Latin Music USA

Traces the rise of Latin Jazz and the explosion of the Mambo and the Cha Cha Cha as they sweep the US from East to West. Latin Music infiltrates R&B and Rock and Roll through the 1960s.

Puerto Ricans and other Latinos in New York reinvent the Cuban Son and the Puerto Rican Plena, adding elements from Soul and Jazz to create Salsa, which becomes a defining rhythm for Latinos the world over.

In the third episode, Mexican Americans in California, Texas, and throughout the Southwest form their own distinctive sounds during the second half of the 20th century. Their music would play an important role in the fight for Chicano civil rights, and in turn launch them from the barrio onto the national stage.

Focuses on the Latin Pop explosion of the turn of the century and the success of artists like Ricky Martin, Gloria Estefan and Shakira in the English-language market. As studios concentrate on star-driven Pop, Latino youth gravitate toward urban fusions -- Spanish Rap and Reggaeton, as well as Rock en Espanol.