The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Benefit concert set for Puerto Rico
Cleveland artists to perform at Palace
Contemporary Latino artists are ready for their music to break out for a good cause in Lorain.
Matrix Music is planning “Giving Back to Puerto Rico,” a benefit concert planned Dec. 29 at the Lorain Palace Theater, 617 Broadway Ave.
The show will feature four performers who want to build an audience while supporting Puerto Rico. The island is part of the personal and family history of many Lorain residents.
It also is recovering from the brutal winds and
rain of Hurricanes Irma and Maria; the latter made landfall on Puerto Rico on Sept. 20.
Three weeks later, a Washington Post report from the island logged slow recovery efforts to restore water and electricity and provide medical care on the island. Its headline described much of Puerto Rico as “dark, thirsty and frustrated.”
The Palace is a venue in the heart of a city with numerous residents with Hispanic and Latino heritage. The city has much potential, but could use the attention and efforts to liven up the town, said Matrix Music Manager Elias Hasrouni of Cleveland.
A show dedicated to Puerto Rican reconstruction efforts will do that, he said.
“The way I look at, it’s win for Lorain, win for us and win for Puerto Rico,” Hasrouni said. “If we put them together, we work something out to make them flourish.”
Palace Operations Director Christopher Pataky noted so far in his tenure there has not been a show that caters specifically to residents of Hispanic and Latino descent.
“I thought it was a great time to focus on some original Latin material,” he said.
The artists are young and are writing their own material, Pataky said. Now the only thing holding them back is an opportunity to perform in front of groups that will appreciate them, he said.
Xavier Rivera, who performs as Blazin El Unico, recently finished the video for his song “Blindly in Love.”
“It’s about how she changed my life around and how she showed me a new definition of love,” Rivera said. The song, in Spanish, also is a mix of old school R&B and modern Latin pop, Pataky said.
Rivera is on the bill with Javier Dang, a producer who also performs as Javi-D; Bori-Q, who is Edward Guzman; and Luis Fortier, also known as Gravity.
The group has begun meeting people around Lorain and will continue that, said Martin Leibas, who is working with the performers to build connections in the community.
Matrix Music hopes to find sponsors to join the project. For information, call Hasrouni at 216-9258131 or email liquid316@ yahoo.com.