Michael Jackson was a versatile artist with a lot of genres under his belt, but one arena the king of pop never really seemed to touch was Latin. But soon, the two unlikely music arenas will be merged with as Jackson gets a salsa flavored makeover with the new Tony Succar curated Unity: The Latin Tribute to Michael Jackson, featuring Jean Rodriguez, Tito Nieves, Kevin Ceballo and more.
Born from a salsa remix of Jackson's siganature hit "Thriller," producer Succar found more in common with Jackson and Latin music than one might imagine. "The one thing that stood out in Michael's music was love. The reality was unity," Succar said in a press release, "I also wanted the title to stand for something: a real marriage between Latin roots and American pop culture, and to help keep Michael's legacy alive."
The result is something that shouldn't work but really does, as demonstrated by the album's lead single, "Smooth Criminal." The inherent funkiness of Jackson's original music remains, but there are new notes of trumpets and Latino flavor that compliment Jean Rodriguez's voice.
Check out the tracklisting for Unity below:
01: I Want You Back (featuring Tito Nieves)
02: Billie Jean (featuring Jean Rodriguez)
03: Man in the Mirror (featuring Kevin Ceballo)
04: Sera Que No Me Amas (featuring Michael Stuart)
05: Earth Song (featuring India)
06: Human Nature (featuring Jon Secada)
07: Todo Mi Amor Eres Tu (featuring Obie Bermúdez & Jennifer Peña)
08: Black or White (featuring Kevin Ceballo)
09: Smooth Criminal (featuring Jean Rodriguez)
10: They Don't Care About Us (featuring Kevin Ceballo)
11: Thriller (featuring Kevin Ceballo)
12: You Are Not Alone (featuring Tito Nieves and Tito Nieves Jr.)
Unity will be released on April 14.
