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India Loves the Nightlife
The Princess of Salsa talks
about her music and her love for the QV community.
Interview by Howard Perez
 There
is no doubt in any person's mind that India is the Princess of
Salsa and of underground dance music. She has captured the hearts
of her millions of fans around the world with her powerful lyrics
and sensuous Salsa rhythms. Her collaborations with top artists
and producers in the music industry have granted her the success
she well deserves in both the Spanish and English music industries.
India has an amazing ability to transform any project that she
undertakes into a musical sensation and a hit. Currently, she
has a successful Salsa album, "Sobre El Fuego" (Through
The Fire), and a new disco single, "I Love The Nightlife."
How long have you been in the music business now? A
good fifteen years.
With so many singers that come and go so quickly in the
music business, how would you attribute your longevity as an
icon? What's kept India up there year after year? Well, I
think it's because I've really never had a record company behind
me. I've always had to do everything on my own to stay alive,
and make sure that certain kinds of audiences-such as club goers
and lovers of dance and tropical music-were constantly used to
hearing me, even if it was a 12-inch or a mix from Masters at
Work.
You know, the whole thing is the love, the hunger, and the
desire to keep going for the music. Even when I did not know
that I had a talent and that people liked my singing voice, I
always appreciated music. I just give my all in everything I
do. I (also) make sure that I don't think about myself-I think
about the public and what they would like, what would be nice
for them, and what would be inspiring for them.
What kind of music inspired you?
I grew
up around tropical music: a lot of rhythm, a lot of Mambo, Rumba,
Salsa, Montuño, and Cha Cha. I was born in Rio Piedras,
Puerto Rico, and I was brought as an infant to New York City,
where I grew up. I listened to rock-n-roll and also disco music.
When I was growing up, disco was hot-I thought it was the best
movement ever. That is where my love and my interest for dance
music came. Hearing singers like Donna Summer and Gloria QVnor-all
the best R&B dance artists-blew me away. I've always loved
it.
I (also) love the "live" feel-the feeling of the
rhythm with real players and real musicians-because they give
a funkiness to the music. "Little" Louie Vega (of Masters
At Work), introduced me to the music business and we've been
working (together) for years. He's kept me alive in dance music-he
and Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez. They know that in my tropical
music, I work with live musicians and I have a seven piece band,
so they also try to give a "live" feel to my music.
When we did "Love and Happiness" five years ago, we
used Tito Puente to play the timbales-he gave it an incredible
sound. Then we had tribal samples-it was like going to the jungle!
You seem to love doing all kinds of different genres of
music. Which do you prefer, dance, salsa, R&B, jazz?
You know what, I don't know if this is selfish of
me to say, but I want it all-they are all so delicious! Every
one of them is so incredible to listen to, to party to, and to
dance to.
You do a lot of dance music. Do you ever have a chance
to go out and dance?
Not as much as I used
to, and I'm really saddened by it because I really love to party.
I really like to go out, let my hair down, have a cocktail, and
just dance, dance, dance! When I was married to "Little"
Louie Vega, I used to always be there (at the clubs). Imagine,
I started out carrying his crates! Because of him, I have a certain
intense and open relationship with deejays. I appreciate them
because they've kept me on the dance floor for so many hours
and so many years. Lately, I haven't had the opportunity to go
out because I'm traveling all the time. But I have my own parties
in my room with the radio, you know.
How do you feel when people call you the Princess of Salsa?
I love it, I really do! I think that my way of thinking
has always been (in my imagination and spirituality) I do feel
like a princess. I work hard for what I do, and I feel that I've
earned it. I really feel that it fits me well. I love it!
You and Nuyorican Soul seem to have a perfect chemistry
with music. Can you tell us about that relationship and how you
guys get together to produce hits?
Well, the
concept (Nuyorican Soul) has been around for about ten years.
Louie and Kenny had a great concept (for the first album) and
they brought in people like Jocelyn Brown, Hilton Louis (a Latin
jazz player), Dave Valentin, famous Nuyorican flute players,
and Tito Puente. Luis Quintero, was the musical director of the
Nuyorican Soul band. We used a lot of musicians that freelanced
in different kinds of fields to give us what we were looking
for. I really did not get a chance to work with the guys because
I was going through a divorce with Louie. It was so hard and
it was so sad to record "Runaway." It was the first
time I had to record a song without him being there. After the
divorce we remained friends, thank God, because of the appreciation
that we have for each other and because we believe in the music.
How will the next Nuyorican Soul album be different from
the first one?
We have a lot of talented musicians
that are going to be taking the spotlight and forefronting the
vocalist position. I want to do more than one song on the next
album-they already know that. I want to do funk, dance, cross-over,
and ballads-funky ballads. I want a lot of top selling rap artists
to be featured in this. I'm look forward to next Nuyorican Soul
album, that's all I can say.
Your current single is a remake of the disco classic, "I
Love The Nightlife." How did that track come about?
"Little" Louie Vega was doing something
for the soundtrack of the movie, "The Last Days Of Disco."
He gave me a call and asked me to do the lead, and I said I'd
love to do it. They went into the studio and gave it a new sound
of today. In terms of the rhythm, it was like a whole new movement
and I liked it a lot-it was very danceable. We went and recorded
it, and had a lot of fun with it.
We've been getting a very good response in Los Angeles. (Radio
station) Groove 103.1 has been pumping it up and a lot of the
clubs across the country have been pumping it up, too. On radio,
most of the songs don't get a chance to get on there, but in
LA, I have such a big market in terms of dance, that they love
me and they always play everything I record. Thank God for Groove,
who takes the opportunity to appreciate the dance-club market.
What have been some of the favorite collaborations/duets
you've been involved with?
