Puerto Rican Parade Final 2012

The annual Puerto Rican day parade held on 5th avenue. This is the 55 year of the celebration , Rn la escena Leticia Reyes, Tairy Ynoa and Karen Guitterez were on hand to cover this event. In attendance also was Sunset Productions Yvonne pagan and CEO Anthony Austin from En La escena.

PITBULL Wins BMI's President Award

Jose Eledra

Leading U.S. music rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI)
honored the songwriters and publishers of Latin music’s most-performed
songs on U.S. radio and television at the 19th annual BMI Latin Music
Awards held at the Encore Las Vegas. International superstar Pitbull
received the BMI President’s Award in recognition of his profound
influence on the entire entertainment industry.


As the 2012 recipient, Pitbull joins an elite list of past honorees
that includes Juanes, Kike Santander, Taylor Swift, Emilio and Gloria
Estefan, and Willie Nelson. To celebrate, Pitbull treated attendees to
a dynamic performance.As further evidence of his incredible success,
Pitbull returned to the stage to share the BMI Latin Songwriter of the
Year win with Juan Luis Morena Luna “Wisin,” Llandel Veguilla Malavé
“Yandel” and Espinoza Paz. The four honorees reflect the diversity of
modern Latin music, from Pitbull’s chart-topping hip-hop and Wisin &
Yandel’s edgy reggaeton, to Espinoza Paz’s soulful Regional Mexican
compositions.
“Niña De Mi Corazón” earned BMI Latin Song of the Year for
songwriterHoracio Palencia and Ferca Global Publishing. “Niña De Mi
Corazón” was recorded by La Arrolladora Banda El Limón.

Universal Music Publishing Group garnered its second consecutive BMI
Latin Publisher of the Year win thanks to contributing 11 songs to the
year’s most-performed list.

The 19th annual BMI Latin Music Awards were hosted by BMI President &
CEO Del Bryant and Delia Orjuela, BMI Vice President, Latin Music. BMI
represents Latin songwriters based in the U.S. and around the globe
through reciprocal agreements with sister performing right
organizations in the songwriters’ home countries.

For a complete list of 2012 BMI Latin Awards winners, please
visitwww.bmi.com/latin

THE HUNGER GAMES HAS A RECORD-BREAKING MIDNIGHT SHOWING

Cover of The Hunger Games

By Martin H. Starkey

THE HUNGER GAMES took in a record-breaking $19.7 million in midnight showings early Friday morning.

The much anticipated LIONSGATE film rung up those impressive numbers playing across 2,565 screens making it the seventh biggest midnight debut of all time. HARRY POTTER & THE DEATHLY HALLOWS, PART 2 holds the record for midnight openings. Last year the final installment of the boy wizard's tale took in $43.5 million in midnight showings across 3,800 screens.

THE HUNGER GAMES is expected to take in $130 million over this weekend. If it does that it will become the biggest March opening in history. Currently, ALICE IN WONDERLAND starring JOHNNY DEPP holds that title, opened to more then $116 million in 2010. The film also falls short of the $30.2 million midnight opening TWILIGHT: BREAKING DAWN, PART ONE took in last year screening across 3,521 locations.

THE HUNGER GAMES, based on the novels by SUZANNE COLLINS, revolves around a group of children who are selected to participate in a televised battle to the death. JENNIFER LAWRENCE, JOSH HUTCHERSON and LIAM HEMSWORTH star in the film directed by GARY ROSS.

The film cost $80 million to produce and it expands today 4,137 locations as it looks to overtake ALICE IN WONDERLANDS March 2010 opening of $116 million. If THE HUNGER GAMES collects the $130 million everyone expects it to make LIONSGATE will become a major distributor in the Hollywood Film market.

Planete Chic 2012GR - En La Escena

George Roberts from our Fashion Channel Reporter, En La Escena. visit:http://enlaescena.com

GBK Gift Lounge at the 84th Annual Academy Awards

February 25, 2012 --- Hollywood’s biggest night never disappoints when it comes to the glitz and the glamour – the stars surely delivered at the 84th Annual Academy Awards. Whether your fave actor actually won an Oscar, is another story. We’ve all been there. Despite what you may think, it’s not all about movie making and designer gowns for actors; they also lend their time and efforts to charitable causes.

In honor of this years Oscar nominees and presenters, GBK, a fundraising and special events company, hosted their annual celebrity gift lounge at the luxurious W Hotel in Hollywood. The mission behind the event is not only to educate the press and celebrities on the various foundations present but also to enjoy the lavish gifts, hor d’oerves and diverse services provided. Everyone gets to walk away with a plump gift bag or swag bag, as some of us like to call it. Including me! Yes, consider me a celebrity for a day.

Among the foundations present were the Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation which is dedicated to the raising of funds for research and awareness towards a cure for juvenile diabetes, The HollyRod Foundation, Drawing for Hope and many more with great causes.

As you walked into one of the many celebrity suites, you left with a wealth of knowledge, goodie bag and moved to take action. Over 70 celebrity guests were in attendance such as AnnaLynne McCord (90210), Teri Polo (ABC’s Man Up), Rick Otto (Red Tails) and Holly Robinson Peete among others. The causes ranged from helping sexual assault survivors through art, to combatting human trafficking, and to providing a safe haven for those who have autism and Parkinson’s disease. The goodie bag was filled with high end skin and hair products, protein bars, travel and spa certificates, fragrances, candles and my personal favorite -- jewelry.

