Four time Grammy Award Winner; featured motion picture performer; doctorate of arts & sciences; Internationally acclaimed world wide performer; there are not enough adjectives to describe Tito Puente.
His hit records and arrangements have become classics in Latin music as well as popular rock. Carlos Santana recorded two of his hits, while jazz greats such as Buddy Morrow and Woody Herman collaborated with The King. He has a "star" in the Hollywood Walk of Fame, right in front of the Chinese Theater and two colleges, SUNY at Old Westbury and Hunter College, have both bestowed the King with honorary doctorates for his work in music and his help to young artists through his Tito Puente Scholarship Fund.
He is also the Latino Ambassador of Good Will receiving numerous keys to Cities nationally and around the world.
But more important, his good will, talent and spirit have propelled him to bridge racial, cultural, and generational gaps. His concerts are attended by a colorfully diverse mix of people from every race, age, and religion. His fans range from celebrities such as Bill Cosby, to young Japanese students who watch him avidly when he is in Japan or at the Blue Note. His recordings range from collector's items classics to cutting edge hits.
His arrangements are sought after globally. His inspiration is boundless. To promoters, a Tito Puente booking is an sure sell-out. To dancers, he is a guaranteed workout. To music lovers, he is the master. He began dancing in contests with his sister when he was only five years old. He was later known as a musical child prodigy as a young boy , growing up in "El Barrio" (East Harlem). He went through the Army, studied at Julliard and was named the King of Latin Music when he beat out the Mambo King Perez Prado in a public contest of bands. He has collaborated and cultivated some of the best singers and musicians of Latin music. He has accompanied Gloria Estefan at the 1994 Grammy Awards. And his Scholarship Fund for talented young people has grown into a critical gift for students as well as a major concert event which in 1994 was performed at the Apollo Theater in a tribute to Dizzy Gillespie, Mario Bauzii and Muchito.
