I’m learning Spanish, and would like to know some artists that I should check out. Do any of you have any suggestions? I’m looking for both male and female artists, thanks a lot!
Me gusto Bruce Springsteen y Paul Simon.
Yuck yuck yuck…may was I asking for that one. :smack:
Buena Vista Social Club. Get this first - it’s a group of Cuban jazz all stars who are in their 70s (and older).
If the search feature was working correctly, I could find you some other threads with more options. 
As it is, what type of music interests you? Latin rythms (and there are many different ones)? Pop or rock, but in Spanish? Heavy metal? Rap?
Some folk/protest music singers, like Mercedes Sosa and Silvio Rodríguez, have many songs that are slow and perhaps easier to understand (at least what they’re saying) than other faster paced songs.
Personally, I like Juan Luis Guerra (and his group 440), from the Dominican Republic. His merengues and salsas are rather more poetic than the usual run. My favorite album is probably Ojalá que llueva Café (1990), but I also like Bachata Rosa, Areíto, and Fogaraté. (I don’t have his most recent one.)
Buena Vista Social Club is great, as are some of its members (Compay Segundo, Elias Ochoa, Ibrihim Ferrer), but the Cuban slang can make some of the songs a little difficult to decipher.
I’m looking mainly for female artists actually, as I’ve found it pretty easy to find male artists and bands.
The genre for these female artists, I don’t really care. Pop, rock, Alt-whatever, just whatever you can think of.
By the way, why the change to the forums here?
Mercedes Sosa, for folk/protest music. Other good ones are Violeta Parra, if you can find her recordings, and Tania Libertad.
Celia Cruz for old time salsa and Cuban music. For 70’s salsa, also check out La Lupe.
Shakira for pop/rock, look for her two first Spanish albums. Actually, look for the first one. Antología, I think…
Selena for more pop songs.
Aterciopelados for rock, too. Colombian rock group, man and woman.
Ana Torroja or Mecano. Torroja was Mecano’s frontwoman, good 80’s rock from Spain. She’s now a solist.
Oreja de Van Gogh, also for pop/rock. Also from Spain, and also has a frontwoman.
Los Super Seven is a good group with their first album covering traditional Mexican songs and their second involving more equatorial stuff.
It is also made up of a lot of famous singers: Freddy Fender, Los Lobos’ Hidalgo and theotherguywhosnameiforgot.
Speaking of Los Lobos, you can find fantastic Spanish songs on their albums, but they are mixed in with various rock, metal, country, and blues songs.
(Los Lobos plays the most varied music you’ll ever hear from one band!)
They did do one all-Spanish album: La Pistola y La Corazon.
My favorite is Super Seven’s Canto.
David Byrne has got some Brazilian compilations out there that are good.
Para bailar La Bamba, te necesita una poca de gracia.
Those would be in Portuguese.
Well, I don’t speak spanish and not trying to learn but I really like the following spanish speaking acts:
Ozomatli - pop, hiphop, funk
Puya- hard pop/rock funk
Molotov- rock
I would recommend Lila Downs. She is the daughter of a Mexican mother and a Welsh father. She sings songs from many different regions in Mexico, both in Spanish and in Indian dialects. The stylistic differences between the different regions are significant. We saw her in concert a few months ago and were knocked out by her power.
ok, I’m from Mexico, so you can trust me on this.
Soda Stereo.
They are from Argentina and are considered one of the best spanish rock bands ever. Typical song: De Musica Ligera
Maná
From Mexico, very good folkish-rock music. Typical Song: Angel De Amor
Jaguares (prev. Caifanes)
Mexican rock band much like maná Typical Song: Afuera
Juanes
He’s new. And very good. Typical Song: Fijate Bien
Café Tacuba
Another mexican folk-rock band. Typical Song: Dejate Caer
Moénia
Mexican techno-rock band Typical Song: Volcán
Los Fabulosos Cadillacs
Argenitian Rock band. Typical Song: El Matador
Los Aterciopelados
I don’t know exactly where they are from but they are pretty good. Typical Song: El Estuche
I suggest you get the soundtrack to the movie Amores Perros called “Tributo a Amores Perros”. Its two discs with songs of about twenty artists and bands. There’s a little bit of everything in it.
Aterciopelados is from Colombia.
And another great song from Café Tacuba is Las flores. And from Maná, Cuando los ángeles lloran or Como un perro (different songs, of course). They also show their different styles.
I can recommend David Bisbal and Alejandro Sanz. Check 'em out on MTV Espanol.
Lotofire by Mexico City’s Ely Guerra. If you like Morcheeba or Lamb, you’ll like this album.
I’ll second Los Fabulosos Cadillacs… also El Vez and Los Straightjackets do the occasional song in Spanish.
ABBA did two Spanish albums: Oro and Mas Oro.
There is a Mexican singer named Rocio Banquels whose voice is amazing.
Pop over to www.eur.com/musicals and search by language for Spanish cast CDS. Quite a few.
Thanks a lot everyone, keep it coming.