Marc Anthony is probably the most well known and internationally acclaimed salsa star outside of Latin America and Puerto Rico. Born to Puerto Rican immigrants, Marc Anthony was instructed in music theory and composition by his father, Felipe Muniz.
Machito was an influential Latin jazz musician from Cuba. Machito's band of the 1940s, the Afro-Cubans, were among the first to fuse Afro-Cuban rhythms with jazz improvisation.
José Luis Cortés formed NG La Banda in 1986, which has become in many ways synonymous as the “inventor” of Cuban Timba music. NG La Banda became known as the music of the people, emanating from the “barrios”, the poorest parts of Havana, yet many intellectuals deemed it too dirty and vulgar to be a valid art form.