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Music of Venezuela

Samba, choro, forró and bossa nova, Argentine tango and chamamé, Colombian cumbia and vallenato, Venezuelan joropo, Paraguayan harp.

Sung and searched in Spanish. The YouTube button above can run your search in that language.

Roots and traditions

Genres

Joropo was developed by creative artists such as Juan Vicente Torrealba, Ignacio Figueredo, Augusto Bracca, Genaro Prieto, Rafael Angel Aparicio, Eneas Perdomo and Angel Custodio Loyola, who helped to popularize the music throughout the country. Since then a slick, contemporary form of pop-llanera has developed which has earned the scorn of some purists who perceive it as stale and watered-down. Some singers, such as Isabelita Aparicio, Adilia Castillo, Lorenzo Herrera, Simon Diaz, Mario Suarez, Edith Salcedo, Fernando Tovar, Miguelito Rios, Magdalena Sanchez, Rafael Montaño, Reyna Lucero, Vidal Colmenares, Armando Martinez, Raquel Castaños, Scarlett Linares, Cristina Maica, Luicel Mora, Emily Galaviz, José Catire Carpio, Cristobal Jimenez, Juan de los Santos Contreras (El Carrao de Palmarito), Rafael Montaño, and Reynaldo Armas have maintained a huge following over the years. In a similar vein, there is also neo-folklore, which takes traditional music and arranges it in an electronic style.

Contemporary music

Salsa music arrived in Venezuela in the latter half of the 20th century, primarily influenced by the vibrant salsa scenes of Cuba and Puerto Rico. As the genre spread across Latin America, Venezuelan musicians embraced and adapted it, developing a distinct local sound. By the late 1970s, Venezuela had become not just a hub for salsa consumption but also a key center for its production, with new groups emerging that reflected the country's unique cultural and musical identity. One of the pioneering salsa groups in Venezuela was Dimensión Latina, founded in 1973. Known for their tight brass arrangements and infectious rhythms, the band played a crucial role in popularizing salsa within the country. Their collaboration with renowned vocalist Oscar D'León, who has been credited with bringing salsa to "all corners of the world," cemented Venezuela's place in the international salsa scene. In 1980, he released Llorarás, a salsa classic that became a defining song of his career and Venezuelan salsa.

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Radio from Venezuela

Music only, no news or talk. Stations that play the local tradition come first, then the most listened. They play in the corner of the page.

Station directory by Radio Browser Streams come from each station's own server.