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Sara Valenzuela
Biography
When Guadalajara-based singer/songwriter Sara Valenzuela is not churning out the most charming indie pop ever to have emerged from Mexico -- see Lado Este, her Suzanne Vega-flavored 2005 solo debut, on which Marc Ribot (Elvis Costello, Tom Waits) and Melvin Gibbs (Rollins Band, Marisa Monte) pitch in -- the former lead singer of the pop-punk act La Dosis hosts the radio program Jazz Solo in her hometown. She began hosting the show in 1991, and although most artists would consider weekly DJ duties a sideline, for Valenzuela they're a gateway to more informed artistry.

"I didn't know I liked jazz when I started the show," said Valenzuela, who was born in Mexico City in 1968 and moved to Guadalajara soon after. "But when I started to dig in I realized I liked the music a lot. And all different kinds, from ragtime to avant-garde. I used to be influenced by the Who, by Peter Gabriel, but also by soul singers like Marvin Gaye. Now I'm influenced by Billie Holiday and other jazz singers, because I try to be more open. It's easier to find your voice that way," said Valenzuela in a phone interview shortly after the stateside release of Lado Este on independent label Nacional Records.
Selected Discography

Lado Este
2005
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