L.A. City Hall honors Boleros de Noche concert series on 10th anniversary

On June 26, the city of Los Angeles declared August 1 "Dia del Bolero," honoring the 10th anniversary of Boleros de Noche, the annual concert series that musician Roberto Carlos launched in 2015 to showcase Latin American bolero music. City Councilmember Nithya Raman presented Carlos with the honor, noting the series has drawn thousands of people across the city over the past decade.

Bolero is a slow tempo, romantic ballad style that originated in Cuba before spreading across Latin America, shaped in the genre's early 20th century years by the Cuban group Trio Matamoros, Mexican composer Agustin Lara, Puerto Rican artist Rafael Hernandez and Ecuadorian singer Julio Jaramillo. The style saw a resurgence in the 1980s and '90s through Mexican stars Juan Gabriel and Luis Miguel, and UNESCO recognized bolero as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December 2023.

This year's anniversary edition features performances at the Ford on August 1 by Puerto Rican singer iLe, formerly of Calle 13, and the Los Angeles bolero trio Voz Bohemia, continuing a run that has included sold out shows at the Ford with artists like Gaby Moreno, Marisoul and the trio Los Panchos, plus a 2025 debut at Chicago's Symphony Center. In recent years the genre's modern wave has included artists such as Mon Laferte, Romeo Santos, Adrian Quesada and Kali Uchis, with Quesada releasing two bolero inspired albums that mix the genre with psychedelic rock.

At Friday's ceremony, Carlos performed several songs with his group Los Rebeldes Románticos, including the classic bolero "Sabor a Mí." He said Boleros de Noche began as a way to let audiences "speak in Spanish, to feel recognized" through music that had too often become background noise at weddings and quinceañeras, adding that many of the musicians who carried bolero to Los Angeles were undocumented immigrants.

Carlos did not detail specific plans for Boleros de Noche beyond this year's Ford concert, saying only that he hopes the series keeps expanding bolero's presence across the city the way it has since its first show at an Echo Park art gallery in 2015. Given the recent attacks on Latino communities he referenced at the ceremony, he said he wants the events to keep functioning as a safe, welcoming gathering place going forward.