Zayra Enid Álvarez Dones, better known as Zayra Álvarez, is a Puerto Rican singer and musician, who was raised in the coastal town of Arroyo.  She became known in the world of show business  as a singer-songwriter that composed songs with her guitar, which she presented on their first album Ruleta [Roulette] in 2004. Then in 2006, Álvarez surprised everyone with her panache and outrageous clothing, as one of the contestants of Rockstar: Supernova on CBS. As María I. Vega (El Nuevo Día) reports, four years later, the artist returns with a different image and music style, taking a new direction with pop/dance.

Interviewed by Vega, the artist says, “As a writer I am always experimenting with new styles and getting out of my system what I had always wanted to do: music for dance, for discos, for entertainment, that would be more pop. . . and I was given the opportunity; it was not predetermined.”

After leaving Rockstar and moving to Texas, she spent some time away from music and she began to write a screenplay that told the story of a famous Hollywood star of Mexican origin, who married an important Spanish entrepreneur based in Mexico, a man who was bewitched by her and made her a star. The actress starred in a film with Mick Jagger, with whom she had a torrid affair and a daughter. Although the story has still has not produced a film, it is the inspiration for Álvarez’s new album Baby Likes to Bang.

The first two singles that have been released from the album have been successful. “VIP  (My Father is Mick Jagger)” debuted in the fifth position on Billboard’s “Hit Dance Club” list, while “Baby Likes to Bang” (which was released November 8, 2010), was declared the number one Dance Breakout place in its first week on the same list. (It was also the #3 most added song by DJ’s, behind Katy Perry and Rihanna.)  

Álvarez’s videos have a style akin to director Quentin Tarantino’s, in terms of cinematography and color schemes used. She has also had the opportunity to incorporate dance and choreography in her videos, which she relishes, as “a frustrated dancer.”  

The singer says, “When I launched the first song, ‘VIP’, I didn’t know how people would react. It was a new audience, who didn’t know who I was, the world of clubs, but they received it fantastically well. It was a surprise for me that it reached number five on Billboard. This has given me much opportunity to travel; I’ve been in clubs in New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Boston, all over the United States.” Álvarez hopes to bring her new repertoire to the Puerto Rican stage, but still has no fixed date for this.

For full article, see http://www.elnuevodia.com/lanuevadivadeldance-851601.html

Listen to “VIP (My Father is Mick Jagger)” here