Joe Bataan reveals the detailed story of how he wound up in prison, and the serendipity and hard work he put in, to get himself out – all driven by his love and passion for music & and his desire to succeed. Handling prison life and the mindset that allowed him to move his life forward, even while inside… the incredible determination and effort he put in, to learn to compose music and play piano, clever strategies he used to help make “Gypsy Woman” a hit. Playing with Cornell Dupree & Bernard Purdie, playing in Central Park, making $100,000 with one phone call (after a lifetime of just getting by), reinventing himself with the internet, having a spiritual awakening, why he has 9 lives, and tons of other cool stuff. Joe is a LEGEND in the Latin Soul genre, and this interview is incredibly open and fun – a MUST listen:

Joe Bataan grew up in East Harlem and had the hustle to rise up from a difficult situation to become recognized as one of the founding fathers of Latin soul music. In 1973, he helped coin the phrase “Salsoul”, and he also co-founded the Salsoul record label. Between 1967 & 1981, Joe released 13 LPs. His 1968 LP Riot! went gold, his 1975 hit The Bottle (from his LP AfroFilipino) went to #5 on the Billboard Charts… and he has since released another 6 LPs from 1997 to today.