Lucecita Benítez

Luz Esther Benítez Rosado (born July 22, 1942), also known as Lucecita, is a Puerto Rican singer, part of the country's new wave popular music. Born in Bayamon, a large city in Puerto Rico, she participated in amateur radio shows. Her early success earned her the nicknames "La Reina de la Juventud" and "La Reina de la Nueva Ola". In April 1969, when Benítez won the Festival de la Cancion Latina (Festival of the Latin Song) in Mexico. Her rendition of "Genesis" received the highest points (223) in the festival. Between 1969 and 1990, Benítez was the local artist to cover most music genres, from traditional Puerto Rican music to rock, she played a role in the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra's early pop music performances. Interested in singing, composing, dancing and playing the guitar from a young age, she quickly developed an interest in songs that were romantic and had a social message. Regarded as a modern singer and early in her career a notable member of the nueva canción movement, Benítez began performing in television and radio shows early in her life, with her first artistic appearance taking place when she was 9 years old. Travelling abroad to New York, she recorded her first productions, before gaining popularity in her native Puerto Rico during the early 1960s. She was featured at the Teenager's Matinee along other youth performers, signing at locales like the Hiram Bithorn Stadium. Benítez joined Leonor Constanzo at Caribelandia, a show held at Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic that became a hit after it aired through Radio Santo Domingo. She continued performing there for a month. By August 1964, she was regarded as the "revelation of the year" and lauded for her scenic presence. In September 1964, Benítez's single "Un Lugar Para Los Dos" climbed to the first place in the local hit parade. The song "Ya No Te Puedo Olvidar" was released along this song and also gathered airtime, reaching number 8. Lucecita Benítez, along Chucho Avellanet and Al Zeppy were brought in to WKAQ-TV to appear in a segment known as El club canta la juventud. When she was starting, Benítez acted along Gladys Rodríguez in Como se llama esta flor. She also appeared in the telenovela La Loba along Johanna Rosaly. When Felipe Pirela came to Puerto Rico, she performed along him at theaters. Caribelandia was brought to Puerto Rico by Tommy Muñiz, who had it aired through WAPA-TV, WOLE-TV and WSUR-TV on September 29, 1964. By November, both of her singles remained in the Puerto Rico Hit Parade. In February 1965, Benítez traveled to Venezuela for the first time, earning positive reviews from the newspaper La República. An LP record released in 1965 included three hits, "Entonces él me besó", "Dile" and "Yo te Perdono". In June 1965, Benítez won La Estrella De Oro, an award given to the most popular foreign artists in Venezuela. She performed at the Fiestas Patronales at Cidra and Comerío,drawing crowds. Meanwhile, Avellanet released the cheek in tongue single "Lucecita", a comedic homage. Benítez joined Myrta Silva's musical titled Vida Latina Extravaganza, starring opposite Teddy Trinidad. In August 1965, she headlined Teenage Command Performance along Julio Ángel. Benítez also participated in miscellaneous events, such as the inauguration of the Country Club Shopping Plaza and entertaining the foreign athletes during the Central American and Caribbean Games. In September 1965, Benítez released "Vete con Ella", "El Club del Clan", "El Rebelde" and "Vuelve Ya", all of which made the Puerto Rico Hit Parade. In October 1965, she tied with Sonia Noemí in a musical debate held at New York. A cover of Duo Dinámico's "Esos Ojitos Negros" was released by Benítez during the summer of 1966, becoming a hit. This was followed by the LP "Olé Lucecita!", which became the top selling album on the island led by the single "Al Lado". She was part of an homage to Rafael Hernández Marín held at the Festival Anual de la Música Puertorriqueña. In November 1966, Benítez acted along Braulio Castillo and Arturo Correa in the theatre production Operación Tiburón at Teatro Modelo and Teatro Matienzo. She received an homage from the Asociación Recreativa de Vista Alegre, in her native town. Benítez’s music was featured in the film Machuchal: Agente "O" en New York, a film that debuted in December 1966. In February 1967, she joined more than a dozen artists and groups participated in an event for actress Laura Martell after she underwent cardiac surgery. In March, Benítez traveled to Chicago. Benítez won the Yunque de Oro Award at the Popularity Contest sponsored by Producciones Rabelo & Ledesma. Benítez continued making appearances in television, being featured in programs like Canta la Juventud and El Show de las 12. She was among the artists sponsored by Banco Popular de Puerto Rico and Rexach Construction Co. for their activities. While Canta la Juventud continued its run at Telemundo, Benítez and Avellanet appeared in musical shows in other time slots, including Marcando el Ritmo. In December 1967, the LP Quién Soy was released. That same month Benítez received an award from WKVM after defeating Raphael in a musical debate. She was part of Idolos del 67, a concert that closed the year at Hiram Bithorn Stadium. Benítez was featured in a homage concert held in honor of Shorty Castro at Mayagüez. She was mentioned in an anthropological article published by Eugenio Fernández Méndez in Puerto Rico Illustrado, where the influence of multiple sources on Puerto Rican culture is discussed. She joined several artists in a "homage to the people" held at Parque Sixto Escobar in May 1968. She was among the top three local artists in popularity in April and May 1968. When Trans-Tel Corporation inaugurated a Spanish-language channel in New York, Benítez was recruited to appear in its programming. She won a trophy as the most popular artist of the year from Producciones Rabelo y Ledesma. Beginning in June 1968, she headlined the Show de Lucecita Benítez which aired in Telemundo at 12:15 p.m. as part of the Show del Mediodía. The show was produced by Eddie Miró with choreography by Ita Medina and was retransmitted in New York Wednesdays on Channel 47. She also appeared in Paquito Cordero's film El curandero del pueblo (1968), starring along Adalberto Rodríguez. When Raphael returned for another tour of Puerto Rico, Benítez was recruited to perform. In December 1968, she received a trophy after winning another musical debate. The Show de Lucecita Benítez was awarded the 1968 Premio Agüeybaná for best 15-minute musical show. She helped the Asociación del Corazón raise funds in an event sponsored by WKAQ. In April 1969, Benítez entered the first edition of the Festival Mundial de la Cancion Latina, where she represented Puerto Rico along Danny Rivera. The festival was held at the Teatro Ferrocarrilero in Mexico. She participated with two songs, "Génesis" by G.V. Lloveras and "Energía de mis manos", by M. de Jesús. By winning the second eliminatory with 222 points (29 over second place Tony Renis), Benítez broke a trend of dominance by European performers with previous experience in similar events, which was regarded as a surprise. She also won as best dressed performer, also sporting an afro that symbolized her ethnic background. In the final she scored 228 to win the competition, a medal for Best Singer and an award for Best Melody, Dekalafe of Brasil finished second with 210 points. Pedro Rivera Toledo's arrangement of Genesis also won as the best arrangement, although the orchestra was conducted by Jose S. Marroquin. Benítez was contracted by RCA Records for their Spanish label, the first of Paquito Cordero's artists to sign with the multinational. Benítez received official recognitions from the Governor of Puerto Rico, the Senate and the House of Representatives. Days later and still in Mexico, she transmitted a show dedicated to Puerto Rico via satellite following the festival. Both Benítez and Rivera