Rey De La Paz

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This talented salsa singer started out singing doo-wops, as well as rancheras due to the prevalence of Mexican music played on New York radios at the time. He took formal voice training for almost three years, simulating sounds and styles of crooners Bobby Darin and Frank Sinatra. When he entered the service in 1969 he became a rock n' roll enthusiast, singing the tunes of songs like those of Iron Butterfly. He explains how he "came full into salsa by accident" in 1971 when a friend needed him to fill in for the singer in their salsa band. Not knowing anything about salsa, he tells us how he sang the head of the song, but "when it came time to improvise all I did was sing 'mamita mamita this mamita that.'" That same night exposed him to legendary Latin performers, Joe Cuba and his original sextet, Ricardo Ray and Bobby Cruz, as well as Eddie Palmieri and La Perfecta. Ray De La Paz still marvels at the talents of Eddie Palmieri and La Perfecta exclaiming, "they blew me away!" He was immediately inspired to expand his adlibbing repertoire (to include more than just "mamita"), and seriously study the art of soneando. "The next day I went to a record store and bought all sorts of Latin music. I listened to the music, and started mimicking their styles…I learned to sing on clave. My style came from all of those influences. Eventually, I developed my own style."

In 1972 Ray de la Paz bumped into Chino y su Conjunto Melao and recorded with the band. "It took off from there…I sang with Ray Beretto after Ruben Blades left the band. I did like 4 albums with Ray. We traveled all over Europe. Worldwide, our music is really accepted and appreciated. You know, you go to Europe, and they say Mr. Ray de la Paz. And they respect the solos…over here they kind of take it for granted." Hopefully, Friday night's responsive crowd demonstrates that the salseros in Los Angeles do not take Ray De La Paz for granted. Many fans greeted him with praise as they approached with their enthusiastic accolades between sets.

Traveling with Beretto also brought Ray De La Paz to Los Angeles for the first time. Having previously visited LA, he tells us tonight, "I'm impressed with all the new places in LA…there's a lot of good music, a lot of good dancers. It almost feels like the people in New York left the scene and came here. Unfortunately in New York, some of the old places that used to be the happening places have closed."

When asked about the future of Salsa, Ray De La Paz imparts the following insight: "I would like to see the up-and-coming salsero really look into the roots of the music. A lot of young kids that are coming up now are too influenced with the music of today, and they're forgetting the roots of salsa. I would like to see them learn from that. You can take that and mix it with other things, but don't let the new influences make you forget about where you came from."

Ray De La Paz has performed with numerous Salsa artists throughout his impressive musical past, including Salsa legend Tito Puente. He tells us, "I was fortunate enough to do chorus on a couple of albums with Tito Puente…and then a stint at Madison Square Gardens. Franky Figueroa couldn't make it, so I sat in. Thank God I've never been afraid to take a chance, so I just went up there and did my thing." His confidence, talent, and determination have combined to produce the amazing Salsa artist that he is today. With a successful musical career, countless fans, and a 25-years marriage that produced two boys, Ray De La Paz considers himself a very fortunate individual. "After I'm gone…I'd just like people to listen to the music and say 'wow-that guy was happening'…you know, just remember me as a fun-loving, happy-go-lucky individual that loved the music."

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