WNYC Studios Announce the Second Season of Podcast on the Puerto Rican Experience

WNYC Studios and Futuro Studios announced that a second season of the critically-acclaimed, pioneering dual-language podcast, La Brega: Stories of the Puerto Rican Experience, will premiere on Jan. 26.

La Brega

La Brega: Stories of the Puerto Rican Experience was hailed as one of the “Best Podcasts of 2021” by The New Yorker and The New York Times. Each episode in season two will be devoted to an iconic Puerto Rican song, as the island has a dizzying breadth of musical expression. The second season of La Brega will concentrate on the lyrical boleristas of the 1930s, the electric salseros of the 70s, and the reggaetoneros of today who have taken this music and spread it globally.

Hosted by Alana Casanova-Burgess, the podcast will once again bring together a collective of Puerto Rican journalists, producers, musicians, and artists. Some notable people this season that are featured include Salsa legend Rubén Blades, Latin Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter Susana Baca, Puerto Rico-based hip-hop DJ, producer, and MC Andres “Velcro” Ramos, and Independent Puerto Rican journalist Bianca Graulau, best-known for her documentary, Aquí Vive Gente (People Live Here), featured as part of the music video for Bad Bunny’s “El Apagón.”

Kenya Young, Senior Vice President, WNYC Studios, spoke about La Brega in a statement.

La Brega was a pioneer of the dual-language podcast format, and it’s fitting that the second season spotlights and honors Puerto Rico’s influence on music and culture over time and across languages. These sound-rich and deeply reported stories embrace a nuance and beauty not always found in coverage of Puerto Rico. WNYC Studios is incredibly proud to partner with Futuro Studios to bring listeners a second season of La Brega.

Kenya Young

Burgess also said that the season will “shed light on the songs that reflect what it means to be Puerto Rican and part of the diaspora — about the pride and yearning we feel for home, and that resonates with people everywhere. They capture joy, frustration, love, loss, and wonder of the human experience — in short: la brega.” The Greene Space at WNYC and WQXR will be hosting a La Brega Season 2 Launch Party in New York on Jan. 26 at 7 p.m. featuring the host, the band Balún, and DJ Christian Mártir for a night of music and dancing in celebration of the new season. Tickets for that are on sale now.

La Brega: The Puerto Rican Experience in Eight Songs will be available in both English and Spanish here and on all other platforms where podcasts are available.

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