ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: MARC ANTONY
TAPE_NUMBER: EN9939
IN_TIME: 11:16:24 (Tape 2)
LENGTH: 02:37
SOURCES: APTN/COLUMBIA RECORDS
RESTRICTIONS: All No access Internet, Music/performance rights must be cleared.
FEED:
SCRIPT: xfa
STORY:MARC ANTHONY
LOCATION:NEW YORK
DATE:SEPTEMBER 28TH '99
Salsa superstar, MARC ANTHONY released his first Englishlanguage album with a bang on Tuesday when he appeared in three separate record stores across America on the same day.
After kicking off at midnight in Miami, Anthony greeted fans in New York at noon and rounded the day off with an appearance at a major record store in Los Angeles at 9pm.
The first single "I NEED TO KNOW" off his selftitled album is already in the Top Ten on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart and given the current obsession for all things Latin, Anthony looks set to build on his early success and conquer millions of hearts across America.
But the PuertoRican hearthrob is no stranger to stardom. He's already sold out New York's most sought after venue, Madison Square Garden not once but twice, starred in a Broadway musical (Paul Simon's "The Capeman"), appeared in significant roles in several movies, including MARTIN SCORCESE'S soon to be released "Bringing Out the Dead," and sold more records throughout the world than any other salsa singer.
In places where Spanish is spoken, and especially in his native Puerto Rico, Anthony is regarded with a respect that approaches reverence.
Other tracks included on the record are "Am I the Only One," and "My Baby You." which he wrote for his sixyearold daughter, Arianna.
Thirtyone yearold Anthony came to New York with his parents as a child. His given name is Marco Antonio Munizhe was named by his father, Felipe, a musician, after a famous Mexican singerbut he became Marc Anthony to avoid becoming confused with the older man.
Just six years ago he was singing house music in dance clubs in New York City, and doing background vocals on records with a band called the Latin Rascals The Rascals' producer, LITTLE LOUIS VEGA. asked Anthony to be his singer in 1991 and The Rascals signed up with Atlantic Records.
Although none of their records were especially successful, one song, "Rebel," was a hit in the clubs. It occasionally still turns up in secondhand record stores in Manhattan.
In 1992, the Latin percussionist and bandleader TITO PUENTE asked Vega and Anthony to open his revue at Madison Square Garden. After singing before such an enormous crowd, Anthony lost his appetite for appearing in small clubs.
When he was a small boy, his father would invite musicians to the family's apartment on Saturday nights and they would set up in the kitchen and play half the night.
Anthony's father would put him on the table to sing. "I had two sets," Anthony says. "Six and eight." His repertoire consisted of a single song, "El Zolsar," about a kind of bird that lives in Puerto Rico. "He had only that one song," his father says, "but he could belt it." Growing up, Anthony listened mostly to rhythm & blues and to rock. Several months into his hiatus, he was driving in a car in
Manhattan and he heard a song on the radio by a singer named Juan Gabriel. "It was called 'Hasta Que Te Conoci,'" Anthony says, "which means, 'Until I Met You,' and it ripped me apart. I don't know why and I don't want to know why. I called my manager and asked if I could record this in salsa."
Acclaim arrived so suddenly in Anthony's life that he describes its appearance by saying, "I saw my old life shattered." In 1993, he recorded the song he'd heard in the car. His manager then sent him to perform at a Latin music convention called Radio y Musica.
Later that day, he appeared on a television show called "Carnival Internacional," which was broadcast all over the world. "That changed my life forever," he says. "I mean in one day. It seemed like years before I was ever in New York again. I was booked and booked and bookedPanama, Ecuador, Argentina, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Miami, Los Angeles. I woke up once in the middle of the night in a
hotel and didn't know where I was. I called my brother's room and said, 'Where are we?' He said, 'Look out the window.' All I could see was a city at night. Tokyo. I thought, 'How did this happen?'"
Anthony was the first actor PAUL SIMON cast in his controversial musical, "The Capeman." Simon had gone to a record store and asked for the records of the
best young salsa singer. "They gave me two or three guys," he says, "and I listened to his and thought, This is good. In fact, really good. In fact, he was clearly the best." During the musical's rehearsals, Anthony was releasing his third salsa album, "Contra la Corriente" (Against the Grain) which was certified RIAA gold out of the box. Because of his obligation to the musical he wasn't able to
promote the record, so as a farewell of a kind, he gave a concert at Madison Square Garden. No salsa singer had ever gone into the Garden except as a member of a revue. Anthony sold every seat in the house, and a year later did it again.
Having sung exclusively in Spanish, except in "The Capeman," Anthony has managed to remain relatively undiscovered in America. With the release of "Marc Anthony" he is likely, once again, to see his life change once again.
For further information please contact Columbia Records online: http://www.columbiarecords.com or on +1 212 833 8000.
SHOTLIST: PAN EXTR RECORD STORE ; GVS CHEERING FANS ; SOT FAN ; SOT FAN ; CLIP VIDEO 'I NEED TO KNOW' ; ARRIVAL MARC ANTONY ; CA FANS ; GVS ANTHONY ON STAGE ; SOT ANTONY ; GVS ANTHONY AT SIGNING ; SOT ANTONY ; CLIP VIDEO ?