 3>in part by the Heusing Simons Foundation, unlocking knowledge, opportunity,

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<v Speaker 3>and possibilities. More at hs foundation dot org and Agnes

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<v Speaker 3>Gunn MHM