Orquesta La Palabra

Rodolfo M. Foster, better known as Fito Foster or La Palabra, is an influential figure in the Latin music world, notably for pioneering the Salsa Romántica genre. Born in Caimanera, Cuba, his musical journey began at a young age, inspired by various Cuban music genres and artists. He started taking piano lessons at the age of 11 and moved to the United States in 1966, where he began to attend night clubs specializing in tropical music in his teens. His entry into the music scene was marked by his playing with several local groups such as Lalo y La New Yorkina, The Blazers, Brainstorm, The Five Specials, and Norma Belle's band. After a failed attempt to join Stevie Wonder's Phoenix Rising in the late 1970s, La Palabra became a key figure in the development of Salsa Romántica, a genre that combined romantic ballads with tropical rhythms. Throughout the 1980s, he pioneered salsa in the Los Angeles area with Orquesta Versalles and later formed the group Sensation 85, releasing a self-titled that contained the popular track "Rumores." The following decades found the Cuban-born musician kickstarting the project Orquesta La Palabra, releasing the 2000 album On Fire, which featured a rendition of Lionel Richie's hit single "Lady." The band continued to make major contributions to Latin music with albums like Breakthrough (2003) and Musicholic (2009), both of which showcased the group's mastery of Afro-Cuban jazz and modern Latin jazz.