Good news everyone! Rancho Alegre Radio has been selected as a finalist for the WeWork Creator Awards! 

Years ago, we had the pleasure of meeting and talking with brothers Raphael and Paquito Rodriguez of Los A-T Boyz, and we've been friends ever since. We were struck by their great attitudes and giving spirit, and continued to notice that their band was always available for any kind of benefit or jamaica or wherever else they were needed. 

During that interview, we learned that Paquito had already battled and survived neuroblastoma, a rare form of cancer that typically affects children. Unfortunately, Paquito finds himself fighting cancer again. 

Many thanks to Austin American-Statesman columnist Nancy Flores for a great article on us first on her regular blog, Cultura en Austin, but also in the August 24, 2015 print edition. 

You can read the entire article here and also subscribe to her blog for more columns on Austin Latino culture. 

"When Rancho Alegre Radio hit the airwaves on KOOP 91.7 FM last August, it brought Tejano and Conjunto music back to FM radio in Austin.

"We’d been disappointed for years that you couldn’t find Tejano music on FM radio here,” says Rancho Alegre co-host Piper LeMoine. Austin lost the last of its Tejano music radio stations in late 2005, which sparked a fight to get the music back on the airwaves. In 2008, Tejano music returned to the air and was soon simulcast in both FM and AM. However, today Austin has only one Tejano music station — KTXZ 1560 AM— after the FM station switched formats.

"Rather than complain about it, we saw an opportunity to change that,” LeMoine says. She and co-host Baldomero “Frank” Cuellar went through the KOOP radio training and launched the hour-long program, which now airs every Monday at 9 a.m."

Read rest of the story at statesman360.com.

Jolly Ranchers, we need your help. Rancho Alegre has been nominated in the Loose Cannon category for Tejano/Conjunto music advocacy on the Austin Chronicle's Best of Austin ballot! We would appreciate the support in any category, as would the rest of Austin's Tejano industry! 

Vote today! In the Loose Cannon section, type in "Tejano/Conjunto Music Advocacy - Rancho Alegre Radio." 

As we previously posted, our very own Baldomero "El Parrandero" Cuellar was invited to participate in a panel discussion about music and community for a Music Advocacy class at the University of Texas. 

That's RIGHT! Our very own Baldomero "El Parrandero" Frank Cuellar has been asked to participate in a panel discussion alongside a couple other music organizers about music and community at the University of Texas at Austin. 

Conjunto legends Los Dos Gilbertos and the popular Regional Mexican powerhouse Erick y Grupo Massore, along with Infinito, Escorpion de Hidalgo and Los Viciosos will also perform at the Fiesta Center in Lubbock

Rancho Alegre is active on quite a few social networks, and we invite you to join us!

We're using hashtags #racf for festival-related posts and #ranchoalegre for everything else, along with #latino, #conjunto and #tejano. 

You can find us on:

This month, KLRU celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month with a range of special programs and events that celebrate the Latino experience. To kick things off, KLRU is organizing screenings of the landmark PBS film Latino Americans, a six-hour documentary featuring interviews with nearly 100 Latinos and more than 500 years of history.

How cool is this? Super Tejano Radio out of Monterrey, Mexico, interviewed our very own Baldomero “El Parrandero” Cuellar about his experiences in the industry and about Rancho Alegre Radio.

It will be broadcast Wednesday, July 24th, at 9 am Central time.

Tune in!

http://www.supertejanoradio.com.mx

Tuesday August 6th, Baldomero “El Parrandero” and Piper will be hitting the community radio airwaves at KOOP 91.7FM in Austin.

We will be joining program host Austin radio legend and Texas music aficionado Ted Branson in the studio for a morning of Conjunto, classic Tejano, Orquesta, and more. It will be a show you won’t want to miss!