MioSotis (singer)
Encyclopedia
MioSotis is an award-winning American Latin singer, dancer, songwriter, actress, choreographer, television personality, producer, and model. Her career began as a teenager, singing merengue for nearly two years with popular Dominican singer Wilfrido Vargas
and five years with The New York Band. She branched off as a solo salsa singer in 1997 during the resurgence of the genre and other forms of Latin music. Although a member of the younger generation of Latin music artists, she is best known for her classic singing style.
, New York to parents of Dominican and Puerto Rican descent. She grew up listening to merengue
and salsa
, and her parents took her and her siblings to numerous music festivals all over New York. Among the first Latin music festivals she remembered attending as a toddler featured Wilfrido Vargas
. Her father frequently woke the rest of the household on Saturday mornings by blasting a merengue song and playing along (with trumpet, maracas, güiro, or tambora).
Her family recognized her precocious talents and arranged for her to begin formal piano, vocal, and flamenco dance lessons at age five. Her diverse but solid and thorough musical training continued through college, including opera, musical theatre, gospel, and R&B. Her vocal coaches included Broadway singer/songwriter/composer /actor Jimmy Justice
, Dominican lyric soprano Ivonne Haza, Dominican dramatic tenor Rafael Sanchez Cestero, and jazz pianist / vocalist Reggie Segars. Her acting instructors included Susan Rybin and Harry Gahynor.
In 1989 she was signed to producer Ralph Mercado
’s RMM Records with The New York Band. Mercado introduced young listeners to new salsa artists such as Marc Anthony
and La India
. Five years before salsa had been considered a dead genre, but it was then experiencing not simply resurgence but an explosion of interest, among Latino and white listeners alike.
As a teen-ager MioSotis mastered a diverse range of Latin musical genres, playing cumbia
, Tex-Mex, rancheras, salsa
, and merengue
, as well as pop, soul, dance, and R&B, sung in both Spanish and English. She began singing professionally at thirteen and performed with merengue star Wilfrido Vargas
for two years. When her parents returned to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic she worked with the Altamira Banda Show, as advised by Vargas, before returning to New York to continue her studies. She spent five years recording and touring with The New York Band, a well known salsa/merengue quartet also featuring Cherito Jiménez, Alexandra, and Johnny. (Alexandra was replaced by Maggie in 1992. Maggie was replaced by Yudith in 1994, and Johnny's replacement was Tony in 1991).
(CUNY) Queens College. The eclectic debut album, released at the Radio and Música Convention in Los Angeles, California in August 1995, featured original Tex-Mex songs and pop ballads.
In August 1995 Abraham Quintanilla, the father of murdered Tejano star Selena
, invited MioSotis to visit the Corpus Christi, Texas recording studio where Selena had recorded most of her music. During the emotional visit they remembered Selena and her music, and MioSotis was given the chance to sing to Quintanilla with Selena’s tracks.
Following her graduation from college with honors and a bachelor’s degree in Communications, Arts and Media, she began recording and self-producing (along with producer George Mena) her second solo album, Nace una Estrella in 1996 on Lynn Hidalgo's label. The album contained bilingual cover versions of Barbra Streisand
's "What kind of fool" and Dominican
composer Juan Luis Guerra
's "Bachata Rosa." Her salsa single “Señora,” a song about learning that one's lover is married, became an instant hit, eventually achieving gold record status, pushing sales of Nace una Estrella to over 50,000 units upon release. The video was also tremendously popular, and MioSotis quickly achieved celebrity status. She was asked to perform a private concert for the FBI in New York. She was also invited to sing back-up vocals on José Octavio's 1997 romantic merengue
album Confundido.
In June 1997 MioSotis became the first Latin artist to sing the national anthem at Yankee Stadium in New York. She was invited to sing in honor of Puerto Rican Pittsburgh Pirate right-fielder and humanitarian Roberto Clemente
.
MioSotis’ popularity enabled her to tour extensively, performing throughout Latin America, Canada, the U.S., Caribbean, South America, Europe, and Japan. Due to her background in theatre and dance, she was able to stage colorful, exciting, and well crafted live performances. She has played large venues, such as Madison Square Garden
in New York City, La Plaza de Toro in Spain
, and La Feria de Cali in Colombia
. She recorded the commercial jingle promoting the Santo Domingo Action Park in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in late 1997 and performed the first concert held at the new venue's opening night in December.
