SOCIAL SALSA — For those of us seeking to promote salsa dancing and music simply because we love it tremendously, being in sync with what's happening in our social society is of outmost importance. But knowing how to use the social tools at our disposal is even more important than just using them.

SalsaHook.com's fan page with Facebook only has a little over 1,500 fans; the account is linked to twitter for live newsfeeds, but when it comes to really tapping into the social web, we fall short. Reddit, Digg, StumbleUpon, Tumblr, etc., are all social tools that are often not used at all in our salsa community. 

A report today on CNN.com explained how even the ever-popular Facebook is now losing users by the millions. To assume that having a fan page with 20,000 or 100,000 followers (in our case less than 1,600 followers) will give you notoriety…

ALEX DA SILVA, PATRICK SMITH — Those of you who know my brother Alex, know that he is in prison innocently. But not only did he get 10 years in prison for crimes he did not commit, he was also done wrong in many other ways.People whom he thought were 'friends' turned out to be enemies. While being locked up innocently his so-called friends were stealing from him. He had lots of his cars stolen, among other things. But not only did his so-called 'friends' steal from him, his own attorney, the Lawyer Patrick S. Smith, also stole from him. My brother Alex had to sell his home in North Hollywood and his attorney was supposed to put the money, which was over one hundred thousand dollars, in a trust fund for my brother Alex. But according to Alex, he never got a receipt or anything proving that Patrick Smith…

LOS ANGELES SALSA CLASSES — Los Angeles is by far one of the most populous salsa dancing cities in the world. There is even a "L.A. Salsa Style" of salsa dancing that is taught in a multitude of countries and is, perhaps, the most popular style of salsa dancing in the world. We are truly a mecca for salsa dancing worldwide and salsa classes in Los Angeles can be found everywhere!

Nightclubs — Usually, nightclubs offer salsa dance lessons before a salsa dancing night. Students arrive about 2 hours before the dancing starts and learn from instructors that show up to teach them.  Look at our calendar for salsa events and simply pick a venue that is close to you (or wherever you'd like to go to) and read the description of the event. You might find that they offer the classes and you can just show up, withour a…

If you are driving a vehicle with passengers and you get into an accident, it is your fault, even if the person to your side was distracting you. You are the person at the wheel and you should have kept your eyes on the road. But it would naturally be easier to blame someone else for your driving error, right? 

Do you remember when you first were introduced to Salsa dancing? Do you recall what if felt like to be a complete beginner and not know your right foot from your left? Do you remember when you got your first turns right, when you were able to keep the beat and stay on beat (hopefully, for most)? 

The joy of discovering salsa dancing for the first time is not something that many old-timers recall vividly, and it's easy to forget at times why you love this music so much! The dancing that goes along with Salsa music certainly has been a keystone to its tremendous popularity amongst so many races, countries, and cultures! The music is wonderful and beautiful, but to so many who can't even understand the lyrics being sung, it is the 'dancing' that brought them to love Salsa. 

Recently, in Los Angeles, we met a…

If you are a person who loves Salsa dancing and music and happen to live or be visiting Los Angeles, CA, you are sure to have one of the biggest variety of venues to choose from that can be found in any city around the world. On any given night, a number of promoters compete against each other to cater to the local salsa scene. Some of them bring in live entertainment and others just dj music. Some venues offer salsa lessons before the dancing starts and others are just to go dancing. Some of them are attended by a very high quality of dancers and others are crowded by people who are barely learning how to dance or who simply don't have an affinity for the dancing as most people in L.A. seem to do. All in all, the variety is great and there's something for everyone's likes almost…

Many very successful business firms utilize the slogan "Our Clients Success is Our Best Advertising" or "...Our Best Testimonial," or other variations of it, as they feel confident in their work and the services that they provide to their clients. If you are looking to become a client of such business, you would look at the success they have helped their clients attain, and you would determine them to be exactly what you are looking for, if you wish to have similar success. On the other hand, if such business really has nothing to demonstrate with the services that they have provided to their clients, you would most certainly not do business with them and find yourself a service provider that will be able to help you attain the success that you seek.

TREAT IT LIKE A BUSINESS

In learning how to dance Salsa, such methodology of choosing…

SALSAHOOK.COM SEO — SalsaHook.com was created with the idea that the Salsa scene needed a web solution that would provide dancers with the information that they wanted the most: where to go dancing on any given night. Added to that were the ideas of having a small social network and a news site where users could, if they wanted to, contribute content to the site. And even though a lot of criticism has been received for inconceivable reasons, the site has flourished in its own right simply because its purpose and structure work. 

