Betto Arcos

Reporter

Betto Arcos is a regular contributor to PRI's The World, covering Latin and world music. He was born in the state of Veracruz in Mexico and now lives in Los Angeles.

A native of Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico, Betto Arcos is an independent radio producer and host of KPFK’s world music show Global Village (Tuesdays, 11am-1:00pm, PST), a daily program he created as music director in 1997.

Since 2009, he’s been a regular contributor to PRI's The World and NPR’s Weekend All Things Considered, covering Latin and world music. 

In addition to his public radio work, Betto co-produced three award-winning experimental radio art collaborations with performance artist Guillermo Gomez-Peña. Betto has also helped with a number of recording projects, including Ry Cooder’s “Chavez Ravine” and Lila Downs’ "La Cantina."

Betto collaborated as music supervisor in the documentary films “Calavera Highway” by Renee Tajima-Peña and “2501 Migrants: A Journey” by Yolanda Cruz. In 2002, he developed and helped teach the music portion of Prof. David Carrasco’s course “Religion in the Latin American Imagination” at Harvard University. Betto graduated with honors in journalism from the University of Colorado.

Betto is a foodie with no boundaries, enjoying tequila Fortaleza and rum Zacapa from Guatemala.

Musician Frilal Ortiz carries a double bass in downtown Havana

Here's a taste of Cuban music in the time of Castro

There's plenty more than Buena Vista Social Club.

Here's a taste of Cuban music in the time of Castro
Systema Solar at BOmm

Young musicians in Colombia talk about the prospects for peace

Young musicians in Colombia talk about the prospects for peace
Juan Gabriel

Remembering the king of Latin pop — Mexico's Juan Gabriel

Remembering the king of Latin pop — Mexico's Juan Gabriel
Street concert in Havana with Silvio Rodriguez on stage

Silvio Rodríguez has been playing secret free concerts in poor Cuban neighborhoods for years

Silvio Rodríguez has been playing secret free concerts in poor Cuban neighborhoods for years
Noel Petro enjoys a cup of coffee in a Bogotá cafe

Guitarist Noel Petro is also a bullfighter — sometimes at the same time

Guitarist Noel Petro is also a bullfighter — sometimes at the same time
A Parranda with Gabriel García Márquez

The Colombian folk songs that influenced Gabriel García Márquez's 'magical realism'

The famed Colombian novelist influenced fiction writers around the world. A major source of inspiration for his own work was a form of Colombian folk music called Vallenato.

The Colombian folk songs that influenced Gabriel García Márquez's 'magical realism'
Ecuador hip hop artist Mateo Kingman

Mateo Kingman makes hip-hop from his roots in the Ecuadorean Amazon

Straight outta Ecuador.

Mateo Kingman makes hip-hop from his roots in the Ecuadorean Amazon
Mateo Kingman

Mateo Kingman makes hip-hop from his roots in the Ecuadorian Amazon

Mateo Kingman grew up in a small town deep in the Amazon. He didn't know the depth of his connection to the jungle until it moved to the city, where music helped him cope.

Mateo Kingman makes hip-hop from his roots in the Ecuadorian Amazon
Melón on stage in Mexico City at Salon Los Angeles.

This singer made Cuban music accessible to a Mexican audience

We remember one of the great singers of Afro-Cuban music. But he wasn't Cuban. "Melón" died on Monday in Mexico City at the age of 85.

This singer made Cuban music accessible to a Mexican audience
Nicaragua's La Cuneta Son Machín

This Grammy-nominated band from Nicaragua is keeping it in the family

La Cuneta Son Machín is a band from Nicaragua composed of young musicians whose older family members were musical superstars during the Sandinista regime. They didn't want to sound old, but they wanted to use the same record producer, which has resulted in a Grammy nomination.

This Grammy-nominated band from Nicaragua is keeping it in the family
Rhyan Lowery -- aka "El Compa Negro"

An African American from Compton is a rising star on the Mexican music scene

El Compa Negro could be Mexican regional music's first African American star.

An African American from Compton is a rising star on the Mexican music scene
Members of the Buena Vista Social Club performing at The White House.

The next big gig for Cuba's Buena Vista Social Club? The White House.

A documentary about the Buena Vista Social Club helped put Cuban music on the map. But the US embargo made touring in the US tricky. Now that relations between the two countries have thawed, BVSC will play at the White House on Thursday.

The next big gig for Cuba's Buena Vista Social Club? The White House.
Vahagni

Flamenco was the soundtrack in this Armenian family

We have a story of a Flamenco musician in Los Angeles. But he's not Spanish ... he's Armenian. Vahagni's family left Armenia in September 1991, just a few weeks before the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Flamenco was the soundtrack in this Armenian family
Au Pays d'Alice

Reimagining 'Alice in Wonderland' as a hip-hop opera

A rabbit hole worth heading down? This Lebanese trumpet player has reworked the Lewis Carroll classic, setting it in modern France with a Malian beat.

Reimagining 'Alice in Wonderland' as a hip-hop opera
Daymé Arocena is a rising 22 year old singer from Cuba

A rising female singer in Cuba gets a shot at international fame

Daymé Arocena, a 22-year-old singer from Cuba, took part in an open mic audition in Havana and got the chance to record a new album for a well-known DJ and producer in London.

A rising female singer in Cuba gets a shot at international fame