In 1998 MioSotis won her first Premio ACE award from the Association of Latin Entertainment Critics
for Best Female Singer in the Tropical Music category for “Señora.” Goya Foods chose her to perform a concert series for Hispanic Heritage Month festivals. European film companies Ciby 2000 and Milan/BMG recruited her to record "Amame" and "Amor es Eso" as theme songs for the French film La Femme du Cosmonaut (The Astronaut's Wife). MioSotis filmed the music video for “Amame” in Paris, France and went on a promotional tour throughout France and Spain for the movie's premiere.
MioSotis’ third album, Ardiente, was released in 2003 and received a Latin Globe award for Best Female Salsa Album.
MioSotis played at the July 23, 2001 concert commemorating the closing of the famous Copacabana nightclub in New York City, appearing with Elvis Crespo, Fernando Villalona, and Mili Quezada, among others. The concert was recorded and later released on CD as 60 años de historia
(60 Years of History). The following month she became the last artist to perform at the World Trade Center
in Manhattan, appearing at the last annual Latin Summer Fest concert held in the plaza between the Twin Towers. One year after the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center MioSotis sang the national anthem live on Latin radio station 105.9 FM to commemorate the victims.
MioSotis’ salsa single, “Por Temor” was released in 2002 and quickly climbed the Latin and dance charts. She gave several television and radio interviews before beginning a tour in April. She played clubs and festivals (Calle Ocho in Miami, Florida
) in New York and Florida, and was crowned queen of the CAC Kiwanis Flamingo Fest in Miami. April 21, 2002 was proclaimed MioSotis' Day by the mayor and people of Hialeah, Florida
.
During 2003 MioSotis devoted the majority of her time to being with her extended family. In February 2004 MioSotis was seriously injured in a car accident in Queens
, New York involving a drunk driver. She was hospitalized with serious injuries and underwent extensive physical therapy for almost six months. After a course of strenuous therapy and time off work to rest and heal, MioSotis was able to regain enough mobility that she could plan a return to the stage.
While still coping with chronic pain from her injuries, MioSotis returned to work in 2005. She put salsa on hold to concentrate on jazz, when she was invited to perform with two-time Grammy Award
winner and Latin jazz
musician Horacio “El Negro
” Hernandez and Grammy Award
-winning flautist Dave Valentin
. She and Valentin appeared on stage at the Blue Note in Tokyo, Japan as special guest stars for El Negro
and Robby Band. She then embarked on an eight-month world tour with El Negro
and Valentin.
She planned to begin producing a new album following the jazz tour but discovered she was pregnant. Her son Brandon Alexander (featured on her children's television show The ChiquiMundo Show) was born in 2006 and she chose to take time off from her music career to care for him and produce ChiquiMundo. She returned to writing and producing music in 2008 and began a new album in 2009, which is scheduled for release in the summer of 2010.
, LTV/QPTV, and Univision
, and became popular as well as familiar to viewers. It was not surprising when LTV hired MioSotis to co-host the popular variety show Viva el Pueblo in 2004. She also developed and hosted the children’s educational variety show The ChiquiMundo Show for LTV/QPTV, which debuted that summer. ChiquiMundo was relaunched in 2009, this time featuring MioSotis' young son and nephews.
In 2005 she hosted the Hispanic Youth Showcase talent competition Road to Stardom for New Jersey public television station NJN.
, Celia Cruz
, Wilfrido Vargas
, and Mili Quezada. Her favorite artists in the U.S./English mainstream market included Whitney Houston
, Aretha Franklin
, Michael Jackson
, and Janet Jackson
. She said in 2010, "The first CD I remember buying myself was Janet Jackson's Control. I would even learn all the dance steps to her videos. Particularly I remember learning the steps to 'Pleasure Principal and even recreating the music track of 'When I Think of You' on my first electronic keyboard. I loved the bass line on that song." The first concert she attended was Janet Jackson's performance at Madison Square Garden
on her Rhythm Nation tour.
Foundation to help children all over the world. Following the success of her children's television show The ChiquiMundo Show MioSotis began a non-profit children's charity, the ChiquiMundo Foundation, of which she is president. The foundation holds fundraising events, such as winter coat drives and holiday toy drives for children of impoverished families.
