Gina Chavez (born May 24, 1982) is an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
bilingual Latin-folk singer, and songwriter who has been performing since 2004, releasing her first recording in 2007.
Chavez's parents are of
Mexican
Mexican may refer to:
Mexico and its culture
*Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America
** People
*** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants
*** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
and
Swiss
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
-
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
descent. Chavez's father, Gene Chavez, is a second generation
Mexican-American
Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...
from the south side of
San Antonio
("Cradle of Freedom")
, image_map =
, mapsize = 220px
, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
, s ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
.
Chavez holds a unique style of mixing the content of her music and visuals and is an eight-time Austin Music Award winner.
She was named Austin Musician of the Year in 2015.
A review by ''Sonicbids'' describes the style in her songs containing traversings of
cumbia
Cumbia refers to a number of musical rhythms and folk dance traditions of Latin America, generally involving musical and cultural elements from American Indigenous peoples, enslaved Africans during colonial times, and Europeans. Examples include:
...
,
bossa nova
Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...
, vintage pop,
reggaeton
Reggaeton (, ), also known as reggaetón and reguetón (), is a music style that originated in Panama during the late 1980s. It was later popularized in Puerto Rico.
It has evolved from dancehall and has been influenced by American Hip hop m ...
, and
folk
Folk or Folks may refer to:
Sociology
*Nation
*People
* Folklore
** Folk art
** Folk dance
** Folk hero
** Folk music
*** Folk metal
*** Folk punk
*** Folk rock
** Folk religion
* Folk taxonomy
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Folk Plus or Fol ...
combined with dynamic vocals and sharp social commentary. Chavez does not work alone, she is teamed with a band of six members. Her recent major album is titled ''Up.Rooted'', and the work that she has compiled together, has earned her various awards, such as Best Latin Band.
Career
Chavez was born in
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...
. She began songwriting and performing at the
University of Texas
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
at Austin at the age of 18. Growing up, Chavez's musical interests included
Lyle Lovett
Lyle Pearce Lovett (born November 1, 1957) Lyle Lovett Pageat Allmusic – Lovett's Genre and Styles. Retrieved February 2, 2007 is an American singer, songwriter, actor and record producer. Active since 1980, he has recorded 13 albums and relea ...
,
Little Richard
Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...
, and
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
.
She did not grow up listening to Latino music. It wasn't until her first year of college when she began writing music while studying in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
that she discovered a love for folk music and dance. Ever since her time in Argentina, Chavez has incorporated Spanish lyrics as well as rhythms of Latin into her music. Her genre is mainly considered Latin-folk. Chavez's vocal styling ranges from yearning to sensual to wailing.
On January 1, 2007, Chavez released her debut solo independent album, ''Hanging Spoons''. On December 6, 2014, Chavez released Gina Chavez Live at the Music Club under The Good Music Club that contained five total tracks.
Chavez released her first independent studio album, ''Up.Rooted'', on February 11, 2016, online to
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
,
Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...
,
Spotify
Spotify (; ) is a proprietary Swedish audio streaming and media services provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with over 456 million monthly active us ...
, with physical copies available on
CD Baby
CD Baby, Inc. is an online distributor of independent music. The company was described as an "anti-label" by its parent company's Chief Operating Officer Tracy Maddux. The CD Baby music store was shut down in March 2020 with a statement that "C ...
.
Chavez raised the money to record her first studio album via
Kickstarter
Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...
and doubled her goal by raising $20,000.
Chavez is continuing to use Kickstarter to raise funds in hopes for the creation of her second studio album. This album takes on cumbia, down tempo,
swing
Swing or swinging may refer to:
Apparatus
* Swing (seat), a hanging seat that swings back and forth
* Pendulum, an object that swings
* Russian swing, a swing-like circus apparatus
* Sex swing, a type of harness for sexual intercourse
* Swing rid ...
, bossa nova, and
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
sounds.
Chavez highly promoted her single ''Siete-D'' which takes a stand against gang violence in Central America
was published on her
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
channel March 8, 2016. The visual was filmed in
El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...
in October 2015.
Present
, Chavez is touring solo, and with her full six-person band.
Personal life
She's made her presence known with her work in El Salvador, being named one of 11 southern iconic women who have left a beautiful footprint across the south"
by
Southern Living
''Southern Living'' is a lifestyle magazine aimed at readers in the Southern United States featuring recipes, house plans, garden plans, and information about Southern culture and travel. It is published by Birmingham, Alabama–based Southern Prog ...
and
Olay
Olay, previously Oil of Olay, Oil of Olaz, Oil of Ulan or Oil of Ulay, is an American skin care brand owned by Procter & Gamble. For the 2009 fiscal year, which ended on June 30, Olay accounted for an estimated $2.8 billion of P&G's revenue.
Ear ...
. Her work in El Salvador continues to make a worldwide difference outside of music.
In an interview with
The Austin Chronicle
''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogr ...
, Chavez is described as "no stranger to the benefit rounds. She routinely puts on productions of her own to support the nonprofit she started after an eight-month mission trip to El Salvador."
The Austin native has made such an impact and influence in the music scene that in 2015, Austin, Texas mayor,
Steve Adler, announced that April 2 is officially known as "Gina Chavez Day."
While living in El Salvador in 2009, Chavez and her partner Jodi, who also acts as her booking agent, spent eight months educating teenage girls who were surrounded by poverty in gang-dominated barrios.
Discography
* ''Hanging Spoons'' (Album; 2007)
* ''Gina Chavez, Live at the Good Music Club'' (Live EP; 2014)
* ''Up.Rooted'' (Album; 2014) Voted "Austin Album of the Year"
* ''In-a-Gadda-da-Vida'' (Album)
Awards
* 2013 & 2018 Best Austin Musician (Female vocalist)
* 2014-2019 Best Performing Bands (Latin)
* 2014 Industry Awards - AMP Esme Barrera Award for Music Activism and Education
* 2014 Best Musician of the Year
* 2013 Best Performing Bands (Best Latin Rock Act)(Best Latin Traditional Act)
* 2012 Best Performing Bands (Best Latin Traditional Act)
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chavez, Gina
1982 births
American folk singers
People from Austin, Texas
Living people
American musicians of Mexican descent
21st-century American women singers
21st-century American singers
Hispanic and Latino American musicians
Hispanic and Latino American women singers
Women in Latin music