Member Since: 02/12/2007
Band Website: www.clubcocobongo.com
Band Members: Born in Brooklyn, NY and raised in Queens in an extremely 100%
Colombian family. Colombia is in my blood it’s my biggest pride.
Music has always been my passion it ran in my family.
New York is the melting pot of the world in which I day by day
encountered different music genres.
Hip-Hop, house, freestyle, and reggae were the genres I listened
to during school time, salsa dominated my
household.
Lucky enough I got the best of both worlds. At an early age I
learned about hard times. At the age of 12 with very few choices,
I had to sell empanadas in my street corners to help my struggling
single mother, make ends meet.
After much hard work, my savings allowed me to purchase my
first DJ equipment and with the help of my uncle,
and much practice, I became a DJ.
There was not a sweet sixteen, wedding, or birthday party
during the late 80’s, early 90’s in NYC that I didn’t DJ.
Parties were my school, there I learned all about life and Djing.
After several years Djing I was able to earn a good amount of money.
At the age of 18 with my savings and the support of my family
I opened up my first night club, “Pa’Los Rumberos†was one of the
pinnacle stages of my life
along with the birth of my son, achieved great heights. “Pa’ Los
Rumberos,†became the place to go to in
Elizabeth in a short amount of time and my best platform to all of
my upcoming projects. In its 5 years of
existence I gained great knowledge.
There were always good time in Pa’ Los Rumberos and There
I met my best of friends. After 6 years of great times
Pa’ Los Rumberos reached it’s end. The last day of
Pa’Los Rumberos was one of the saddest days of my life;
I saw one of the best years of my life ending like a chapter
of a long book.
I immediately embarked on my next adventure, a better and
bigger one called Coco Bongo. With all of the
knowledge from Pa’ Los Rumberos and great creativity, I opened
a new chapter in my life. CoCo Bongo being
an entirely different ball game, I learned to operate a nightclub
with a capacity of 800-900 people. In its first year
Coco Bongo had many world-renowned artist like El Gran Combo,
Juanes, Victor Manuel, Aventura, Don Omar….
And the list keeps going. Throughout the years Coco Bongo has
been incredibly successful, even being named
the number one Latin night club in NJ by the NY Times and
The Star Ledger. Along with the success of
Coco Bongo I also embarked on other projects. Four years ago
I began executing another dream I had for
a very long time. As the president of the Morris Midtown
Business Association I did the first
Colombian Festival in Elizabeth, NJ reaching capacities of 100,000
making the festival one of the
most successful in NJ. Every summer for the past four years the
Colombian festival has been taking over Elizabeth. Filling its streets
with the yellow, blue, and red colors. My people and my pride
motivate me to become better and better every day. This festival
is truly a huge accomplishment for which I’m extremely
proud of creating. Two years ago I decided to venture on completely
a new project called Kafe Restaurant. Kafe is a Modern Spanish
Cuisine restaurant, with a bohemian loungie atmosphere.
The restaurant business is a whole new ball game, that I have
learned to run. This new challenge has taught me many great lessons
about the restaurant business. This year I began a music label and
built my own music studio. My love of
music is completely expressed in the studio, I live in it day in day out.
I’m working on recording 2 groups composed of young very
talented guys, Zona Rosa and Carlos Lopez; these are the next
big Colombian stars. Seeing these groups develop is truly amazing.I have taken my passion for music one step further. This is a
completely new phase of my life, and I love every
minute of it. 2007 was a great year for me professionally and
personally, I married my long time girlfriend making
another of my dreams a reality. In my 30 years of life I have
accomplished many great things and in its process
I thank God everyday for it and for the great family that I have.
In accomplishing all of my goals I have giving
back to my community, every Halloween I have a party for the
children, making their special day even better.
I donate to various organizations and participate in every event that
helps the needy. As the president of the Morris Midtown Business
Association I have worked extremely hard to better Morris Ave, and
in less than one year the crime rate decreased incredibly,
the streets are cleaner, and the businesses have improved.
Giving back to the community is one of my biggest
accomplishments. For 2008 I have many new plans that are
already in the work. I will be opening more businesses throughout
NJ, and I will continue working with my music label in
preparation for the Grammy. “Your eyes see as far as your mind
allows it to.
Record Label: E&R RECORDS