Nace Una Estrella (Lynn Hidalgo), 1997. Released by Romantico in 1999.
Various Artists, Sexy Latin Beats compilation, includes MioSotis' "Nada Sin Ti (Nothing Without You)" and "Being With You (Cerca de Ti)" (Radikal), 1999.
“Amame,” single, 1999
La Femme du Cosmonaute soundtrack, 1999
Ardiente (Mas Music), 2000
Various Artists, Tropical Party Mix compilation, includes MioSotis' "Sabras," (Rumba Jams), 2000
Various Artists, 60 Años de Historia Grabado en Copacabana (Sony Music Distribution), 2001
Various Artists, Salsa Flava compilation, includes Miosotis' "Arránca," (BMG Special Products), 2002
Various Artists, Tropical Latin Flava compilation, includes MioSotis' "Soltera y Libre," (BMG Special Products), 2002
“Por Temor,” single, 2003
Wilfrido Vargas
Wilfrido Radamés Vargas Martínez was born in Altamira, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.He was surrounded by musical influences; namely, his father Ramón, an accordionist and guitarist, and his mother Bienvenida, a flute player and guitarist...
and five years with The New York Band. She branched off as a solo salsa singer in 1997 during the resurgence of the genre and other forms of Latin music. Although a member of the younger generation of Latin music artists, she is best known for her classic singing style.
Background
MioSotis was born in BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York to parents of Dominican and Puerto Rican descent. She grew up listening to merengue
Merengue music
Merengue is a type of music and dance from the Dominican Republic. It is popular in the Dominican Republic and all over Latin America. Its name is Spanish, taken from the name of the meringue, a dessert made from whipped egg whites and sugar...
and salsa
Salsa music
Salsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...
, and her parents took her and her siblings to numerous music festivals all over New York. Among the first Latin music festivals she remembered attending as a toddler featured Wilfrido Vargas
Wilfrido Vargas
Wilfrido Radamés Vargas Martínez was born in Altamira, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.He was surrounded by musical influences; namely, his father Ramón, an accordionist and guitarist, and his mother Bienvenida, a flute player and guitarist...
. Her father frequently woke the rest of the household on Saturday mornings by blasting a merengue song and playing along (with trumpet, maracas, güiro, or tambora).
Her family recognized her precocious talents and arranged for her to begin formal piano, vocal, and flamenco dance lessons at age five. Her diverse but solid and thorough musical training continued through college, including opera, musical theatre, gospel, and R&B. Her vocal coaches included Broadway singer/songwriter/composer /actor Jimmy Justice
Jimmy Justice
Jimmy Justice is the name of:* Jimmy Justice , English pop singer* Jimmy Justice , pseudonym of a video activist in New York City...
, Dominican lyric soprano Ivonne Haza, Dominican dramatic tenor Rafael Sanchez Cestero, and jazz pianist / vocalist Reggie Segars. Her acting instructors included Susan Rybin and Harry Gahynor.
In 1989 she was signed to producer Ralph Mercado
Ralph Mercado
Ralph Mercado Jr. was a promoter of Latin American music — Latin Jazz, Latin rock, merengue and salsa — who established a network of businesses that included promoting concerts, managing artists, Radio Mundo Musical a record label the most important in the Latin industry during 1980-1990, film...
’s RMM Records with The New York Band. Mercado introduced young listeners to new salsa artists such as Marc Anthony
Marc Anthony
Marc Anthony is an American singer-songwriter, actor and producer. Anthony is the top selling tropical salsa artist of all time. The two-time Grammy and three-time Latin Grammy–winner has sold more than 30 million albums worldwide. He is best known for his Latin salsa numbers and ballads...
and La India
La India
La India , known also as "La Princesa de la Salsa" , is a singer of salsa. She has been nominated for both Grammy and Latin Grammy awards.-Early years:...
. Five years before salsa had been considered a dead genre, but it was then experiencing not simply resurgence but an explosion of interest, among Latino and white listeners alike.
As a teen-ager MioSotis mastered a diverse range of Latin musical genres, playing cumbia
Cumbia
Cumbia is a music genre popular across Latin America. The cumbia originated in the Caribbean coast of Colombia, where it is associated with an eponymous dance and has since spread as far as Mexico and Argentina...
, Tex-Mex, rancheras, salsa
Salsa music
Salsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...
