Carlos Ponce Also Asked To Co-Host
HISPANIC HERITAGE AWARDS GALA At The Kennedy Center
Taking Place In Washington D.C. on September 20th & Airing Nationwide October 12th on NBC, Ponce Will Be The Evening’s Co-Host, and Will Perform In The Finale
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Ponce is one of the least vain and self-conscious entertainers I’ve encountered. There’s something supremely refreshing about his willingness to be honest with his statements… He is more then just a set of clear blue eyes or a sexy raspy voice.. I left Carlos with one last question, How come I never read about your passion for the trait or
about your artistic beliefs??? – ‘ Nobody ever asked’- URBAN LATINO Cover Story- Aug/Sept

DISCOVER THE REAL CARLOS PONCE
IN URBAN LATINO COVER STORY
Disregard Pop Star Preconceptions And Find An Intellectual
& ‘Refreshing’ Look At The Craft Of Acting and Songwriting

Carlos Ponce
Portrait of the artist as a young man
Urban Latino Magazine - August /September 2002
By: Dennis Gereritz

Carlos Ponce, Latin pop heartthrob, is hunched over a desk at the offices of his record label, EMI Latin. His best friend and brother Francisco “Chopo” is next to him. He glances up and offers me a seat. He seems as enthused as I was to get this interview going.

To be honest, I was not a big fan of his. To me, he was a prime example of a manufacture Latin pop star that used his time in Univision to get a record deal. But my perceptions of him changed once I got to know him.

“I know people doubt me, some don’t take my work seriously, but they just don’t have the balls to say it to my face.” I did. I told him that I thought he was put together by the Estefans. But after my statement there was no awkwardness. I was being honest and he appreciated it. “Before people know who you are, they always treat you like shit. And then you always have to kind of somehow battle through that,” he pauses, “I bet you if I sing first and then act, there would be less people doubting me. Ten years later I’m still dealing with people not believing in my talent.

As the tape recorder crawled along,, the lines separating Carlos Ponce the man, the singer-songwriter and the actor started to blur. His instincts took over and his thoughts on the past decade in the spotlight became clearer. Needless to say, the boring, always-asked questions were put aside, as it became evident that my earlier pronouncement was erred.

“It’s always been my ambition to make my audience realize that my acting and my music simply aspire to say something,” Ponce admits. Three albums, and three novelas later, Ponce is still perceived by many to be an assembled entertainer, a cut and a pate kind of performer. Since his last album, he’s bounced around making guest acting and celebrity appearances, seemingly, becoming one of those people who are famous just for being famous.

Born in Santurce but raised in Humacao, Puerto Rico, Ponce is one of the least vain and self-conscious entertainers I’ve encountered. There’s something supremely refreshing about his willingness to be honest, loud and almost insensitive with his statements. As our interviewed continued, Carlos Ponce started to take shape. He is more than just a set of clear blue eyes or, like my girlfriends like to call, a sexy raspy voice.

After Years of being on TV, the opportunity to debut as a singer presented itself in 1997. By 1998, his self-titled CD was topping the charts and winning awards. But it’s his latest release, simply titled Ponce, that should garner him the respect he so desires.

A lively pop-rock effort, Carlos sounds newly confident, at ease and in control. A decade later, carlos finally sounds like he is really singing to his audience, instead of just performing material written to him. “ This is my best album by far. It’s really cool shit that doesn’t sound like product. This album was not just a matter of knowing how to play any particular rhythm within any particular music expression. It’s a matter of playing a certain note, a certain instrument when the what, when, and how, in the language, the feeling, and the intention of the lyrics, are at the right point.”

“As for this forth album being in English,” Ponce adds, “ I think a lot of my fans in the U.S speak a lot more English than Spanish. I’m not sure when…I don’t want to say “cross over,” because I’ve done ‘Bella Note’ for Disney and even acted in Beverly Hills 90210 and 7th Heaven, so my feet are wet when it comes to the American market, but…I’m taking my time when it comes to my album en ingles, but it’s not going to go away. I do have some stuff written in English and when good music is there I don’t think there is a need for a specific time to release it.”

