On January 10, Kenty Love, a Philly-based singer and songwriter, visited the newsroom for our third session of AL DÍA Jammin’. He sat down to talk about how he began playing music and how his experience has shaped his view of life.

Juan Carlos Burgos Torres was born and raised in Ponce, Puerto Rico until he moved to Philadelphia in 1994. 

He recalls with an anecdote the way he began playing music at the age of nine. He and his mother made a bet with the church pastor to see who would learn to play the piano first. He won the bet and realized it was all a trap–he would start playing in the church choir soon after. 

Kenty Love continued learning and his passion grew as well. He remembers a time when he was at his grandma’s house and saw a video for “November Rain” by Guns and Roses, which first sparked his interest in a new genre.

He also remembers sneaking out at night to go to bars and listen to music from a jukebox. That is when he heard Franco De Vita for the first time and his first exposure to ballads. 

Once he moved to Philadelphia, he started to learn guitar and by the time he was in high school, also began playing keyboard in a Merengue and Salsa band. 

It wasn’t long ago that he started to sing and write his own songs. One of the first songs he wrote was “Rosa” which was inspired by a girl with the same name. From there, he began writing more and he even produced his latest music video titled “Volver a Probar” 

In 2014, with a group of friends who are also local musicians, Kenty Love started a movement called Philly Alternativo. Their purpose was to bring well-known Latin Alternative bands to Philadelphia that often skip it in favor of bigger cities like New York City and Washington D.C.

They also wanted to bring bands to the city that are out of the mainstream: reggae, alternative and rock bands instead of the more common genres like salsa or bachata. 

“There is still more music, and still latino” said Kenty Love. 

The most rewarding thing for him about creating Philly Alternativo is bringing the community together for those concerts and seeing his friends participating and also meeting the artists. 

He has had the opportunity to open concerts with local bands such as Hero Street, Candela, and Tribal Scream. They have been fortunate to bring artists like Los Amigos Invisibles, Jarabe de Palo, Aterciopelados and many more. 

Kenty Love is known for being a very optimistic individual and you can also hear it in his lyrics. Before he started Philly Alternativo he recalls making a vision board. In it, he photoshopped himself playing in front of a big crowd. 

His vision became a reality, but he did not realize it until he opened a concert for one of these artists and started singing. From then on, he continued making these visions boards and reminding himself that “it’s not just thinking about it, you have to do something...also have to put work in”

He finds it very rewarding when he is playing somewhere and the crowd starts singing his own songs. This is how much of an impact he’s had in a community that loves this genre of music. 

Kenty Love did not want to leave the AL DÍA without emphasizing the importance of supporting the local bands. Another reason he started Philly Alternativo was to give exposure to these bands who have been working hard to gain traction in the city.

He left with a great message for the youth from his experience working at a place for 14 years and leaving to do freelance Graphic Design and continue making music. 

“Be happy...if you’re going to do something make sure that you like doing it”