POP MUSIC
Singer Jennifer Peña kicks up her heels on a new Telemundo dance competition series.
Jennifer Peña released her last album, “Dicen Que El Tiempo,” in 2007. She’s since only made sporadic public appearances, including a 2015 Michael Jackson tribute and at a Canelo Alvarez fight in May to sing the national anthem.
But Peña, who scored a string of Tejano and Latin pop hits, is stepping back into the spotlight in a big way. She joins husband and singer Obie Bermudez as one of the celebrity couples on “Así Se Baila,” a dance competition premiering Sept. 12 on Telemundo.
The San Antonio native says it’s “like riding a bike, baby.”
“I’ve done it my whole life. Being in front of the camera is what I do,” Peña says.
Husband and wife both vow to give it “el mil porciento” (a thousand percent) and says dancing on TV has long been on their bucket lists.
“I think it’s always something that when we see it on TV, we’re like,” Peña and Bermudez finish the sentence together. “‘Wouldn’t that be cool?’ ”
Bermudez, whose topped the charts with “Antes” and “Todo el Año,” was first approached to participate on the show. He loved the idea and took it to Peña, who quickly agreed. It was then a matter of working out family logistics.
The couple, who married in 2007 in Texas, has five children, including one born last year. They both credit the network with catering to their needs as a family.
“Telemundo put wipies in our dressing room!” Bermudez, 40, says with genuine excitement.
“For real, that’s huge for us. It’s like, ‘Ay, me galaron el corazon con eso,’ ” Peña 37, adds, stressing the network won her heart in Spanish.
“Así Se Baila” will feature 10 celebrity couples performing Latin dances for a trio of judges, including TV host Adamari López, actor Cristian de la Fuente and actress/singer Mariana Seoane. The audience will also vote for their favorite pair during the twohour show. Other competing celebrities include actress Elyfer Torres (“Betty en NY”); Lorenzo Mendez, lead singer for La Original Banda El Limón; and Samadhi Zendejas, who portrayed Jenni Rivera in the series “Mariposa De Barrio.”
Peña is arguably the biggest name on the lineup. At the beginning of her career, she was dubbed the heir apparent to Selena. She was managed by Abraham Quintanilla, Selena’s father, and performed Tejano music as Jennifer y Los Jetz. She outlasted those unfair comparisons and moved into pop music.
Her biggest hits were dramatic ballads, including “El Dolor de Tu Presencia,” a song that spent two months at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart. She recorded the 2002 World Cup anthem “Vamos al Mundial” and starred in the 2006 MTV film “All You’ve Got” with Ciara and Adrienne Bailon. Peña performed at RodeoHouston in 2004 and released a live album from the concert.
At the time, the young singer seemed primed for an Englishlanguage crossover. But she took a break to focus on family and began singing in church. Fans, however, kept Peña close to their hearts. She joined TikTok last year, and they showed up in droves to watch her sing snippets of songs from “The Little Mermaid” and “The Greatest Showman,” dance while (very pregnant) and revisit her own hits. A 53-second TikTok of Peña singing her 2000 hit “Si Tu Te Vas” racked up more than 1 million views.
Peña says the renewed interest and prepping for the dance competition have “definitely ignited” something in her, a spark that inevitably leads back to music. She and Bermudez have been working on new songs and hope to have a single out together by the end of the year. They plan to follow that next year with some live shows and the Nuestra Nota Tour, named for the virtual acoustic set they performed from home earlier this year.
But right now, it’s time to get back to class.
“I didn’t think that I could dance. I’m a shy person. But there’s something about being next to Jennifer that always makes me better. I dare to do stuff, and that’s the truth. I feel like we got each other’s backs,” Bermudez says.
Peña’s face lights up with a smile, and she cuddles into his arm.
“In the end, we have the same goal,” she says. “We’re one.”