Nayobe

The last twenty-five years have been nothing short of phenomenal in the life of Cuban singer Nayobe. Since the release and subsequent success of her debut single “Please Don’t Go,” Nayobe has been a force in the music industry, releasing dance music, rhythm and blues, Latin pop and salsa recordings. And she shows no sign of stopping.

Born Nayobe Catalina Gomez and raised in the Bronx, New York, the eleven year-old singer was introduced to the world of entertainment via an off-stage appearance in the Broadway musical Annie, where for eleven weeks Nayobe’s voice was supplemented for another young actress’. That appearance led to Nayobe landing a coveted spot as Lena Horne’s understudy in an off-Broadway production of The Wiz. At the tender age of fourteen, Nayobe was discovered singing at Skate Fever, a Bronx roller-skating rink owned by Sal Abbatiello, who also owned and operated several Bronx nightclubs. At Abbatiello’s urging, Nayobe entered and won The Fever’s talent contest week after week, until she nabbed the grand prize: a recording contract with Abbatiello’s fledgling record label Fever Records.

Teamed with producer Andy “Panda” Tripoli, Nayobe recorded “Please Don’t Go,” arguably the first Latin freestyle song ever recorded, which quickly gained airplay in nightclubs in New York and Miami, garnering the ingénue her first established hit. Her cameo appearance in the film Krush Groove offered fans their first opportunity to actually see Nayobe perform a bit of “Please Don’t Go.” The follow-up singles “Second Chance For Love,” and “Good Things Come To Those Who Wait” were equally as successful and solidified Nayobe’s standing as one of the innovators of the Latin hip-hop or freestyle movement.

Following the success of Nayobe’s singles, she was signed to WTG/Epic Records for whom she recorded “It’s Too Late” for the soundtrack of the film Twins, and an album, Promise Me, that featured collaborations with such producers as Teddy Riley and David Morales and spawned the hits “I Love The Way You Love Me,” and “I’ll Be Around.” The success of Promise Me in Japan found the singer touring the Far East to promote the record and to greet her fans. The demise of WTG Records found Nayobe in search of another avenue for her career. A 1995 collaboration with then up-and-coming hip-hop artist Fat Joe on the classic Mary Jane Girls song “All Night Long” took the versatile Nayobe in yet another direction. Release on Fever Records, the union of the two artists was explosive! Sony Latin offered Nayobe a recording contract in 1997 and released Dame Un Poco Mas, a Latin pop album that featured the bilingual hit “Let’s Party Tonight,” helmed by famed producer Tony Moran. The single and accompanying video received airplay on Spanish language radio stations and nightclubs across the United States. Also in 1997, Nayobe’s voice was used for Salma Hayek’s onscreen musical performance in the film 54.

Nayobe’s self-titled second Spanish language album was released on Parcha/Platano Records in 2000, and showcased the singer flexing her muscle in the Salsa arena, joining contemporaries Marc Anthony, India and Brenda K. Starr in taking her existing fans along for the ride, yet gaining many new fans along the way. The album housed such hits as the set’s first single “Come Una Loba” and a bilingual remake of The Jets’ “Make It Real.” After taking a break from the music industry to raise her now thirteen year-old daughter, also named Nayobe, 2005 finds Nayobe under new management with JR5 Productions, and back in the studio working with DJ Mike Cruz and Andy Lamboy on a tribal house cut called “You’re My Angel” that is already gaining momentum on big city dance floors in the U.S. and in Europe. Nayobe’s longtime fans will welcome her back to the place where it all started for her – the clubs!

"Since the release and subsequent success of her debut single “Please Don’t Go,” Nayobe has been a force in the music industry"