Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Las Vegas Punta Rock Concert 2012


501 Band, as the name suggests, is a group of talented musicians who represent the diverse culture of Belize .  The band was formed in 2009 prior to the Punta Fest held in Las Vegas , which headlined former members of the Punta Rebels band, namely Supa G, Reckless and Lloyd. Upon their requests, top musicians needed to make a collaborative effort to back up this trio and from that day forward, 501 Band was formed. The band is comprised of the former Key board/Base player of Punta Rebels - Skull Flores, the Lead Drummer/Singer of Caribbean Dynamics Band - Roy Da Drumma, former Base player of Punta Cartel Band – Sonny Enriquez, former guitarist of Santino’s Messengers Band – JJ,  and lastly, Producer/Keyboard Player/Drummer – Glen Q Garcia. Indeed a powerful line up, a line up that is versatile, committed, disciplined and destined to keep the culture and music alive.

501 Band has been on the forefront for many of the recent shows taking place in the Los Angeles Area. It’s genre of music caters not only to the Belizeans but also to the Latin Community of Honduras, Guatemala and neighboring Central American Countries. Major shows in which 501 Band has played includes the 2-Day September Celebration event held yearly at the Hollywood park Casino. 501 Band showcased its lead singer Roy Da Drumma and also backed up the following artists: Mimi Martinez, Garif Garcia and Lova Boy. In addition to the Las Vegas Punta Fest and the September Celebration 2-Day Festival, the band has been making waves in the music industry performing at the Urumein Punta Festival, backing up James Lovell, Saps, Mime Martinez, Mohobub Flores, Jobo, El Sheriff of Honduras among many others. The band was also headlined in the Punta Extravaganza Concert held in November of 2011 backing up artists such as Concego from Belize City and Paula Castillo from ---------. They have also backed up international world music artist, Aurelio Martinez on several occasions for park fests and concerts. On a weekly basis, the band takes on private gigs for Birthday Parties, Weddings and Quinceaneras.

In the mere three (3) years 501 Band has existed, it has risen to the very top and this current year, new clients have been added. Based on demand, the band is scheduled to travel and undertake gigs within the Chicago , New York and Houston areas. This is merely the beginning; for in the years to come, the band will become one of the common household names, and destined to claim the title of being one of the best bands out of Belize (Area Code 501).

Roy Da Drumma

Cocoman Bio           Click on the flyers for futher information on the September 1, 2012 concert


Jorge Guerrero AKA Cocoman was a musician for over 20 years. He was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He was raise by his mother and father (May He Rest in Peace) who was a musician. Jorge grew up around music all his life. His father knew since day one that he had a special talent. His father would let him get in the middle of the dance floor to entertain a crowd; he was also offered money to do so. He was also known as the hype man of the family. He was known for dancing wild and being loud since a young boy. While in Junior High School he participated in a marching band. There he felt more comfortable entertaining for a bigger crowd. He then realize that he loved being around a crowd, also performing in front of one. Jorge lived in California for 5 years, that's where he accomplish to get his High School Diploma. Then attended College in South Carolina. Jorge wanted to be known in the Garifuna world as a musician, that's when he decided to move back to New York. There he realizes that he wanted to join a Garifuna group. So that's when he joined Grupo H in 1986. He started playing the trumpet, congas, and ended up singing reggae songs for them. After playing for them for 2 years, he then wanted to form his own band. He gathered a few of his close friends and decided to actually do it. They didn't have a name yet for the band but they wanted to get known some how. The band would crash different parties to get playtime. The lead singer of Grupo H then named them Garifuna Kids. In 1994 that's when Garifuna Kids made their first album "Baila, Baila". Cocoman contribute a lot to that album. They traveled all over Central America and did a lot of performance in New York. While dealing with Garifuna Kids, he learned a lot regarding the Garifuna music business. He went through some ups and downs while dealing with the group. But over came all that and decided to become co- owner of one of the most known bands in the U.S  and Central America( within the Garifuna community), Garfuna Legacy. Some of the members of Garifuna Kids joined Garifuna Legacy. They had two hit albums, " Unfinished Business" and The Dynasty- Hated by many, Loved by many more. While performing with Garifuna Legacy he also traveled and did what he did best, entertain a crowd. He was known for doing different stunts, again he was known for being a hype man. You had no choice but to dance and party with them. After performing for a couple of years with the group, he learned to become more independent. They also went through their ups and downs but Cocoman always manage to handle different circumstances and overcome them. Then he decided to go solo, which he has been doing for many years now. Cocoman is an excellent performer, he's known for his music, voice and his energy. He has been known for performing in Apollo Theatre, Lincoln Center, and so on.









No comments: