ASCAP to Honor Franco De Vita at 15th Annual Latin Music Awards on March 21 in New York
Alejandra Guzmán, Alejandro Lerner, Camila, Mario Domm, Mariachi Real de Mexico, Rakim & Ken-Y, Shaila and Raíces Habaneras Scheduled to Perform; Birmania Rios and Kamar de los Reyes to Host the Star-Studded Event
| Source: ASCAP
NEW YORK, NY -- (MARKET WIRE) -- February 26, 2007 -- The American Society of Composers, Authors and
Publishers (ASCAP) announced today that Franco De Vita will be honored with
the prestigious ASCAP Latin Heritage Award during the 15th Annual ASCAP
Latin Music Awards on March 21, 2007 at the Nokia Theatre in New York.
Hosted by Kamar de los Reyes of ABC's "One Life to Live" and Birmania Rios
of Univision's "Despierta América," the invitation-only gala will honor the
songwriters and publishers of ASCAP's most performed songs in Latin Music
of 2006. Some of the most celebrated figures in the Latin music scene are
scheduled to perform at the event, including Alejandra Guzmán, Alejandro
Lerner, Camila, Mario Domm, Mariachi Real de Mexico, Rakim & Ken-Y, Shaila
and Raíces Habaneras.
The ASCAP Latin Heritage Award is awarded to songwriters and composers who
have made unique and enduring contributions to music. De Vita will join a
select list of Latin music icons that have been singled out for special
recognition at ASCAP's Latin Music Awards, including Antonio Aguilar, Celia
Cruz, José Feliciano, Ednita Nazario, Arturo Sandoval, Gilberto Santa Rosa,
Olga Tañón and Ricardo Arjona.
Franco De Vita is one of three children born in Latin America to Italian
immigrants. His family returned to Italy when he was three years old and
then moved to Venezuela when he was 13. He is considered to be one of
Latin music's most consistent popular singer-songwriters, with a style
often compared to Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel. He started his music
career with a group called Icaro and recorded his first album titled
"Fantasía" in 1986. In 1990, "Fantasia" produced the now legendary hit
title song "Solo Importas Tu," used as the theme song to the
internationally acclaimed Spanish-language soap opera "La Dama De Rosa."
His first album as a solo artist titled "Franco De Vita" spun off three
Spanish-language hits: "Somos Tres," "No Hay Cielo," and "Un Buen
Perdedor." With the Sony label, De Vita released "Al Norte Del Sur," a
critical and commercial smash that cemented his reputation as a purveyor of
socially conscious and adult-oriented pop, particularly through the tunes
"Te Amo" and "Louis." The album "Extranjero" featured the song "No Basta,"
which spent four weeks at No. 1 on the U.S. Latin charts and won an MTV
Video Music Award. "Stop," a production where he collaborated with the pop
group Sin Bandera, also reached the Top 10 on the U.S. Latin and Latin
America charts.
De Vita has won numerous awards including ASCAP's Latin Song of the Year in
2003 and 2004 for "Y Tú Te Vas" and "Tal Vez," respectively, as well as
ASCAP Latin Music awards for "Contra Vientos y Mareas" (2006), "Si La Ves"
and "Tú De Qué Vas" (2005), "Un Siglo Sin Ti" (2004) and "Vuelve" (1999).
He has released popular albums such as: "En Vivo Marzo 16" (1992); "Voces A
Mi Alrededor" (1993); the acoustic-flavored "Fuera De Este Mundo" (1996);
the world-beat inspired "Nada Es Igual" (1999); "Segundas Partes Tambien
Son Buenas" (2002); an expanded edition of "Stop" titled "Stop + Algo Mas"
(2005); and "Mil y Una Historias En Vivo," a two-disc live album that also
featured four studio tracks, including collaboration with Alejandro
Fernandez and Diego El Cigala, with a DVD version released simultaneously.
In addition to honoring Franco De Vita, ASCAP will recognize the Songwriter
of the Year, Publisher of the Year and Song of the Year during the awards
ceremony. Awards will also be presented in the following categories: Pop,
Tropical, Regional Mexican, Rock, Urban and Television. In the Television
category, awards will be presented to the Top Rated Theme for Soap Opera,
the Top Rated Theme for TV Variety Program and the newly created Most
Performed TV Music Score.
Members of the press may apply for credentials at:
http://www.ascap.com/press/pressroom/latinmusicawards/
About ASCAP
Established in 1914, ASCAP is the first and leading U.S. Performing Rights
Organization representing the world's largest repertory totaling over 8
million copyrighted musical works of every style and genre from more than
275,000 composer, lyricist and music publisher members. ASCAP has
representation arrangements with over 70 music rights organizations such
that the ASCAP repertory is represented in nearly every country around the
world. ASCAP protects the rights of its members and foreign affiliates by
licensing the public performances of their copyrighted works and
distributing royalties based upon surveyed performances. ASCAP is the only
American Performing Rights Organization owned and governed by its writer
and publisher members. www.ascap.com