Popular proudly presents “Ellas, Mujeres en la Música,” the 29^th music special. This year Popular has collaborated with filmmaker Noelia Quintero Herencia, who helped capture the influence women have on the music in and outside of Puerto Rico. The special recognizes the special contributions that women make.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211118006363/en/

Popular Music Special 2021 - Ellas, Mujeres en la Música (Photo: Business Wire)

"It is my first year working on this project. The project has been interesting, has presented some key lessons and unique challenges. Each music special is different for example, a message or single narrative must be conveyed in one hour with incredibly talented artists and the project must be completed in three months. This year we wanted to showcase women and their impact on the music of Puerto Rico through the story of a character who lost her inspiration to sing, portrayed by Isel Rodríguez. It is not until she visits a building called "El Regalo" that she discovers, through the singers and their stories, the inspiration to be able to capture her passion for singing," said Noelia Quintero, director and scriptwriter of the musical special.

The music special will air on Sunday, December 5 at 8:00 p.m. on Puerto Rico's leading television channels. Also on Sunday, December 5, it will air at 8:00 p.m. (EST) on Mega TV Orlando and Wapa America and on Saturday, December 11 on Telemundo New York at 11:30 a.m. (EST). Popular will once again broadcast the production for 24 hours through the website popular.com/ellas.

"It is an honor for us to create the music special. This year in particular we wanted to further our commitment to the empowerment of women,” said María Cristina González, executive vice president of the Corporate Communications and Public Affairs group. “Over the last 29 years, thousands of people have worked to bring these music productions to life and introduced, important pieces such as the song 'Preciosa' performed by Marc Anthony. It has also been a platform for opportunities for new emerging talent within the music industry.”

“Ellas, Mujeres en la música” features Lucecita Benítez, Milly Quezada, Yolandita Monge, Nydia Caro, La India, Ana Isabelle, Melina León, Didi Romero, Villano Antillano, Son Divas, iLe, Chamir Bonano, and Chabela Rodríguez. The songs featured include: Fever, Everybody's dancing now, Burundanga, Muchos quieren tumbarme, Esas no son de allí aka Cuchiflitos, Solina Solina, Así es mi tierra, Este pueblo tiene sabor, Se oyó en Borinquén / Desilusión.

This musical special's production was overseen by the production house Cinetrix and its president Euskadys Burgos. Producer Lauri Vega worked hand in hand with director and screenwriter Noelia Quintero Herencia and editors Carlos Aponte, Isabel Álvarez, Natalia Rosa, and Juanky Álvarez. Santiago "Chago" Benet Mari served as director of photography while Mayna Magruder worked as production designer.

The musical direction was in the hands of the Pasillo Sonoro studio and its president Luis Amed Irizarry, with collaborations in the arrangements by José David Pérez, Antonio Caraballo, Tiffany Román Louk, Josué Deprat and Diego Centeno. Adiela Marie served as the musical production manager, and Helvia Irizarry was the production coordinator.

The first music special was in 1965 and then in 1993 when it was reintegrated to celebrate Popular centenary. Since then, it has been a holiday mainstay through which important directors such as Paloma Suau, Kacho López, Mariem Pérez, and Carlitos Ruiz, among others have collaborated.

As in previous years, part of the proceeds from the sales of the music special will benefit music programs for children and young people supported by Fundación Banco Popular. For more information visit https://www.popular.com/en/ellas/ or https://vimeo.com/647308012/338ad89f78.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211118006363/en/