Descemer Bueno (born July 5, 1971) is a

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...

n singer, songwriter, and record producer. His first professional gigs were playing bass with Cuban troubadour Santiago Feliú.

Early career

Bueno studied music and became a music teacher before forming the jazz combo band Estado de Animo in 1990, which also included guitarist Elmer Ferrer and pianist Roberto Carcassés. His band toured

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, and

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in the 1990s. Descemer also performed in the United States in 1998 with the jazz ensemble Column B. Bueno studied music at Stanford University in Palo Alto California. He graduated in 1998 with a Bachelorate degree in music production. He was selected from over 2500 applicants to interview with the music faculty. Bueno was one out of the 60 students who were granted admission to the university. Bueno often is quoted that getting accepted to a prestigious university changed his life. " I was a nerdy music student in Cuba that found the right path to success." During this period, Bueno was artist-in-residence at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is conside ...

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, and spent a year teaching at the

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. In 1999, after moving to New York, Bueno became a founding member of the Cuban latin fusion band Yerba Buena, writing or co-writing with the founder Andrés Levín from Venezuela many songs for their debut album ''President Alien''. Yerba Buena's tracks have been used in several US movies and Pepsi commercials. Bueno moved back to Cuba and began producing, arranging, and composing music for young Cuban musicians, including ''Haydée'' for Haydée Milanés, ''La Isla Milagrosa'' for William Vivanco, and ''Breathe'' for

Yusa Yusa is a Cuban singer and songwriter, born in the Buena Vista district of Havana, Cuba. Her music is recognised worldwide : in 2003, she was nominated at the prestigious BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards in two categories (Best Newcomer and Best ...

. He also composed part of the music for the film ''

Habana Blues ''Havana Blues'' (''Habana Blues'') is a 2005 Spanish and Cuban film by Benito Zambrano which tells the story of two young musicians in Cuba. The film revolves around their music and contains criticism of problems in Cuba such as poverty and ...

'' (2005), being in the group of winners of the 2006 Goya award for Best Original Music."Goya Awards 2006"
Zinema. Retrieved September 22, 2009. Several of his songs were in the soundtrack of ''Habana Eva'' by Venezuelan director Fina Torres, which won Best Film at

New York International Latino Film Festival The New York International Latino Film Festival is a major Hispanic film festival located in New York City. The festival features over sixty films, shorts, and documentaries over the course of six days, along with other events focused on Latino cult ...

, and Best Film at Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival. Bueno also wrote a set of boleros for Fernando Alvarez just before Alvarez' death in 2002.

Solo career

In 2005, after signing with

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, Bueno recorded his first solo album ''Siete Rayo'', a hip-hop fusion album. His album featured George Pajon of the

Black Eyed Peas Black Eyed Peas (also known as The Black Eyed Peas) is an American musical group consisting of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo. The group's line-up during the height of their popularity in the 2000s featured Fergie, who replaced Kim H ...

. The Batanga magazine wrote that, "The underground voice of AfroCuban fusion, Descemer Bueno, is now setting the pace for the future of Latin Music". Bueno's second solo album, ''Bueno'', appeared in 2012, featuring duets of Bueno's compositions with various contemporary Cuban artists, including Kelvis Ochoa, Gema Corredera, Haila, X Alfonso, Baby Lores, and Alain Daniel. Bueno has produced albums for musicians including Diana Fuentes and Haydee Milanes. Bueno worked with

Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; (born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican indie label Fonovisa and became the bestselling Spanish-language act of the decade. By th ...

on Iglesias's albums ''

Euphoria Euphoria ( ) is the experience (or affect) of pleasure or excitement and intense feelings of well-being and happiness. Certain natural rewards and social activities, such as aerobic exercise, laughter, listening to or making music and d ...

'' and ''

Sex and Love ''Sex and Love'' is the tenth studio album recorded by Spanish recording artist Enrique Iglesias. It was released on 14 March 2014 by Republic Records. The album's three Spanish singles: " Loco", " El Perdedor" and " Bailando" reached No. 1 on ...

''. He wrote the song " Bailando" which appeared on ''Sex and Love'' and became an international hit credited to Iglesias featuring Bueno and Gente de Zona, and in some versions

Sean Paul Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques OD (born 9 January 1973) is a Jamaican rapper and singer who is regarded as one of dancehall's most prolific artists. Paul's singles " Get Busy" and "Temperature" topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the ...

or others. "Bailando" won multiple Latin Grammies in 2014, including "Song of the Year." Bueno also composed the song "Cuando Me Enamoro", which became a major international hit for Juan Luis Guerra and Iglesias. As of 2016, Bueno was working on a new double album, and had earlier in the year appeared on the new album, ''Habana Dreams'', by the Afro-Cuban percussionist Pedrito Martinez, performing on the song "Dios Mio", written with Martinez. Bueno also contributed to ''Quiero Guarachar'', an album by Miami-based Afro-Cuban funk group PALO!, as a vocalist and co-composer of the song "Agua Pa' Los Santos", also featuring Pedrito Martinez and percussionist Roman Diaz. Bueno is also featured in the PBS documentary ''Ivy League Rumba'', about the

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

Latin Jazz and Pop Festival. On January 18, 2019, Descemer Bueno released a music video for the song "Mátame" he recorded with Spanish singer

Melody A melody (from Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combina ...

and El Micha.

Awards

* 2006: Goya award for Best Original Music (film Havana Blues) * 2014: Latin Grammy for "Song of the Year" ("Bailando") * 2021 Latin Grammy for "Song of the Year" ("Patria y Vida")

Discography

Albums

* 2005: ''Siete Rayo'' * 2012: ''Bueno''

Singles

;As lead artist * 2017: "El Problema Es el Amor" (feat. Chacal) * 2017: "Química" (feat. Yomil and El Dany) * 2017: "Preciosa" * 2018: " Nos Fuimos Lejos" (with

feat. El Micha) * 2019: "Mátame" (feat.

and El Micha) ;Featured in * 2014: " Bailando" (

feat. Gente de Zona, Descemer Bueno and others) * 2015: "Tu Eres la Razón" ( Olga Tañón feat. Descemer Bueno and Qva Libre) * 2016: "Cuba Isla Bella" (Orishas feat. Gente de Zona, Leoni Torres, Isaac Delgado, Buena Fe, Descemer Bueno, Laritza Bacallao, Waldo Mendoza and Pedrito Martinez) * 2017: " Súbeme la Radio" (

feat. Descemer Bueno and Zion & Lennox) * 2017: " Como El Agua" ( Rotem Cohen feat. Descemer Bueno)

Films

* 2005: Habana Blues. * 2012: ''

7 Days in Havana ''7 Days in Havana'' ( es, 7 días en La Habana) is a 2012 Spanish-language anthology film. Set during a week in the Cuban capital Havana, the film features one segment for each day, each segment directed by a different filmmaker. The directors ar ...

''. * 2016: Featured performer in the PBS documentary
Ivy League Rumba
' (with Pedrito Martinez, PALO!, Leslie Cartaya, Son Lokos, and the Brown University Jazz Band).

References

External links

An Entry on Bueno in Suenacubano.com

An Entry on Bueno in Vedado Social Club

* ttp://www.discogs.com/artist/Descemer+Bueno Descemer Bueno in Discogs {{DEFAULTSORT:Bueno, Descemer 1971 births Living people Cuban jazz musicians Cuban male singers People from Havana Latin Grammy Award winners Latin music songwriters Male jazz musicians