María José (singer)

María José
Background information
Birth name	Maria José Loyola
Also known as	La Josa
Born	(1976-01-12) January 12, 1976
Origin	Mexico City, Mexico
Genres	Latin pop, dance music, electronica
Occupation(s)	Singer, songwriter
Years active	1992–present
Labels	Warner Music(2006–2007), OCESA Seitrack (2007-Present)
Associated acts	Kabah, OV7, Trey Songz, Espinoza Paz
Website	Maria Jose Oficial Official fan site Official fan site

María José (born January 12, 1976) is a singer, ballet and flamenco dancer, and athlete. She has a B.A. in communications. She is well known and established within the music industry since she was part of a very popular pop-singing band in Mexico, Kabah, from the mid to late 1990s.

Her first experience on stage was at age 14 as a dancer in the Spanish Dance Company led by Maria Elena Anaya. She remained in the dance company participating with flamenco songs as well.

Career as a solo singer

During 2007, Maria Jose posed for the cover of MAX magazine, the equivalent of Maxim in the US.

She opened for Gwen Stefani's The Sweet Escape Tour in Mexico. This part of the tour included concerts in Arena Monterrey in Monterrey and in Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City. She also appeared in the Reventour, a series of concerts in several places in Mexico, both as a singer and as a host.

In late July, she was part of an American tour with LU and Motel and announced the release of her first album in August in the United States, which she promoted extensively. She was also invited to participate in Hoy No Me Puedo Levantar, the Mexican musical based on the career and songs of the Spanish pop group Mecano.

She was nominated for Best New Artist in the Premios Oye!, the Mexican equivalent of the Grammys. Maria Jose shared the category with Eiza Gonzales, from the telenovela Lola...Érase una vez and the pop duo Jesse & Joy, who won the award.

She participated in El Show de los Sueños from September 30 to October 19, 2008, finishing in fourth place. In the first show, along with her counterpart Thalía, she sang "Tocando Fondo". In the following show the two sang "Te Aprovechas". In the third show they sang "No me quedas mas" and in the fourth show they sang "Quererte a ti". In the fifth show "Amores Extranos" followed by the sixth show with "Amiga Mia".

On February 6, 2010, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors proclaimed February 6 as "Maria Jose Day" during her club performance in the city.

First album María José

In 2007, her first solo album, Maria Jose, was announced and the first single "Quien Eres Tu?", featuring Trey Songz and of dance and hip-hop influences, started to pick up airplay in Mexico.

Two weeks after the release date, the album reached number 84.^[1] This song has also appeared on iTunes as a free single during the week of January 11, 2008.

She has said in various interviews that she expects the second single to be "Mas de ti" or "Habla menos". "Me Equivoque", another track from the album, has garnered major digital sales in Mexico.

In late August, "Me Equivoque", along with its video, was released. "¿Donde Esta?", the third and final single of the album, was officially released in April 2008. The song's video was filmed in Mexico City at Estudios Churubusco. Twenty fans, who were chosen after winning a contest, were invited to attend the filming.^[2]

Josa announced on April 18, 2008, that she had officially left Warner Music. No explanation was given, but her third single was released as an independent artist and not with the help of Warner Music.^[3]

Track listing

Second album Amante de lo Ajeno

Ppromotion of her second album began with a short performance as the opening act of Rihanna's Disturbia tour in Mexico City on January 24, 2009.^[4] She premiered the song "No soy una señora" during the show.

Amante de lo ajeno was released on May 12, 2009. It consists of 11 songs that had been hits by pop divas in the 1980s.

Track listing

* Special edition

"No soy una señora" was launched as the first single on March 2, and has become very popular in Mexico especially among teenagers.^[4] The follow-up singles were "Mi Amor, Amor" and "Adelante Corazón", both of which experienced success in Mexican charts. The fourth single was planned to be "Sola No, Yo No Se Estar", but was scrapped due to the release of her third album.

Third album Amante de lo Bueno

María José released her third album, Amante de lo Bueno, on November 9, 2010. It is another compilation of hits from the 1980s. The first single, "La Ocasión Para Amarnos", was released in October. The single became another huge success in Mexico.

Track listing

* Special Edition

Fourth album De Noche

María José released her fourth album, De Noche worldwide on iTunes on August 15, 2012. It is her second album with all new songs. The first single, "Tú Ya Sabes a Mí", was released in June 2012. "Extraña" was released as a single in Spain.

Track listing

Influences

María José has declared many times that a few of her major influences are Eugenia León, Rocío Dúrcal, Mecano, Moenia, Celine Dion, Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey and Boyz 2 Men.

Discography

Kabah

Solo artist

References

External links

• María José Oficial
• María José at Sei Track Musica