Las Voces
Hispanic Heritage Review
Embarking on a joint venture while embracing and celebrating the rich culture of their Mexican American heritage, four beautiful and talented Tejano music recording artist superstars, Shelly Lares, Leslie Lugo, Stefani Montiel, and Patsy Torres have recently created the new dynamic ensemble, LAS VOCES. In their own illustrious careers, this powerhouse of four versatile, mesmerizing, bilingual recording artists, have individually accomplished great milestones garnering an amazing nine Grammy Nominations. All four began their professional careers at an early age, making an indelible mark on the music scene with a lifetime of experience appearing in local, national and international venues, earning a multitude of top music industry awards and scoring countless chart-topping radio music hits. On stage, each artist contributes their own individuality, diversity, versatility, charisma and exceptional talent of expertise. Their powerful voices combined with their beauty, professionalism and camaraderie create an unforgettable unity as though destiny had brought them together. With their ability to cross musical boundaries as well as bridging the gap between two distinct cultures, LAS VOCES spectacular bilingual performance showcases each individual artist’s celebrated music hits followed by a magnificent Mariachi music extravaganza finale backed up by some of the best, most critically acclaimed Mariachi groups. Their extensive individual repertoire caters to a wide diverse audience and includes American standards, rock, dance, country, pop, jazz, disco, Latin & tropical rhythms such as: balladas, cumbia, salsa, merengue, rancheras, Tejano and Mariachi music.
Shelly Lares, “Little Miss Dynamite”, one of Tejano Music Major Super Stars, began her career as a child and was inducted into the Tejano Hall of Fame in 2008 making her the youngest inductee to date. She recorded with country music superstar Vince Gill, performed on stage with Rock-a-billy legend, Carl Perkins and has released a multitude of CD projects with countless Tejano radio hits to her credit while performing with her energetic style and vigor to sold-out crowds across the country. Shelly has won numerous Tejano Industry awards as well as prestigious BMI awards and has earned Two Grammy nominations with “Las 3 Divas” and has also traveled to Guam, Japan, Korea and Alaska to entertain our men and women in uniform.
Leslie Lugo, at 16, was Lead Vocalist for a primer orchestra in Texas and by age 18, performed in The National OTI, the world’s largest, most prestigious song festival. Earning an accolade for her songwriter performance in a Grammy Award Winning CD and co-writing a song for a Woody Allen movie, her collaborations with other artists have garnered one Grammy and three Grammy nominations and currently, she is the lead vocalist for International Super Star Cristian Castro on his world tour. Leslie’s recorded duet with Joe Posada became a National hit nominated for a Latin Grammy and the release of her breakthrough debut self-titled album charted top honors throughout the U.S. and Mexico.
Stefani Montiel, four time Grammy nominated artist, began singing at age three, recorded at age five, and by age nine, had her first gold record. With a shelf-load of hits, awards, and a dozen albums, Stefani has toured around the world, collaborating with artists such as Jay Perez, David Mares, Mazz, Iman, and Las 3 Divas while devoting herself to organizations such as NARAS, serving on the Texas Chapter Board of Governors and as Chapter Vice-President, and is the first Hispanic female to hold the National Trustee position five consecutive years. She was a weekly fixture on national television shows such as Billboard Latino and is currently the featured vocalist on Univisions Despierta Americas “En La Cocina con Las Estrellas” house band.
Patsy Torres has traveled all over the world performing for live audiences of more than 100,000 people, appearing on national television for millions of viewers, and winning countless awards for her musical talents and community works. She made history as the first artist to expose Tejano music on national television as well as the first to perform a bilingual song on TNN’s “Nashville Now Show” and the first Tejano artist to film a music video. Currently working on her PhD, Patsy’s passion for education and youth advocacy has led her to develop a special musical school program called “The Positive Force Tour” that performs for students all over the country.
LAS VOCES amazing artists, Shelly Lares, Leslie Lugo, Stefani Montiel, and Patsy Torres, with their record of unprecedented press and radio interviews, television appearances, and a multitude of local, national and international performances will captivate the hearts of audiences instilling them with the beauty bestowed by the emotional voice of their culture and the artistic richness of traditional mariachi and Latin music. Highlights of some Las Voces performances include: Dallas Cowboy’s Pre-Game Show performance, AARP National Convention, St. Jude-George Strait Benefit, Univision Premios A La Musica Latina, Tejano Music Awards, Univision San Fernando Cathedral Virgen de Guadalupe Serenata, San Antonio Fiesta Flambeau Parade, San Antonio Fiesta Rey Feo Gala, Fiesta Charreada, Splashtown Concert Series, Atlanta Falcon Tommy Nobis Hall of Fame Event, etc. United in this new and exciting project and with their zealous dedication to music, the one of a kind powerhouse group, LAS VOCES, is taking the music scene by storm while continuing to make their mark with their outstanding contribution to today’s ever evolving music industry.
- Pepe Serna
