Some musical genres are just particular—particular to a region or a community, without aspiring to be universally relevant or to commercially conquer new audiences. I think of the plena this way, an ...

With its infectious call and response vocals and topical lyrics commenting on the events and gossip of the day, the music genre plena is known in Puerto Rico as the people’s newspaper. And much like ...

In Santurce, a poor suburb outside San Juan, Puerto Rico, there’s a bus that doesn’t run anymore, but the stops it once madeparadasstill lend their names to the densely populated neighborhoods. Ask ...

A blend of Spanish, African, and native Taíno music, plena is a traditional form of Puerto Rican music. The music's beat and rhythm are mainly due to the African-derived conga drums, more specifically ...

San Juan, 11 ene (EFEUSA).San Juan, 11 ene (EFEUSA). — La agrupación puertorriqueña Plena Libre, dedicada a interpretar música del ritmo autóctono de la plena, festejará este año sus veinte años de ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. (Photos: Getty Images, Bad Bunny, Bomba Con Conciencia) “Puerto Rico has a mix of races, and we like to defend our African roots,” ...

Plena Libre is one of Puerto Rico's most popular bands, a group marked by its dynamic rhythms, passionate singing, powerful horn section, imaginative choreography and the inventive arrangements of ...

Although transnational, contemporary, and based on the Cuban son, salsa is often assumed to be Puerto Rico’s national song. Enter Plena Libre, purveyors of Puerto Rican pride and promoters of plena, a ...

A solid rhythm beat from stage right at the Joe Mathias Elementary School cafeteria Thursday afternoon. Gary Nunez waved his arms at the other side of the cafeteria, orchestrating a plena rhythm in ...