palabras ROB PEREZ

Get ready to have a great time is how Divine from the slamming new trio, The DEY, describes the music. Also featuring Yeyo and Elan Luz Rivera, this Latino threesome were born with music in their blood, and with the drive and passion to become a musical force.

They DEY’s music can be described as a musical melting pot, a blend of genres that will hit you on a political, socially and cultural level, but they also make sure not to take themselves too seriously. It has its share of party joints and feel good music.

“It’s everything. It’s fusion,” says Yeyo, the trio’s gifted MC and product of gangsta rap, influenced by the likes of NWA and Kool G Rap.

“Our music is a musical culture festival. We just fuse different genres of music. It’s a party that everybody’s invited to.”

“It speaks to a bi-lingual crowd and the world,” says the pretty, caramel-skinned Elan, the musical songstress of The DEY.

Besides fronting this trio, Elan is the product of an intensive music background, which stretches from the classroom to Broadway, to singing backup to Frankie Negron. Her disciplined music training can be attributed to her mother, a music teacher and Elan’s toughest critic.

“When my mother is in the audience—my African-American mother—I know I have to hit every note perfectly. She’s a teacher; she’s a singer herself. As long as I think my mom is in the audience, everybody’s going to get a good show. That’s what I think of . . . my mom and that I get her respect.”

Talented writer and production wizard Divine is the creative force of The DEY. He gives props to his partners by stressing their strengths and their contributions to the group.

“Elan is really a lead vocalist. Yeyo is the epitome of the best Hip-Hop in Spanish you’re going to get. I strive to be the best of what I can be as far as rapping in English, and bringing back the old school elements, with a fusion of the new school vibe.”

I was out of breath watching The DEY perform for a CBS TV crew when I showed up at Montana Studios to interview the band, and that was only after one song. Their commitment to performing is equal to their commitment to writing music for all Latinos. They work long hours to get each step right, no matter how long the actual performance will be, because they understand that if you don’t give the people a good show, you won’t be performing for too long. I asked about performing routines, and each agreed that it’s important to give the people what they want, plus you need a real desire to perform, otherwise you won’t make it as an artist.

“You might be sick, you might be feeling under the weather—but the power of the stage is incredible,” says Divine. “Absorbing the people’s energy . . . if you couldn’t stand up because you had bad legs or whatever, the power of the people could raise you off the seat. That energy, I would say, is the good part of it. The best part of it is absorbing the energy because you could be nervous but once you get on there, you’re ready to tackle the world.

“If you’re a true performer when you get on the stage, that’s all you care about is expressing yourself,” explains Elan. “I think the more often you’ve performed or the more you’ve been dying to perform, the better off the performer you’re going to be. If you don’t really want to do it, it’s just not going to be good. Even if you’re an incredible singer it’s not going to be good if you haven’t worked on it or if you haven’t been itching, waiting to perform. We’re at the point where we’re like, ‘Can we perform, please!’ We could be hurting, our knees could be about ready to fall from under us, but at this point, we just want to perform! My whole thing is, my fellow people, Puerto Ricans. I’m not scarred of Puerto Ricans; I’m Puerto Rican. But at the same time, you want to do incredibly for your own people. Even more so. And our people, that’s a lot of people. So I’m not saying I get nervous when I’m in front of the world but, my Latin peoples, oh my god.”

The DEY has little to worry about though as it’s poised to take over the world with its hot, freestyle inspired tracks like “Get The Feeling,” sexy party jams like “Dame Un Momento,” or the socially conscious song like “Bendecida Mi Nacion.”

“We got songs about pride in your heritage,” says Yeyo. “Like, we’re Puerto Ricans but we’re also Latinos. You should be proud to be Ecuadorian just like I’m proud to be Puerto Rican and half Cuban, and we should come together and celebrate our Latin heritage. We attack those subjects. We sing about different experiences. We address real issues that go on in the streets today. Not in a preachy way but more in a, ‘this is what I experienced; this is what has happened to me.’ We’re more like storytellers. We just share a little bit of our lives with everybody through our music. Everything from love, to politics, social, to being on the right path to having a good time.”

“Yeah because that’s part of it too,” as Elan chimes in. “You gotta give the feeling, you gotta have a good time. There’s also the lovey stuff like “Give You the World,” (an up-tempo fun song based on Earth, Wind & Fire). And then we also have “She Said” which is for our mothers. You get to hear a little bit about us.”

“It’s a brand new DEY,” says Divine. It’s a DEY for new music, new sound. It’s a DEY for you to really express who you are, yourself as being this big, bi-lingual community. Whether you speak two different languages, but you represent a people that are thinking two different things at one time. In this case it’s Spanish and English representing a bi-lingual community that’s out there that’s not being represented. This music is festive music. Get ready to have a great time.”