Salvador Santana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Salvador Santana
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Salvador Santana
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| Background information | |
| Born | May 22, 1983 Marin County, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Rock, Electronic Music, Hip hop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, spoken word artist, songwriter, and composer |
| Instruments | Electronic keyboard and piano |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Labels | Various Business |
| Associated acts | Santana, Money Mark, Del the Funky Homosapien, GZA |
Salvador Santana, born on May 22, 1983, is a talented musician. He sings, writes songs, and creates music. He mainly plays the electronic keyboard and piano. Salvador comes from a very musical family! His dad is Carlos Santana, a famous guitarist who has won many Grammy awards. His mom is Deborah Santana, a writer and activist.
His family's musical talent goes back even further. His grandfather on his mom's side, Saunders King, was a well-known American blues musician. His grandfather on his dad's side, Jose Santana, was a violinist and led a mariachi band.
Salvador started playing piano when he was just five years old. He learned from a teacher named Marcia Miget. Later, he studied music at the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts High School. He also learned to play percussion, especially the tympani drum. He even played piano in his school's award-winning jazz band.
In 1999, Salvador worked with his father on a song called "El Farol." This song was on the album Supernatural and won a Grammy award.
Salvador studied Musical Arts at the California Institute of the Arts in Santa Clarita, California. This is where he met his wife, Megan.
Contents
Salvador Santana Band (2004–2008)
In 2004, Salvador started his own group called the Salvador Santana Band. The band members were Emerson Cardenas (bass), Quincy McCrary (vocals, keyboards), Woody Aplanalp (guitar), Tony Austin (drums), and José Espinoza (sax, percussion, vocals).
Together, they played a cool new style of music. It mixed parts of hip hop and jazz. Salvador's music was inspired by his grandfathers, Saunders King and Jose Santana, and his father, Carlos. He also loved jazz artists like John Coltrane and Herbie Hancock, and hip-hop groups like Atmosphere and Ozomatli.
Keyboard City Album (2008–2010)
In 2009, Salvador went into the studio to record his first solo album, Keyboard City. He worked with famous underground musicians like Del the Funky Homosapien, Money Mark (from the Beastie Boys), and GZA to help make the album.
Salvador described Keyboard City as "a mix of my favorite music." He said it was the best of what had influenced his life, all coming together in a new way. The idea for the album came after a remix project in 2008. Del the Funky Homosapien remixed a song by the Salvador Santana Band called "Hella Tight." The great teamwork between Salvador and Del, and the fresh sound of the remixes, inspired the new direction for Keyboard City.
In late 2009, several remix MP3s of the album's main song, "Keyboard City," were released online. Internet DJs like The Hood Internet and electronic musician Dan Deacon made these remixes. Both remixes featured vocals by GZA. These remixes became very popular. They appeared on well-known music websites like Brooklyn Vegan and Pitchfork Media.
Keyboard City was released on February 2, 2010, through Quannum Projects. Keyboard Magazine praised the album, saying it was like "Funkadelic and the Meters had a love child." They even predicted it would be remembered as one of the best neo-funk records of the decade. Allmusic.com gave the album 3.5 out of 5 stars, and Spin Magazine gave it 3 out of 5 stars.
Music and Message (2011–2014)
Salvador and his bands have performed at many big music events. These include the Montreux Jazz Festival, the Bonaroo Music and Arts Festival, and the New Orleans Jazz Festival. Salvador has also worked on other projects. He was part of the Hymns for Peace DVD in 2004. He also appeared on his father Carlos Santana’s Corazón Live in Guadalajara DVD in 2013.
In 2013, Salvador released a six-song album called Rise Up. Songs like "Mi Tesoro," "Into The Light," and "Rise Up" have a powerful and broad sound. Other songs like "Ain’t Enough," "It's On," and "Gimme Your Best" are upbeat and energetic.
The song "Rise Up" is featured in an award-winning film called School of My Dreams. This documentary is about the Daraja Academy in Kenya, which is a free high school for girls. Salvador was inspired to write "Rise Up" after visiting South Africa in 2006. He went with Artists for a New South Africa (ANSA) and met President Nelson Mandela. This experience made him want to write music with a positive message.
For Salvador, making music is not about becoming famous. It's about helping people feel good with kindness, love, and positive energy every day. He says, "The main ingredient to my inspiration and creative drive is joy. I want to use music in a positive way and give back to people in need. There can never be enough people who do that."
In 2014, Salvador was asked by producer Gerry Gallagher to record with famous Latin rock musicians El Chicano. He also recorded with other artists like Alphonse Mouzon and Brian Auger. Salvador played keyboards on a song called "Sunday Kind Of Mood." This song is part of Gallagher's album that came out in 2019.
Recent Projects (2015–Present)
In August 2015, Salvador released his first full-length album, Fantasy Reality. He also joined his father, Carlos Santana, as a special guest on the Corazon tour.
In 2017, Salvador recorded a song with Juanes for an album called Quiero Creedence. This album featured cover songs by the band Creedence Clearwater Revival.
Salvador's most recent project is an album called RMXKNZ. He created this album with fellow musician Asdrubal "Asdru" Sierra from the band Ozomatli. Salvador described the album as "a love letter to L.A., Latinx culture and what we call La Resistencia, the Resistance." This means it's about showing love for Los Angeles, Latin American culture, and standing up for what you believe in.
See also
In Spanish: Salvador Santana para niños