Alongside the red carpet, there stood Apple Revolution; custom candy apples that serve as party favors and yes, they’re edible! The apples appear very well crafted with designs like Justin Beiber’s face for those with Beiberfever or your fave team logo for the sports fanatic in you AND they look yummy. I will bite into mine a little later, can’t wait!

Apple Revolution created GBK’s invite (pic should come in another email). They are one busy organization. Ana Gonzalez, founded the company three years ago, which is based out of Orange County. She says it has gotten off to a great start. Although she does many wedding events, her next project is with the George Lopez Foundation. Check out her website for the fun and mouth watering designs, apple-revolution.com.

One of my favorite gifts and jewelry tables at this event was a gold beaded necklace from the Mayalei line of Chickboss, because the story behind the necklace is that much more beautiful.

Chickboss is an awesome organization dedicated to bridging the economic gap between young Guatemalans and their unskilled and illiterate parents. What they do is take non-working mothers and sometimes fathers and develop their skills in crafting all while evolving them into artisans. Their jewelry is exquisitely beautiful and has a soft touch to it (I’ll say it’s the loving and motherly touch) that leads one to believe that there’s more than just fine silver and copper being used in its creation.

Pat Pannell founded Chickboss when she noticed the disparity between the youth and their parents through a family she sponsored in Guatemala. She was moved to take action. The general manager of the organization, Carmencita Luna, shares, “It doesn’t feel like work because you’re helping people change for the better. For themselves, and the world, not only my country.” If you’re interested in helping bridge that gap and accessorizing a dress beautifully, please check out their website, chickboss.com. I was able to wear mine the next day to an Oscar after party, it was just what the dress needed. How do I look? (insert pic here I suppose).

GBK’s event was a huge success and what better time to do it than when the Oscars are in town. During Oscar weekend they were able to raise an additional $70,000 for a variety of charities. GBK gives 20% of their profits to the charities on site. Swag bag in one hand and a complimentary Blue Hawaiian drink in the other, I am happy but I’m also hopeful that the giving goes beyond this weekend. Here’s to the 2012 Academy Awards.

-Jennifer Fernandez
En La Escena
Visit: http://enlaescena.com

Brazilians Buying Big in the Big Apple

New York brokers take note! Brazilians are on a buying spree. New York is not only teeming with Brazilian tourists, with their booming economy and loads of cash, Brazilians are also (quietly) snapping up condo and apartment units in Manhattan. In fact, they have become regular clients of higher-end brokers in New York and Miami.

According to Marcos Cohen, a Brazilian broker at Prudential Douglas Elliman, a lot of people think of Manhattan as their dream town. In the past two years, Cohen had closed more than 15 deals for Brazilians who paid anywhere from $5 million to more than $15 million for Manhattan apartments. A lot of these Brazilian buyers in New York are professionals. They are in their 30s and 40s and are connected to the commodities or the finance sector, which is the reason why many Brazilians have become rich after a flurry of I.P.O.’s in their country in recent years. They favor addresses in Midtown near Lincoln Center or along Central Park on the Upper East Side. They also look at full-service buildings with their own concierge services.
Once they find an apartment, Brazilians tend to bring in their own architects and interior designers. One São Paulo-based architect who is well known in Brazil, Fernanda Marques, is now doing 3 projects for Brazilians: 2 in New York and 1 in Miami.

This phenomenon is not only found in New York. According to brokers and developers, Brazilians are also buying hundreds of units in high-end development projects in Miami. At the W South Beach Hotel & Residences, about 20% of the buyers since 2010 are Brazilians; they have bought 31 units with total value of almost $50 million, according to David Edelstein, a co-owner of the project. At Paramount Bay, almost one-third of the buyers for the past six months are Brazilians. Buying apartments in Miami (and in New York) is actually a cheaper venture for Brazilians than buying units in Rio de Janeiro, where apartment prices are increasing rapidly ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2014 World Cup. Prices in this magical city by the sea rose by 20 percent from April to October last year.

For a lot of Brazilians, this is a dream come true for them. After experiencing decades of economic crises, Brazil’s economy is now the sixth-largest in the world. Economic reforms have given them stability with steady money flowing in due to high commodity prices and demand from China. Recognizing this trend, American brokers and lawyers are now eager to do real estate transactions with Brazilians and are making more frequent trips to Brazil. They are also accelerating their marketing efforts in certain society publications in Brazil.

Jeisa Chiminazzo is now a resident in New York City's TriBeCa neighborhood. For the Brazilians who are now residents of these two states, hearing a familiar accent is no longer a unique experience for them. In fact, it had started to feel like a homecoming for them. But for Jeisa Chiminazzo, a 26-year-old Brazilian model who purchased a $1.65 million, two-bedroom TriBeCa loft in 2009, there is one downside to this. According to her, one cannot gossip in Portuguese anymore as it is very possible that a fellow Brazilian will bump into you and understand what you are saying.

ELE Promo - En La Escena

En la escena is a Latin Lifestyle television program, seen online and on cable in Houston Texas on Mi Casa Broadcasting and PTN Network online, Visit:http://enlaescena.com