Ruben Rada

Born Omár Rubén ‘Negro’ Rada Silva on July 16, 1943, in Montevideo, Uruguay, the percussionist, singer, and composer is better known by his stage name Rubén Rada. As one of his home country’s most cherished songwriters, he is known for combining pop, rock, and native Uruguayan styles into a genre called candombe beat. He has also been referred to as one of South America’s finest vocalists. Rubén Rada formed the band El Kinto Conjunto in 1965, which was the first band in Uruguay to combine the beat group sound with Latin American styles. He pursued a solo career after the success of his 1969 single “Las Manzanas” before forming the group Tótem. He resumed his solo career in the mid-1970s and spent the latter part of that decade performing with other artists including Tom Scott, Ray Baretto, Flora Purim, Hermeto Pascoal, and OPA. Further solo albums included La Rada (1981), En Familia (1983), Siete Vidas (1987), Fisico De Rock (1991), Montevideo (1996), Montevideo Dos (1999), and Quien Va A Cantar (2000), which included the hit “Cha, Muchacha.” In all, Rubén Rada has released over 30 albums and has had many of his songs recorded by artists like Herb Alpert & Lani Hall and Milton Nascimento. Rubén Rada has also worked in the film and television industries, providing Uruguayan-language overdubs for the film The Incredibles (2004), and directing radio and TV programs.

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