“I think at this stage in my career I can’t afford to be complacent, to get into a state of passivity. I feel that strength within me, and that finally I’m the one, who controls my own life. It’s the fruit of all the sleepless nights. The fruit of all my past frustrations.”

He was also surprisingly candid when asked about other singer-songwriters, “ look, there are certain composers that are talented and successful. Off the record I will tell you the names; I used to look up to them as fellow songwriters, but some of these guys lyrics have become so intricate that is becoming increasingly hard to listen to their music-I don’t want to be educated by a song, I don’t want to have a thesaurus while listening to the music! I don’t see the need for fancy words, for endless alliteration. Music should not be educational, but meaningful. A song is magical when it touches your heart, not your brain.”

Ponce spoke at length about his time on Univision’s ‘Control,’, “Speaking of Frustrations, My life is a trip. I hosted shows on television for about six years and never got an Emmy as a host. I mean I busted my ass!! Day and night, worked hard, asked the hard questions, did all I could do and never got recognition I thought I deserved as a host. But, I put a public announcement together. I wrote it, shot it with a digital cam, and edited the piece fairly quickly. Nothing fancy, very simple and Taaa daa! I get the coveted Emmy not as a host but as a producer. That’s my life! My success arrives from unlikely sources, from weird places”.

The same thing can be said of “Rezo”, one of his signature songs that catapulted to the top of the charts just three weeks after it’s release and remained on top for next nine weeks. “That song I wrote because I wanted to feel like I was part of the record. When I listen to ‘Rezo’ today I can honestly say that I hate that song.”

He Pauses, “I mean I love it, but as a composer there are so many mistakes in it. Certain words don’t rhyme; the fluidity of the rhythm and of the song could be better. Still, it is the song that opened many doors for me.” He smiles. “Life is just full of surprises.”

“Some people say I’ve been lucky. I don’t believe in luck. Have been blessed but not lucky. I think that scenarios in life surround you, and at some point you will find yourself in the middle of one. You work hard to get ready for the moment, but even more important to you is when it has arrived. That’s what I do, I’m always ready when that door opens, I want to be the first one in, Always ready.”

It almost seems that Ponce looks at acting as an escape from the image he has created. “When I act, the rolls I choose are not really a conscious choice of my real life character elements. The rolls are more a choice of the best rolls available, and a desire to participate in certain projects. I would love to act in a movie where a character has this wild element that must be balanced with reason.” Carlos affirms that a roll like that could have a profound effect on him. “Sometimes when you read the script certain traits of the character jump at you. A character like that could make me question my own approach to knowing who I am, what I am, to knowing about my spiritual side.”

Life is a constant struggle, life is freedom, what is art? “I am not an artist. I do what I do, so I don’t have to be ashamed to be alive. I mean, you try to find a reason to live or something. I mean, if I go out and sing in the backyard, I feel better. I feel like I’m not wasting my time, and somehow you can have pride about yourself in some way.” Inspiration. “No one owns inspiration, lyrics are like ether, just there. It can easy or really hard to borrow inspiration. Once you capture it, you’ve got to let it go. There is no net, no formula, hat’s why I don’t think I get inspired but I write what life tells me. I guess I am a good listener…sometimes. –You can’t put your name on inspiration and say that you own it.”

“I think that art is good for humanity, it’s like breathing. And I think one reason we feel art, is… I mean, art is the echo of humanity, an introspective look into our selves. That’s why it is universal. That’s why people like Arabic songs even though they don’t understand the lyrics, why an abstract painting can be beautiful.” Like random lightning rods, Carlos is talking about anything and everything. I left Carlos with one last question, How come I never read about your passion for the trait, or about your artistic beliefs?

“Nobody ever asked.”