SalsaHook.com allows any promoter of salsa dancing lover to SHARE information that they know about events that are happening in their area. Often times, this information can go unnoticed by salsa dancers eager to go dance at such events, only if they knew they were happening. SalsaHook.com provides that solution and we can oly wish more…

SALSA WEB TECHNOLOGY — SalsaHook.com launched in the first months of 2010 as a tool that aimed to help salsa lovers know the location, time, and date of salsa events and dance lessons around their georgraphical area. While it has mostly emerged within the Los Angeles area as a major source of information, it has also touched various other geographical areas, such as San Diego, San Francisco, Texas, Florida, and many other cities across the US where salsa is predominant. 

Promoters can sign up and freely post event information for all their promotions, so that visitors to the site (in the thousands) can view it and can be up-to-date with what's happening around their city. Instructors can sign up and freely add themselves and all their classes to the salsa instructor database. 

The SalsaHook.com site is built in a way that provides all its visitors with the information…

DIA DE SAN JUAN, QUEEN MARY — The 17th Annual Día de San Juan Festival will be taking place on June 17th, 2012, at the Queen Mary Events Park in Long Beach, CA. This year, the festival will be featuring the Puerto Rican Salsa duo "NG2," formed by Norberto Vélez and Gerardo Rivas, and Puerto Rican Tropical singer/percussionist/dancer sensation "Choco Orta."[ EVENT DETAILS & DRIVING DIRECTIONS ]Other acts that will be performing are Tabaco y Ron, La Bomba Mix, MC Paloma, and Super DJ Robby. Tickets are $25 per person before June 16 and already going on sale via Paypal. For more details on the event, ticket purchases, and special event details, please visit Fiestalegre Promotions, Inc. 

You do not want to miss out on this great event!

Alma Latina forges ahead in the face of darkness

SAN DIEGO, CA | Miles until empty, it says “7”, we should be OK.  Traffic is backed up on the 5 South, but there’s hope as the 52 on-ramp is flowing, maybe we’ll make it. Racing across the 52, the gauge is dropping quickly. Crap, it’s down to 4 already!  My mind is turning “Must have been the parking lot on the 5 caused by cars flooding the roadways all at once."  Everyone is trying to head home as San Diego and most of the southwest shut down when power blacked out at 3:30pm.  

At this point, the situation is desperate and I'm cursing for a Prius.

Miles until empty is “1” as I pull off to the Convoy station.  The line to the pump is five deep, people are camped out, and it looks like a scene…

WILLIAM LEVY, KATHERINE JENKINS, DWTS — William Levy finally got his Salsa on last night in Dancing With The Stars, and it was pretty okay considering he probably had to unlearn a lot of the style he probably has from his heritage, and learn combinations, timing, patterns, and even some small tricks. I think a partner like Chelsie Hightower would've been perfect for William in DWTS, but it's all about maintaining an average in looks amongst all couples, so I guess she was given to that other kid...whoever he is.Cheryl Burke is okay and let's not forget she did win twice and has come in second and third position a few times, but she is just not a partner that makes William shine on the dance floor. She brings the average way down, so, since I know that if this was a real competition those two would never be dancing together,…

GRIZZLY DANCE STUDIO — When Grizzly Hidriago arrived in Los Angeles, it quickly became apparent that a new major player was in town and was here to do great things. Grizzly and his Grizzly Dance Company, and dancers, began winning every major and notable dance competition, showcasing some of the best choreographed routines ever performed on LA dance floors, and imparting a superior level of dance instruction to those students that came to them.It has been one major success after another for Grizzly, and it is all due to his work ethic, his commitment and drive, his honesty, his perseverance, and his amazing ability to successfully lead a serious and professional dance business. Few great dancers around the world can manage a business well; most dancers do not possess the skills to actually manage their money and be prepared when opportunity knocks at their door. On May 1, 2012, after substantial arduous dedication…

ECHO PARK CUBAN FESTIVAL 2012 — Salseros/as in the city of Los Angeles hold wonderful memories of the Echo Park Cuban Festival that used to be held each year in the month of May. What they probably loved the most, though, was that it was a FREE event to attend. Everyone loves to go to FREE events, and in order to show absolutely no support to the event organizers or the event's vendors, they bring in cases of water and packed food for munchies.And then, when an event dies, is cancelled, or postponed, everyone cries and wonders: "why is this event not happening anymore?" And what's worse, they actually tell tales of how they used to take the bus, bring all the water and food they would need, and how it was totally FREE for them to enjoy such "great event."Very sad. So, we are merely speculating here, but was there lack…