Rita Donte’s Single “Paseo de Las Misiones” Comes From Her Forthcoming Album out via Ansonia Records March 28
“Yo nací donde se forjó el tambor:
un navío nigeriano trajo esclavos africanos
y otro barco de asturianos,
que tambien llegó a la isla,
hizo la mezcla y sabor.”
The Cuban singer-songwriter Rita Donte has released the second single off of her forthcoming album “Paseo De Las Misiones” featuring a live session video with all of the musicians featured across the album, including producer Gustavo Guerrero (Augusto Bracho).
“Paseo De Las Misiones” is Donte’s tribute to her ancestors, honoring the African and Spanish lineage that shaped her. Rooted in the pulse of the conga, one of Cuba’s most powerful rhythms, the song embodies her deep connection to Cuban culture and music. With the chorus declaring, “May they bury me with the conga,” it reflects an unshakable passions for rhythm, identity, and the enduring legacy of her heritage.
Rita’s forthcoming album ‘Ritual’ is out on March 28 via Ansonia Records. Based in Baja California, México, Rita’s music blends influences the music she listened to growing up in Cuba, as well as influences from the Son Jarocho tradition from Veracruz in México. Her songs, much like the trajectory of her life, encapsulate the feeling of following the light at the end of the tunnel even if you don’t see it- they’re the magic you create in order to find your way through, whatever it takes.
Donte’s life is a story of perseverance and synchronicity, and the music that the silences in our lives create. Born in Havana, Cuba in 1989, a precarious time for the country, music surrounded her from the beginning. For over 15 years, Donte was enrolled in dance classes and planned on dancing for the rest of her life, though at a certain point the heavy restriction that the practice required proved to be detrimental to her health, and at 20 she decided to focus on her healing. One fateful day, when Donte went to see a nutritionist for a consult, her nutritionist’s husband, Juan Carolos Piñol, a musician, was in the waiting room. He mentioned he had some songs he as looking for a vocalist for and had yet to find the right voice. Donte gave it a shot, and it was then that a new path revealed itself to her.
She continued to sing, and also participated in various theatre productions around the country. “In this process, I discovered that I didn’t need a company or to belong to a group or change myself in order to express myself- the music and dance are inside of me in a way that is very powerful and very free,” says Donte.
In 2014, she was invited to perform at a festival in Mexico, where she ended up staying. She worked with various maestros both in Cuba and Mexico, at one point adopting a Jarana and learning how to play Jarocho music. She met a maestro, Honorio Robledo, and started a Jarocho project with him called Incienso Mulato. “My maestros have helped me unlock new levels over the course of my life” says Donte.
She met prolific musician and producer Gustavo Guerrero (aka Augusto Bracho) shortly before she decided to leave Mexico City after 7 years and move to Baja California. Their artistic relationship blossomed and led to the songs that appear on Ritual, Donte’s album that will be released on March 28 via Ansonia Records.
Press release provided by Locamotive.