My favorite to
me, in my heart, would probably be Celia Cruz.
What is one of your own personal favorite recordings of
your music?
One of my favorites is "Love
and Happiness."
What about your Salsa songs? Those are some powerful lyrics.
I would have to say "Mi Mayor Venganza"
(from the "Sobre El Fuego" album) is one of my favorites.
I think it is one of the strongest and most intense songs that
I've ever done in my entire life (because of) the soul, the attitude,
and the strength of what it is saying. I put everything in it-there
was nothing left in my soul because I splattered it all over
the song. I sang it with a lot of conviction, a lot of heart,
anger, strength, and just everything.
Do you feel that with your music and your lyrics, you relieve
yourself?
What brings me great pleasure and
relief is when I go in, take the song, and study it. Once the
lyrics are in front of me, I study the message of the song and
I take it to the first gear, then the second, and then I bring
it home. My main goal is to interpret 100% of the beginning,
the middle and the end of the song. When that happens, it is
incredible and there is nothing that can compare to that feeling-well,
maybe love (laughs).
 Your
current album is called "Sobre El Fuego." When you
work on an album, what do you set out to accomplish? I make
sure that I'm comfortable with what I'm trying to establish within
my heart, my mind, my soul, and everyone else's. I don't only
think about myself; I think about other people. I think about
what is happening around me. I get inspired by a lot of things-like
friends that might be going through something intense. That kind
of stuff gives me inspiration to start writing.
If I can't write because I'm too busy trying to put things
together, I team up with the best writers. I'm not a selfish
artist. I believe that you have to give the opportunity to other
talented songwriters, put your heart into (their songs) and turn
them into hits. I think very differently from a lot of other
artists out there. I believe that most of them (other artists)
want to be known as the songwriter, producer, and everything.
But, I think there are a lot of (other) people out there who
deserve a job, as long as they do it with quality. It just makes
the project 100 times better because it feels like you are in
good Karma.
I also like to get opinions of my music. I like to have friends
tell me what they like and what they don't like. It always turns
out that somebody is very touched by it. Women are especially
more responsive towards my Latin music because they really feel
for what I'm saying. Somehow, they can really relate to the lyrics
that I put (in my music).
Are you involved in any special projects or causes like
AIDS awareness or things like that?
You know,
it's hard. I don't have time. I support anything that has to
do with AIDS, but I just don't have time because I'm always touring
so much. At the moment, my cousin, Debbie Delgado, who heads
an organization called LOLA (Latin Organization for Living Awareness),
is fighting for her life. She had to wait two years for a liver
transplant. Thank God she formed this organization because she
is saving lives. So whenever she wants me to do something or
be somewhere, if I'm in town, I always go just to hear her speak
and to help people who are in need. That place makes me feel
good. I'm just a person who cares a lot about what happens to
people. I'm also an animal lover; I love dogs, cats, birds, you
name them, I love them.
qvMagazine is a publication geared towards Latinos.
You are considered an idol by many of those Latinos. How
does it feel to have such a strong QV audience, in addition,
to your straight audience?
I feel happy because
all my life I have been surrounded by a lot of QV men. They
like me-they just consider me an ordinary "fish." They
let me in and make me feel comfortable, and I make them feel
comfortable. You know, we have established many long years of
a relationship, and everything I am today-everything
that I represent as an artist-I owe it to the QV community.
They have kept me alive when (other) people have turned their
backs on me. To keep me working, they call me and say they want
me to come on down to sing "the classics." What can
I say? They come out to see me, to have a good time, and to party
and scream! I love them!! They know that it's a give and take-I
give and they receive, and then they give and I receive. It's
been like that for many years.
Have you ever performed at a QV club and what was your
experience?
Oh yeah, definitely. When they
call me, I always try to go out there. I've done Crash (NY),
Spectrum (NY), and many other clubs in New York, San Francisco,
and Miami. When Water Front (Miami) used to be open, I performed
there. It's amazing because it's different from the heterosexual
crowd. With a QV club, you can really let your hair down. I
mean, you can say things that you can't say in other places because
they'd throw you out! It's like freedom of speech-just say it!
What's next on India's schedule?
There
is a lot of touring right now. I have a big tour in South America
that I will be doing, and I'm very excited about that. We are
going to Peru, Venezuela, Mexico, and I'm (especially) looking
forward to going to the islands like Santo Domingo and the Dominican
Republic. I've always wanted to go there and let them know that
I know they support my music. I love them and I want to give
them something back. I'll also be in Madison Square Garden-I've
got a big concert there in September.
I also have a new single coming out-the Juan Gabriel song
("Costumbres"). Everybody loves it! Everybody loves
my interpretation and the style that I incorporated into the
song, because I took it to another level. It's normally a ballad
and not done in Salsa. I added little things here and there,
a lot of soulful things, to give it an R&B style. We just
filmed the video, which I directed. That was something very interesting
and exciting to do. I am very thrilled.
This issue of qvMagazine is focused on "Knowledge"
and education. What would you like to say about education to
your fans?
I believe that no matter what obstacles
you might have, where ever you live, education is very important.
You have to educate yourself if you want to make it and if you
want to be looked upon as someone responsible. You will have
more opportunities to get a job and a career out of it. I would
advise kids to stay in school. No matter what obstacles get in
the way, try to finish.
Any last comments or words that you would like to say to
your fans?
I just want to thank them for always
sticking around. I have a lot of fans that know what's up and
who follow me, write letters, and come and see me when they know
I'm around. They support my music and everything, and I just
want to thank them. I look forward to meeting with them and being
around where they live. I hope to see them at a nightclub, and
party, and show them a good time.
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