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Alt.Latino

Alt.Latino

NPR 150 Episodes Aug 19, 2026

Alt.Latino is a podcast from NPR Music that celebrates the evolving Latinx community through music. Hosts Felix Contreras and Anamaria Sayre interview living legends and rising stars, discussing Latinx culture, heritage, and shared experiences. The show offers a mix of music and conversation, with sponsorship-free episodes available through Alt.Latino+.

Episodes

Electrónica rising in Mexico
Electrónica rising in Mexico Aug 19, 2026 1933 Mexico isn't the first place you think of as the cutting edge of experimental electronic music. But two new projects show that might be changing. LATIN MAFIA recently teamed up with British producer Fred again.. to make a bold new album featuring collaborators like Mabe Fratti and Lil Yachty. And the up-and-coming duo RØZ -- comprised of producers Manolo Cabrera and Hugo Lara -- just released thei
Ana's thoughts after seeing Harry Styles in Mexico
Ana's thoughts after seeing Harry Styles in Mexico Aug 13, 2026 2375 Harry Styles just finished a 5-night run in Mexico City. You know who else had a 5-night run in Mexico City? Michael Jackson in 1993.Mainstream artists have a long history of being enticed by the energy of performing for a Latin American crowd … which means there’s also a long and less-known history of big pop stars making music for that audience.Did you know Michael Jackson has a Latin track? So
Ana's summer playlist
Ana's summer playlist Aug 5, 2026 1880 To celebrate Ana's world premiere as a DJ -- a gig playing for 5,000 people in Central Park, which she definitely, absolutely prepared for -- this week we present her summer playlist. We've got song of the summer contenders (Aitana's "SUPERESTRELLA"), sleeper hits we missed when they dropped (Quevedo's "EL BAIFO"), and bubbly classics-in-the-making we keep coming back to (Rawayana's "Se Vienen Cos
Is Bill Evans techno?
Is Bill Evans techno? Jul 29, 2026 1767 Bill Evans might not be techno. But in this week's episode, the slow-building angst and tension of electronic producer Debit's new music reminded Ana of the beloved jazz piano master. And that kind of genre cross-pollination is everywhere in this week's showcase of new music: Brazilian field recordings remixed for the club, multiple reinterpretations of the Cuban guaguancó, and Spanish producers c
Spain wins (at music, too)
Spain wins (at music, too) Jul 22, 2026 1670 We'll take any excuse to talk about the insane quality of music coming out of Spain these days. This week, we got one: Spain defeated Argentina on Sunday to win the 2026 World Cup Final. So, this episode is a celebration of the multitude of music scenes across Spain that we can't get enough of. Catch boundary-pushing electronic and hip hop producers in Madrid, indie rockers and songwriters in Barc
Country twang, Brazilian flow
Country twang, Brazilian flow Jul 15, 2026 1916 With last week's best-of show behind us, we've got a clean slate to dive into our favorite new music kicking off the second half of the year. Felix brings a batch of country tracks, while Ana -- to absolutely no one's surprise -- continues her exploration of Brazil's endless supply of captivating music. Catch a mesmerizing indie-ambient album from João Carvalho, some posthumous crooning from Raul
The best Latin music of 2026 (so far)
The best Latin music of 2026 (so far) Jul 8, 2026 2447 It’s that time of the year again: a mix between Christmas and Halloween for me and Felix. We gift you our best album picks of the year so far — and there’s nothing spookier for us than having to choose. So here it is, the music we’ve loved and listened to the most in the first half of 2026, some of the best (in our opinion) from all of Latin America and its diaspora. — Anamaria SayreArtist and alb
Mon Laferte's captivating coda
Mon Laferte's captivating coda Jul 1, 2026 1740 On this week’s Alt.Latino, Anamaria and I both gush about 'Femme Fatale Vol. 2,' the new album from Chilean-Mexican singer Mon Laferte, who is on one of the more amazing creative streaks I've witnessed in a while. Also, Ana and I sometimes unintentionally align when picking new music for the show, and that took place this week with a couple of Brazilian highlights: I chose an artist who records as
They opened for Miles Davis and Sly Stone, then disappeared
They opened for Miles Davis and Sly Stone, then disappeared Jun 24, 2026 1469 This week's episode is a musical time machine. In the late 1960s, the band Zapata sprang out of a street gang in northwest Washington, D.C., with a sound that combined a variety of contemporary styles: Afro-Caribbean rhythms, soul jazz and the golden era of American R&B. The mixture worked. For a few years, Zapata opened for an astonishing number of A-list acts passing through the city, like Miles
The sounds of Cuban resilience
The sounds of Cuban resilience Jun 17, 2026 1290 We're living in a moment when the geopolitical intersects with the personal in a profound way. The relationship between the United States and Cuba is once again in the news, and it happens at a time when there are a handful of new releases from Cuban artists on the island and around the world. The sounds of the albums are vastly different, but they all draw from the same deep well of inspiration t
A Tejano masterclass with El Gato Negro, Ruben Ramos
A Tejano masterclass with El Gato Negro, Ruben Ramos Jun 10, 2026 1619 Ruben Ramos' life story mirrors the history of what we now know as Tejano music. His family's musical roots in Texas go back to 1918, and as a boy he was brought into the family bands, first as a drummer and then as a vocalist. He's been playing big band-inflected Tejano music now for more than six decades, and just released a tribute album tracing that musical lineage, called 'Los Días de Calor.'
The Vaqueros of Hawaii
The Vaqueros of Hawaii May 27, 2026 2034 We don’t often get to discuss the ways that Latin American music made its way west across the Pacific Ocean. But this week we have two incredible projects that celebrate that journey. First, a Japanese band that fuses traditional minyo folk sounds with cumbia and other Latin rhythms. Then, a project that unearths a forgotten history of the 19th century Mexican cowboys who went to Hawaii to help ma

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