September 15, 2023

Congressman Castro, Congressional Hispanic Caucus Kick Off Hispanic Heritage Month with Public Call for Suggestions for National Recording Registry Nominations

WASHINGTON – As Hispanic Heritage Month begins, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) announced today that he is leading the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) in collecting public nominations for works by Latino recording artists to be added to the National Recording Registry. The National Recording Registry is the nation’s preeminent archive of recorded sound and is intended to maintain and preserve sound recordings with cultural, historic, or aesthetic significance to life in the United States. This push comes after Congressman Castro led a successful public campaign with the CHC this summer to nominate Latino films to the National Film Registry.

Both songs and albums can be submitted by visiting Castro.House.gov/music. To qualify for nomination, songs and albums must be at least ten years old. To be eligible for the official nomination to the Library of Congress, submissions must be received by Monday, September 25th at 11:59 pm ET.

“From the infectious rhythm of salsa music to the strums of Carlos Santana’s guitar, some of the greatest works in recording history have been created by Latino artists,” said Congressman Joaquin Castro. “Latinos have left their mark on all aspects of American culture in genres across the musical spectrum - from pop and country to rock and hip hop. Latinos make up nearly 20 percent of the country’s population, and we deserve better representation on the National Recording Registry. As someone who grew up listening to Joan Baez and Freddy Fender, I’m excited to hear from folks around the country about the Latino recording artists who define the soundtrack of their lives.”

In 2022, Congressman Castro and the CHC launched their inaugural campaign for Latino inclusion in the National Recording Registry. Drawing on hundreds of public suggestions, Congressman Castro and the CHC eventually submitted 33 Latino works for nomination. In early 2023, two of their nominations, Irene Cara’s “Flashdance…What A Feeling” and Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina,” were selected for induction, along with Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” and the first recordings of mariachi music. On an annual basis, the National Recording Preservation Board selects 25 recordings to add to the registry. As of 2023, less than 5% of the titles inducted to the registry were recorded by Latino musicians. 

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