I just lit some incense and my Virgen de Guadalupe candle. As the smoke rises and flames toss shadows on the wall, I pause to reflect on the album we created together and what it brought in 2014!

In January, the band and I were rehearsing our faces off for the February CD release of Up.Rooted. Jodi and I were scrambling to find sponsors and sell tickets to our debut at the Stateside Theatre. This was no ordinary venue, we needed stage hands, dancers, lighting cues, and how were we going to fill 300 seats?

I don't get nervous before shows, but on the night of the big release,

I was FREAKING OUT. Gracias a Dios, Jodi works well under pressure. She solved every issue that arose with grace and not a single complaint while I paced around backstage nibbling tortilla chips.

That night set the stage for a phenomenal year. We played our hearts out to a beautiful SOLD OUT crowd, I avoided a wardrobe malfunction, AND we raised $5,000 for the Nina Arriba college fund!

By late February, Up.Rooted was already getting rave review with The Boston Globe, USA Today, and a four-star review in The Austin Chronicle!

In March, my family welcomed my squeezable nephew Rafael, and I took off on a 10-day tour of California with Johanna Chase where we recorded this video with Las Cafeteras. I returned home to play an Official SXSW showcase and be humbled by not one, but THREE Austin Music Awards, including Best Female Vocals!

In April I was invited to the NPR mothership to record this feature for All Things Considered, which landed us at #1 on the Amazon Latin charts and #5 on iTunes alongside Shakira, Pitbull and Santana - mande?!

After a quick jaunt to play one of the coolest festivals in the country - International Festival in Lafayette -- I was invited to share the stage with Latin Grammy winner Gaby Moreno, where Jodi and I met this guy. Then it was off to Dallas to share the stage with none other than Noel Paul Stookey (i.e. "Paul" of Peter, Paul, and Mary)!

In July we laid to rest our fluffy UT-colored cat, Red (i.e. #mrpookins). July marked my 3rd annual trip to NYC for a Latin music conference where I managed to leave my luggage on the subway, DOH! But I won a microphone and Sammy and I debuted our duo show before heading off to meet Michael for a music retreat in Lago Chapala, Mexico, where the trio became roomies, hiked, volunteered with the local kiddos and basically ate, drank and slept music.

Oh and we recorded this on a rooftop and this on a boat.

August gifted us the opportunity to record our first real music video on the same day that we played our most incredible show of the year for Black Fret at Arlyn Studios. KLRU's Arts In Context also caught us on camera that day.

September dropped some big news as Jodi and I were prepping for our return

to El Salvador for the first time in four years. My song, "Siete-D" won the John Lennon Songwriting Contest in the Latin category! The crazier part is that this HUGE news traveled to El Salvador and a beautiful feature in their major newspaper prompted more than 45,000 views on this video and paved the way for the

trio's amazing debut tour in El Salvador. But the best part was reuniting with our Salvadoran sisters, three of whom are going to college because of your support!

In November, came the Black Ball at The Paramount Theatre, a night I will never forget. Sixteen bands played in a true awards-style show where they

announced the first $10,000 Black Fret grant recipients.

After our kickass performance, we found out...

WE WON one of the grants! *squeal*

In December, the Good Music Club surprised me with my very own DVD+CD set of one of our shows. It's wonderful and you can get a copy at Waterloo in Austin or online at CD Baby!

So now it's the last day of the year and I am overwhelmed by the intensity of this year and the love and support you have shown me. I'm not sure how to repay you other than to promise more AMAZING music, performances and videos in 2015!

Speaking of which, we have an incredible show tonight with Grupo Fantasma at The Belmont. Put your thermals on and COME PARTY WITH US!

Wishing you a PHENOMENAL 2015!

with love,

la gina "chancleta"

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