AVENTURA FACTS:
Members: Anthony Santos, Lenny Santos, Henry Santos Jeter, Max Santos
Genre: Bachata, tropical
Hometown: Bronx, New York
Awards: 12 Billboard Music Awards
Albums: 1999: Generation Next, 2002: We Broke the Rules, 2003: Love & Hate, 2005: God's Project, 2009: The Last
Hits: "Obsesion," "Ella y Yo," "Por un Segundo"
By mixing traditional bachata music, a percussive style that has its roots in the Dominican Republic, with popular beats and swatches from modern hip-hop and R&B, the Bronx-based quartet, Aventura are selling out shows and winning over audiences in more places than just the Caribbean. Throughout the summer, the trendy Dominican-American band will be touring around the U.S., keeping summer nights lively with the tropical sounds of bongos, guiras and Spanish guitars - but with an urban vibe.
Before the current members of Aventura assembled, frontman Anthony "Romeo" Santos and guitarist Lenny Santos (no relation) started a purely bachata group named Los Teenagers de la Bachata. When the duo was playing a small New York music festival, they met Dominican producer Julio Cesar Garcia, who would change the direction of the group.
Garcia splashed the band's traditional music with contemporary lyrics and standard hip-hop beats, added vocalist Henry Santos Jeter (Romeo's cousin) and bassist Mickey Santos (Lenny's brother), and renamed the group Aventura. Now with a youthful look and crackling, energetic sound, the band would become a mainstay in the country's Latin music scene.
In 1999, the quartet embraced its avant-garde approach to bachata music and titled its debut album Generation Next. Their second album, We Broke the Rules, featured the single "Obsesion," which gave Aventura its first taste of fame, peaking at number 32 on the U.S. tropical airplay chart.
America's taste for the group would only swell from there. The 2005 single "Ella y Yo," from the album God's Project, hit number two on the U.S. Latin tracks chart, and 2009's "Por un Segundo" hit number one.
At the 2010 Billboard Latin Music Awards, Aventura was the story of the evening, taking home nine trophies, including awards for Latin album and digital album of the year for The Last - the top-selling Latin album of 2009.
After such a successful year, several of the band's members announced that they would release solo albums next year. But fans of the super group will not have to have to wait until then to get their fill; - Aventura is currently seeing through an international tour that is crossing the U.S. this summer.
On April 22, the band kicked off their tour in front of a 30,000-person capacity crowd in Puerto de la Cruz, Venezuela. In June, Aventura will come to 14 U.S. cities to enchant crowds with their hip, romantic melodies.