, and merengue
Merengue music
Merengue is a type of music and dance from the Dominican Republic. It is popular in the Dominican Republic and all over Latin America. Its name is Spanish, taken from the name of the meringue, a dessert made from whipped egg whites and sugar...
, as well as pop, soul, dance, and R&B, sung in both Spanish and English. She began singing professionally at thirteen and performed with merengue star Wilfrido Vargas
Wilfrido Vargas
Wilfrido Radamés Vargas Martínez was born in Altamira, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.He was surrounded by musical influences; namely, his father Ramón, an accordionist and guitarist, and his mother Bienvenida, a flute player and guitarist...
for two years. When her parents returned to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic she worked with the Altamira Banda Show, as advised by Vargas, before returning to New York to continue her studies. She spent five years recording and touring with The New York Band, a well known salsa/merengue quartet also featuring Cherito Jiménez, Alexandra, and Johnny. (Alexandra was replaced by Maggie in 1992. Maggie was replaced by Yudith in 1994, and Johnny's replacement was Tony in 1991).
Recording career
MioSotis made her live debut as a solo artist on February 26, 1995 with her five-piece R&B band at the Honeysuckle West club in New York City. She began recording and producing her first solo album, Hazme Soñar (Make me dream), while still an undergraduate student at the City University of New YorkCity University of New York
The City University of New York is the public university system of New York City, with its administrative offices in Yorkville in Manhattan. It is the largest urban university in the United States, consisting of 23 institutions: 11 senior colleges, six community colleges, the William E...
(CUNY) Queens College. The eclectic debut album, released at the Radio and Música Convention in Los Angeles, California in August 1995, featured original Tex-Mex songs and pop ballads.
In August 1995 Abraham Quintanilla, the father of murdered Tejano star Selena
Selena
Selena Quintanilla-Pérez , known simply as Selena, was a Mexican American singer-songwriter. She was named the "top Latin artist of the '90s" and "Best selling Latin artist of the decade" by Billboard for her fourteen top-ten singles in the Top Latin Songs chart, including seven number-one hits...
, invited MioSotis to visit the Corpus Christi, Texas recording studio where Selena had recorded most of her music. During the emotional visit they remembered Selena and her music, and MioSotis was given the chance to sing to Quintanilla with Selena’s tracks.
Following her graduation from college with honors and a bachelor’s degree in Communications, Arts and Media, she began recording and self-producing (along with producer George Mena) her second solo album, Nace una Estrella in 1996 on Lynn Hidalgo's label. The album contained bilingual cover versions of Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
's "What kind of fool" and Dominican
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
composer Juan Luis Guerra
Juan Luis Guerra
Juan Luis Guerra is a singer, songwriter and producer from the Dominican Republic who has sold over 30 million records, and won numerous awards including 12 Latin Grammy Awards, two Grammy Awards, and two Latin Billboard Music Awards...
's "Bachata Rosa." Her salsa single “Señora,” a song about learning that one's lover is married, became an instant hit, eventually achieving gold record status, pushing sales of Nace una Estrella to over 50,000 units upon release. The video was also tremendously popular, and MioSotis quickly achieved celebrity status. She was asked to perform a private concert for the FBI in New York. She was also invited to sing back-up vocals on José Octavio's 1997 romantic merengue
Merengue music
Merengue is a type of music and dance from the Dominican Republic. It is popular in the Dominican Republic and all over Latin America. Its name is Spanish, taken from the name of the meringue, a dessert made from whipped egg whites and sugar...
album Confundido.
In June 1997 MioSotis became the first Latin artist to sing the national anthem at Yankee Stadium in New York. She was invited to sing in honor of Puerto Rican Pittsburgh Pirate right-fielder and humanitarian Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente Walker was a Puerto Rican Major League Baseball right fielder. He was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, the youngest of seven children. Clemente played his entire 18-year baseball career with the Pittsburgh Pirates . He was awarded the National League's Most Valuable Player Award in...
.
MioSotis’ popularity enabled her to tour extensively, performing throughout Latin America, Canada, the U.S., Caribbean, South America, Europe, and Japan. Due to her background in theatre and dance, she was able to stage colorful, exciting, and well crafted live performances. She has played large venues, such as Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
in New York City, La Plaza de Toro in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and La Feria de Cali in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
. She recorded the commercial jingle promoting the Santo Domingo Action Park in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in late 1997 and performed the first concert held at the new venue's opening night in December.
