Not many contemporary records exude feelings of tropical breezes, ocean side romance, and candle-lit fiestas; but the duo Monchy Y Alexandra's songs do just that. By fusing Bachata and Pop, Monchy Y Alexandra have created a sound of their own. Having a traditional sound without sounding dated, as well as mixing in sounds of pop without sounding trendy is no small feat, but Monchy Y Alexandra breathe new life into the genre without taking away the essence of the sound. While many other acts (Xtreme, Toby Love) rely heavily on R&B/Pop sounds, thus sounding like an R&B track which samples Bachata, Monchy Y Alexandra's records have an authentic feel to them.
Monchy Y Alexandra, two natives of Dominican Republic, splashed on the Latin scene in 1999 with their debut "Hoja En Blanco," a song the two claim to be "the song I always brag about is " La Hoja En Blanco" and as I call it " our flag" was the song that "let us to be known internationally."The group continued to have smash hits through 2007 with tracks "Pasion," "Perdidos," "Dos Locos" a track Monchy says, "the song that got us know in places that people did not know what Bachata was", "Te Quiero Igual Que Ayer", and their most recent radio hit "No Es Una Novela."
In addition to chart hits, the duo have achieved the recognition of their peers with multiple wins of Premio Lo Nuestro and Billboard awards, not to mention multiple Grammy award nominations. Now the duo is set for their fourth studio album to be released, and a promo tour to follow. "Cuando Zarpa El Amor," a track which Alexandra calls "a very romantic song" and a track that "is getting a lot of support from out fans" is the album's first single. The song shows definite growth and maturity for the group, but still stays true to the sound that is Monchy Y Alexandra. Alexandra credits many influences for her love of music. "Luis Miguel, Amanda Miguel, and in our country Juan Luis Guerra is a big influence and he is an icon to follow." Just like their smooth breezy sound, Alexandra is a fan of "easy listening music, which help me to relax."
In the days when pop singers, especially females, are expected to be a size two, Alexandra breaks conventions of beauty. By no means a size two, Alexandra still exudes sexiness and class. Despite this, or maybe because of this, Alexandra has achieved worldwide fame. As she puts it, "in this field a pretty face and a great body is important, but as you said I am not a size 2, but thanking God, people like my work and have focus on my talent. "
The duo have made a career out of their signature Bachata sound, but they have also dabbled in other sounds, including Reggeaton and Merengue. Despite achieving chart success with the 2007's Merengue flavored "La Otra," the duo want to remain true to their roots. " Once in a while when we launch new material we try to incorporate other type of music into Bachata,… it is a wonderful experience for us, but we are very focused to keep our self inside our music genre, Bachata, but of course we are not limiting ourselves." Alexandra added, "bottom line we are Bachateros."
After several top ten singles on the Hot Latin Singles charts, five Grammy nominations, Billboard awards and heavy airplay in several countries, as well as here in Atlanta, Monchy Y Alexandra are still critical of themselves. "I think as humans, we try to do everything as perfection, and yes we are very critic about our music, but are constructive critics to help to give our best to out fans", says Alexandra. At the same time, Monchy puts it that it's "great feeling, you have a feeling of satisfaction seeing our names on billboards, you really think on how hard was to get to that point, but to the same time make you think that you have to keep working hard, giving the best of your talent."
Monchy Y Alexandra toured Atlanta in mid-2007 to sold-out shows, and are planning on returning in early 2008. "Our 2008 tour starts in February, and we have many cities to tour in the United States, and we are sure that we are going to include Atlanta to our schedule"For more information on Monchy Y Alexandra check out www.monchyyalexandra.com.
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