Noelia Does Proud By Mom And Puerto Rico

MIAMI-When word first got around that Noelia, the daughter of Puerto Rican pop diva Yolandita Monge, was going to release a solo album, the initial reaction among industry observers and fans from her home island was tinged with skepticism.
After all, her mother-famed for her girlish voice and womanly figure-is one of the island's most enduring recording stars, while stepdad Topy Mamery is a well-known concert promoter and artist manager.
Many figured that Noelia was twisting her finger around Mom's sequined apron strings and that the disc was an act of parental indulgence.
But the commercial prosperity of the Fonovisa star's eponymous debut album, which spent more than 10 months on The Billboard Latin 50, quashed any debate about her artistic merits.
The 22-year-old Noelia has with her first disc accomplished what more seasoned performers have been unable to do after years of exposure: achieve stardom outside of Puerto Rico. And most surprising of all, she did it without her parents' coaching or connections.
As a high school student living with her parents in Miami, Noelia repeatedly voiced her interest in pursuing a recording career. "I spent hours trying to convince them to help me," Noelia recalls. "I'd say, "Topy, help me become a singer,' and he'd say, "OK, we're going to launch your career,' and he'd laugh like it was a big joke."
Though she says "Mommy always knew" she would someday become an artist, Noelia says her mother had strong reservations.
"Perhaps as a result of her [Monge's] experience, what she went through starting out, and acting out of maternal instinct-being overprotective and all that-she didn't think the time had come.
"But as someone who is leaving adolescence and entering adulthood, I wanted to strike out on my own and take a bite out of life," she says.
Upon graduating at 18, Noelia left the nest in Miami for her native Puerto Rico. And though not embittered, as was widely reported in the island press, she never sought her parents' help again.
After working in retail, Noelia landed a job as receptionist for the management company of star salsero Gilberto Santa Rosa.
Before long, Noelia, still harboring her aspirations for a recording career, became a production assistant. One day she summoned her courage and handed Santa Rosa a homemade demo tape in which she sang a cappella. Then she held her breath. "He listened to it, and much to my surprise he started giving me all kinds of advice.
"I told him I didn't have the contacts or resources to do a proper demo," Noelia continues. "The next week, he called the office and told me we were going to the studio of [producer] Cucco Pe˜a to cut a demo tape. I wanted to die! I didn't know what song I was going to sing, I wasn't prepared . . . I'll never forget it."
Pe˜a, one of Latin music's most acclaimed producers of tropical-rooted music, says many aspiring artists walking unrehearsed into his studio as Noelia did "would become frightened by the microphone."
But Noelia turned out to be a natural. "We didn't have to give her much coaching," Pe˜a says. "That impressed me. She acted as if she'd been doing it since she was in the crib."
As for her album, Noelia credits Miami-based producer Est fano for her instant success. Est fano penned seven of the 10 tracks on her album, including her leadoff smash "Tú," a teary-eyed torch number, and the uptempo shaker "Candela," which captures Noelia's coquettish side.
Noelia and Est fano proved to be a potent team.
Noelia's album spent 41 weeks on the Billboard Latin 50 chart, peaking at No. 7. Among the singles, "Tú" spent 26 weeks on Hot Latin Tracks, roosting as high as No. 5, while "Candela" reached No. 27 and "Toco La Luz" charted at No. 32.
Noelia says it was important for her to be "authentic," not a fabricated artist called on by record label hands to be marketed as a "bimbo or sex bunny."
Est fano, Noelia says, spent three weeks getting to know her before sitting down to compose. "His lyrics were tailor-made for me," she declares, "just like a dress that fits like it's painted on your body. He really did a masterpiece for me; the truth is I identify with everything he wrote."
Independently compiled hit parades have reported Noelia near or at the top of the charts in scores of countries throughout Central and South America, where she has been touring for the past nine months.
Her pan-regional stardom has raised Noelia's artistic sights for the sophomore release that she is recording.
"I'm going to do some fast numbers, something that's going to get inside people so they can let loose all that Latin energy," she says. Noelia also plans to include some songs she wrote herself.
Noelia asserts that the reports of friction between her and her mother have been misguided, and though her mother initially resisted her decision to seek the spotlight, the two are friends and confidantes.
"She [Monge] was just in Argentina promoting her new record," Noelia says. "And she heard my song all over the radio, at the top of the playlists. When we spoke over the phone, she was euphoric. She said, "You're the first Puerto Rican artist to make it big in Argentina with her first record.' . . . She got all carried away and said, "I don't think I'm any good at being the mother of such a famous star, because it makes me nervous.' "