In 1998 MioSotis won her first Premio ACE award from the Association of Latin Entertainment Critics
Association of Latin Entertainment Critics
The Association of Latin Entertainment Critics is a nonprofit cultural organization founded on December 12, 1967. The organization has bestowed the LatinACE awards annually since May 25, 1969...
for Best Female Singer in the Tropical Music category for “Señora.” Goya Foods chose her to perform a concert series for Hispanic Heritage Month festivals. European film companies Ciby 2000 and Milan/BMG recruited her to record "Amame" and "Amor es Eso" as theme songs for the French film La Femme du Cosmonaut (The Astronaut's Wife). MioSotis filmed the music video for “Amame” in Paris, France and went on a promotional tour throughout France and Spain for the movie's premiere.
MioSotis’ third album, Ardiente, was released in 2003 and received a Latin Globe award for Best Female Salsa Album.
MioSotis played at the July 23, 2001 concert commemorating the closing of the famous Copacabana nightclub in New York City, appearing with Elvis Crespo, Fernando Villalona, and Mili Quezada, among others. The concert was recorded and later released on CD as 60 años de historia
(60 Years of History). The following month she became the last artist to perform at the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
in Manhattan, appearing at the last annual Latin Summer Fest concert held in the plaza between the Twin Towers. One year after the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center MioSotis sang the national anthem live on Latin radio station 105.9 FM to commemorate the victims.
MioSotis’ salsa single, “Por Temor” was released in 2002 and quickly climbed the Latin and dance charts. She gave several television and radio interviews before beginning a tour in April. She played clubs and festivals (Calle Ocho in Miami, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
) in New York and Florida, and was crowned queen of the CAC Kiwanis Flamingo Fest in Miami. April 21, 2002 was proclaimed MioSotis' Day by the mayor and people of Hialeah, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
.
During 2003 MioSotis devoted the majority of her time to being with her extended family. In February 2004 MioSotis was seriously injured in a car accident in Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
, New York involving a drunk driver. She was hospitalized with serious injuries and underwent extensive physical therapy for almost six months. After a course of strenuous therapy and time off work to rest and heal, MioSotis was able to regain enough mobility that she could plan a return to the stage.
While still coping with chronic pain from her injuries, MioSotis returned to work in 2005. She put salsa on hold to concentrate on jazz, when she was invited to perform with two-time Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
winner and Latin jazz
Latin jazz
Latin jazz is the general term given to jazz with Latin American rhythms.The three main categories of Latin Jazz are Brazilian, Cuban and Puerto Rican:# Brazilian Latin Jazz includes bossa nova...
musician Horacio “El Negro
El Negro
El Negro is the nickname of:*Fernando Chamorro, Nicaraguan rebel*Horacio Hernandez, Cuban drummer*Roberto Fontanarrosa, Argentine cartoonist...
” Hernandez and Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
-winning flautist Dave Valentin
Dave Valentin
Dave Valentin is a jazz flutist.He learned latin percussion first when he was a teenager, and then switched to flute. Valentin's teacher, Hubert Laws, suggested that he not double on saxophone because of his attractive sound on the flute. He studied at the Bronx Community College...
. She and Valentin appeared on stage at the Blue Note in Tokyo, Japan as special guest stars for El Negro
El Negro
El Negro is the nickname of:*Fernando Chamorro, Nicaraguan rebel*Horacio Hernandez, Cuban drummer*Roberto Fontanarrosa, Argentine cartoonist...
and Robby Band. She then embarked on an eight-month world tour with El Negro
El Negro
El Negro is the nickname of:*Fernando Chamorro, Nicaraguan rebel*Horacio Hernandez, Cuban drummer*Roberto Fontanarrosa, Argentine cartoonist...
and Valentin.
She planned to begin producing a new album following the jazz tour but discovered she was pregnant. Her son Brandon Alexander (featured on her children's television show The ChiquiMundo Show) was born in 2006 and she chose to take time off from her music career to care for him and produce ChiquiMundo. She returned to writing and producing music in 2008 and began a new album in 2009, which is scheduled for release in the summer of 2010.
