WASHINGTON, DC - The Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF) announced today that Puerto Rican rapper, writer, producer and co-founder of Calle 13, will receive the Hispanic Heritage Award for Vision at the 32^nd Annual Hispanic Heritage Awards at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC, on October 1, 2019. Residente will join Singer Alejandro Fernandez, Actor Eugenio Derbez, Boxer Canelo Alvarez and a group of Latina leaders including Sylvia Acevedo, Alejandra Castillo, Virginia Kase and Monica Ramirez.

Residente will be honored as a key representative of the many activist-artists and concerned citizens of Puerto Rico that came together by the thousands for peaceful protests to demand political reform. As an artist, Residente (René Pérez), uses his work as a platform to inspire and empower social change, demanding attention for social injustices through rapping controversial lyrics and producing songs that energize peaceful action. 

“The Hispanic Heritage Foundation is honored to recognize the tremendous impact of Residente as an artist but also as an activist,” said Jose Antonio Tijerino, President and CEO of HHF.  “Residente has always taken seriously his responsibility to be a voice for those who need to be heard.  He has had a vision for his work on the mic and in the community from Puerto Rico to the entire globe.”  

Launching his career in 2005 with Calle 13, René cultivated attention through the song, “Querida FBI”. It was the first time that a song with highly social content and pro-independence messages aired on Puerto Rican mainstream radio.

As of July 2019, Residente became the largest driving force behind the mass Puerto Rican protests that eventually led to the resignation of the Governor. Igniting the movement, he used his social platform to call out the corruption and peacefully unite all Puerto Ricans. Residente even collaborated with two other native artists, Bad Bunny and iLe, to produce the protest anthem- written and recorded in one day- called “Afilando los Cuchillos” (Sharpening the Knives). After twelve days of Residente leading tens of thousands of people to protests, historic achievement was made. 

In 2017, René debuted his first solo album as Residente. In March, the artist’s self-titled documentary, Residente was released. Using his DNA test results, the documentary follows his global exploration to connect his ancestry with music.

Further expanding on his exploration of innovative musical and scientific parallels, his upcoming album will focus conceptually on the frequency that the human body operates from.

Through brain waves and frequency, Residente connects on both a scientific and emotional vibe with collaborating artists inspiring the creation soulful music. To showcase the revitalizing sound of two generations, Residente collaborated with Bad Bunny on “Bellacoso”.

Although, Residente preaches focusing on the music, the writers, and producers, rather than the number of followers or the amount of views, his accomplishments and impact cannot go unnoticed or unquantified. He has won 25 Grammy Awards and 4 Grammy Awards his social following is in the 3.4 million plus.

In November 2015, René received the Nobel Peace Summit Award for his commitment to social awareness and promoting peace. He has also served as the spokesperson for several UNICEF and Amnesty International campaigns.

The Hispanic Heritage Awards were created by Latinos at the White House in 1987 to commemorate the establishment of Hispanic Heritage Month in America and are considered among the highest honors by Latinos for Latinos and are supported by 40 national Hispanic-serving institutions.

More 2019 details about the Awards will be announced over the next days including performers, hosts and presenters (visit https://bit.ly/2eCB6nJ for a video of the Awards). Sponsorship opportunities for the Hispanic Heritage Awards are available. Target is the Presenting Sponsor.

Past Honorees of the Hispanic Heritage Awards have included Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Rita Moreno, Plácido Domingo, Celia Cruz, Tito Puente, Gloria Estefan, Oscar Hijuelos, Martin Sheen, Ricky Martin, Rubén Blades, Fania All-Stars, Junot Diaz, José Feliciano, Carlos Vives, Oscar de la Hoya, Alejandro Sanz, Juanes, Antonio Banderas, Juan Luis Guerra, Anthony Quinn, J Balvin, Zoe Saldana, Juan Marichal, Los Tigres Del Norte, Oscar de la Renta, America Ferrera, Pedro Martínez, Luis Fonsi, Andy García, Gael García Bernal, the Latin Grammys, Diego Luna, and many more.

About the Hispanic Heritage Foundation

The Hispanic Heritage Awards serve as a launch of HHF’s year-round, award-winning programs which inspire, prepare and connect Latino leaders in the classroom, community and workforce to meet America’s needs as well as promoting cultural pride.  HHF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.  For more information on the mission of HHF visit www.hispanicheritage.org.