Desmond Child: “There could definitely be a Latin Alternative explosion”

Written by Hilda Gabriela Thursday, 10 November 2011 09:55

Desmond Child may be known for working with music greats such as Bon Jovi and Aerosmith, but within the Hispanic community and as far as Latin music is concerned, he’s known for the world-changing crossover of Ricky Martin, which sparked the Latin Explosion of the late 90’s and inspired the Recording Academy to launch the Latin Grammy’s.

Fast forward to current day, the Cuban producer/songwriter is nominated for three 2011 Latin Grammy’s: “Producer of the year”, “Record of the Year” and “Song of Year”. The recognitions are for his work on Música + Alma + Sexo, Ricky Martin’s first album after announcing his homosexuality.

Just days before the 12th Annual Latin Grammy’s takes place at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Child talked to us about the emotional significance to that album, both for him and for Martin, and about how the recognitions solidify Childs’ commitment to the music industry, which spans over 40 years.

Musica + Alma + Sexo

Ricky and I have a history. We broke new ground with “Living La Vida Loca”, “La Copa de la Vida (The Cup of Life)”, “She Bangs “and “Shake Your Bon-Bon”. That record, his first self-titled English album, was a lot of “firsts” for both of us and for Latin music. First of all, it was the first digital recording in record history and it was the first time that we were going to take Ricky into the Anglo market. That was a wonderful time and since then Ricky and I journeyed into different directions but the time came to work together again.

He called me last year and said, “Let’s get to work”, and he offered to have my family and I live in one of his beach houses while we worked on the album. It was literally a family affair because he had his kids running around and I had mine, and they would run under the mixing board while Ricky and I sat outside on the deck. We had our meals together and talked about music and about life, we did all the dreaming in that house and then we made it come true.

This album is special to Ricky and I because it was his way of letting the world into his heart. When he announced his homosexuality, he had this release and explosion of creativity. He was writing his book and writing songs for the album at the same time. Ricky would wake up in the morning and write for his book and then come back and tell me what he wrote about that morning, and then a song would come out of it. So Música + Alma + Sexo is really a beautiful reflection of where he was in his life, mixed with all kinds of Latin and rock styles and it came out on a fresh way.

In this album we journeyed into areas that Ricky never tapped into on an emotional and personal level. “Lo Mejor De Mi Vida Eres Tu”, for example, was something completely foreign to him that surprised people and captivated everyone’s imagination. Also, we worked with Wisin y Yandel for the first time on a song called “Frío”. That song is about a man who loved a woman and tried to make the relationship work but eventually couldn’t because she was too cold to be in a relationship. We also had David Campbell work on a wonderful arrangement of strings for that song as well, which worked wonderfully to really enforce that feeling of coldness of the lyrics.

video uploaded by: RickyMartinVEVO

Back in the late 90’s with Ricky and the whole Latin explosion, we saw Latin artists transcend into a new market. Now we have a new generation of urban artist who are doing the same thing and are coming up with a new flavor of hip-hop and Latin dance hall music, such as Wisin y Yandel. So I think there could definitely be a Latin Alternative explosion as well. Part of it though, is to be educated in the music and to really know where it comes from and where you want to take it. Spanish rock music in general has conquered ground throughout the years. For a long time it was difficult to make it work because rock music and the Spanish language have different rhythms, so it took a while to figure it out. But now, with new talent and creative minds, it’s progressing beautifully.

But you know, more than making an “explosion” or a hit song, it’s about making groundbreaking music. Those types of songs only come around about every decade and when Ricky came around, he embodied all of the wonderful aspirations that caught everyone’s attention. Everyone started to feel "the Spanish" and wished they were Spanish or had a Latin lover that was! I feel that those kinds of artists don’t come around so often. He opened the doors and got exposure for our culture, which hadn’t really happened in a massive way.


2011 Latin Grammy Nominations
So really, I’m very proud to be part of that history of our music and to have been recognized for it with these three Latin Grammy nominations. I am so honored by these nominations because they really reflect the work I’ve been doing for the past 40 years. As a Latin man you can imagine, coming out of poverty, out of exile and making a way for myself in the international music scene wasn’t easy. But I always worked very hard in each of my projects and these nominations motivate me to keep doing what I love to do the most.

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