Television Personality
MioSotis gave several promotional interviews on local and national Spanish-language channels such as TelemundoTelemundo
Telemundo is an American television network that broadcasts in Spanish. The network is the second-largest Spanish-language content producer in the world, and the second-largest Spanish-language network in the United States, behind Univision....
, LTV/QPTV, and Univision
Univision
Univision is a Spanish-language television network in the United States. It has the largest audience of Spanish language television viewers according to Nielsen ratings. Randy Falco, COO, has been in charge of the company since the departure of Univision Communications president and CEO Joe Uva...
, and became popular as well as familiar to viewers. It was not surprising when LTV hired MioSotis to co-host the popular variety show Viva el Pueblo in 2004. She also developed and hosted the children’s educational variety show The ChiquiMundo Show for LTV/QPTV, which debuted that summer. ChiquiMundo was relaunched in 2009, this time featuring MioSotis' young son and nephews.
In 2005 she hosted the Hispanic Youth Showcase talent competition Road to Stardom for New Jersey public television station NJN.
Stylistic Influences
MioSotis grew up listening to a variety of Latin and world music genres in New York and she mixed merengue, pop, and salsa in her early recordings. Her Latin music influences growing up were Gloria EstefanGloria Estefan
Gloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García de Estefan; known professionally as Gloria Estefan is a Cuban-born American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen Of Latin Pop", she is in the top 100 best selling music artists with over 100 million albums sold worldwide, 31.5 million of those...
, Celia Cruz
Celia Cruz
Celia Cruz was a Cuban-American salsa singer, and was one of the most successful Salsa performers of the 20th century, having earned twenty-three gold albums...
, Wilfrido Vargas
Wilfrido Vargas
Wilfrido Radamés Vargas Martínez was born in Altamira, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.He was surrounded by musical influences; namely, his father Ramón, an accordionist and guitarist, and his mother Bienvenida, a flute player and guitarist...
, and Mili Quezada. Her favorite artists in the U.S./English mainstream market included Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
, Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
, Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
, and Janet Jackson
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson is an American recording artist and actress. Known for a series of sonically innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows, television and film roles, she has been a prominent figure in popular culture for over 25 years...
. She said in 2010, "The first CD I remember buying myself was Janet Jackson's Control. I would even learn all the dance steps to her videos. Particularly I remember learning the steps to 'Pleasure Principal and even recreating the music track of 'When I Think of You' on my first electronic keyboard. I loved the bass line on that song." The first concert she attended was Janet Jackson's performance at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
on her Rhythm Nation tour.
Humanitarian Work
MioSotis became involved with children’s charities in 1999, both as a volunteer and a fundraiser. Growing up in New York City, she saw first-hand how neglected and abused low-income children often went without proactive assistance or advocacy. She performed benefit shows at the Queens Lighthouse School for Blind Children and the Marble Hill Nursery School in the Bronx, New York. In the 1990s and 2000s she joined other well-known Latin artists at benefit concerts to raise funds for the Sergio VargasSergio Vargas
For the Chilean football goalkeeper with the same name see Sergio Vargas Sergio Vargas is a Dominican merengue singer. He has been a member of the bands La Banda Brava and Los Hijos del Rey.- References :...
Foundation to help children all over the world. Following the success of her children's television show The ChiquiMundo Show MioSotis began a non-profit children's charity, the ChiquiMundo Foundation, of which she is president. The foundation holds fundraising events, such as winter coat drives and holiday toy drives for children of impoverished families.
Discography
Hazme Soñar, 1995. Released by RCA Records 1999.Nace Una Estrella (Lynn Hidalgo), 1997. Released by Romantico in 1999.
Various Artists, Sexy Latin Beats compilation, includes MioSotis' "Nada Sin Ti (Nothing Without You)" and "Being With You (Cerca de Ti)" (Radikal), 1999.
“Amame,” single, 1999
La Femme du Cosmonaute soundtrack, 1999
Ardiente (Mas Music), 2000
Various Artists, Tropical Party Mix compilation, includes MioSotis' "Sabras," (Rumba Jams), 2000
Various Artists, 60 Años de Historia Grabado en Copacabana (Sony Music Distribution), 2001
Various Artists, Salsa Flava compilation, includes Miosotis' "Arránca," (BMG Special Products), 2002
Various Artists, Tropical Latin Flava compilation, includes MioSotis' "Soltera y Libre," (BMG Special Products), 2002
“Por Temor,” single, 2003