Tribute to Los Angeles Public Radio Latin Music DJs

Latin Beat Magazine, April, 1999

On Thursday, March 11, 1999, a very special event took place at LA's premiere Latin music nightclub, The Conga Room. The evening was reserved to salute and honor a group of outstanding individuals who have dedicated their time and talents to promoting Latin music through the airwaves of Public Broadcasting Radio Stations. As strange as it may seem, the mega city of Los Angeles, California has no commercial radio stations which truly program or broadcast tropical dance music. Yes, there are several Spanish language radio stations, (which by the way, are always at the top of the Arbitron listing), but they mostly cater to the larger Mexican population that prevails throughout the entire state.

For several decades now, the voices of DJs from Public Radio and community supported broadcast stations have been the main providers of the bulk of tropical dance music heard in Los Angeles. The same is the case for Latin jazz and World music. Thanks to the devotion of these special on-air personalities, the music we love and enjoy so much has been readily available to us; Free of commercials, programming rotations and affiliations to major recording labels. What we listen to are the choices of each individual radio personality. For this tremendous dedication and service to the public, Brad Gluckstein, co-founder and majority owner of the Conga Room, developed the idea of honoring some of these special people. "In addition to supporting the music, satisfying the community's appetite for it, and stimulating the general public's awareness of this incredible art form, these guys are our friends. We are grateful for their boundless community work and want to pay homage with a festive gathering." And so it was!

Eight public radio DJs were selected to be honored during this special event. The festivities commenced at the Conga Room's restaurant where seven of the honorees, some accompanied by their spouses and others by friends, as well as yours truly, escorting Yvette Mangual, were treated to a succulent dinner from the chef's nuevo Latino cuisine. Present were Alan Geik and Nina Lenart representing KXLU 88.9 FM and the popular Alma del Barrio weekend program which was been on the airwaves now for over 25 years - Hector Resendez and Betto Arcos representing KPFK and the program Canto Tropical, another pioneering salsa program - José Rizo and Alfredo Cruz from KLON 88.1 FM, the number one jazz radio station in the nation and home of the program Jazz on the Latin Side - and Tom Schnabel of KCRW, LA's own World music guru and a lover of Afro-Caribbean music. Missing in action, but constantly referred to throughout the evening, was Eddie López, the best of the best from KXLU. After dinner, we all moved to the club's VIP lounge for photos and greetings from friends, club staff, and celebrities that frequent the club. Next we headed to the main room where Costazul (one of the top local salsa bands) was performing and rocking the place. As the band completed their first set, Gluckstein and actor Jimmy Smits summoned the honorees to the stage. Each DJ was introduced to the audience and honored for their work with a certificate from the City of Los Angeles as well as a framed poster from the Conga Room commemorating the event. The club also made monetary donations to all the public radio stations that were represented. The party then continued with Costazul back on stage and the dance floor packed with salseros. We thank The Conga Room for including us in this very special event and for their vision of saluting these unsung heroes of our airwaves.