La India

Name: Linda Viera Caballero
Date of birth: 9 March 1970
Place of birth: Río Piedras, Puerto Rico

La India has been called “La Princesa de la Salsa” -  The Princess of the Salsa. She is a Grammy Award and Latin Grammy Award nominated singer.

“I always sang at home and whenever I did it in front of people, despite being a bit shy, I never felt embarrassed.” – La India.

La India, born Linda Viera Cabarello,  and her parents moved to New York (South Bronx area) from Puerto Rico shortly after her birth. She got the nickname “India” from her grandmother due to her appearance. Although, at the age of 7 she stopped taking opera singing lessons, later she decided to become a singer of the Latin Hip-Hop ensemble TKA. In 1986 she started her vocalist career with this group, which was one of the first ones in the Latin Hip-Hop genre.

“Little” Louie Vega supported and helped her to get along in her professional career. India and Louie Vega got married in 1990, but a few years later they divorced.

In 1989 La India made her first solo debut album, Breaking Night (Hip-Hop). From the second album onwards, she focused more on her Latin roots and created a unique style. She co-worked with Eddie Palmieri, Tito Puente, Grover Mitchell and Sergio George. In 1994 India and Marc Anthony made a huge hit with the duet “Vivir lo Nuestro”.

Discography:
1989    Breaking Night
1992    Llego La India Via Eddie Palmieri
1994    Dicen Que Soy
1996    Jazzin' with Tito Puente
1996    Mega Mix
1997    Sobre el Fuego
1999    Sola
2001    The Best…
2002    Edición Limitada
2002    Serie 32
2002    Todo Exitos de India y Brenda K. Starr
2003    Latin Songbird: Mi Alma Y Corazón
2003    Oro Salsero
2006    Soy Diferente


by Zsuzsa Melkvi
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About the Author: Zsuzsa Melkvi is a salsa dancer and teacher, having competed in Latin-American and Standard dances from 1995-1998. She is also the founder of Baila Cuba (www.bailacuba.hu), a Dance company focused on giving exclusively pure Afro-Cuban workshops in Hungary. Zsuzsa holds a BA degree in Economics from the University of Hertfordshire.