It all started with one voice, one vision, and one social media post. Award-winning singer Sonja De La Paz voiced her opinion loud and clear on her Facebook page last November, stating, “Do ya’ll think we’ll ever see flyers like this for Tejano? All the flyers I see are all dudes! Where the ladies at?! Someone needs to make a Chingona Fest!”

Well, this post hit a chord with many other female artists and shared her voice and opinion.

De La Paz added, “Not to bash male artists, but I was tired of seeing so many promotions for male artists, and not many for females, especially when there are so many new amazing female artists out there that don’t get a lot of credit or even a mention.”

Time is money and many spoke and approached the idea, but it wasn’t until the news hit Tejano ROOTS Hall of Fame concert promoter Jim Luna of Quartermoon Productions, that brought this idea to fruition. When Luna heard about this amazing idea, he knew something had to be done immediately. So he reached out to De La Paz and started planning a history-making event, Diva Mania in Angleton, Texas this September.

“It sounds like an old cliche, but it really is history in the making,” said Luna. “Nothing like this has ever been done before, and I knew it was their time to shine si prestó la oportunidad (if given the chance) and I spoke to the city of Angleton, my hometown, where we have concerts in the park, an outdoor event, and free to the public, that would be a great venue.”

Luna had actually thought of the idea before the pandemic hit and had seen so many female artists post daily about it and thought it was time for Quartermoon to get behind this idea.

“I think it’s something that needs to be done and it should have been done a long time ago,” added Luna. “There are so many talented females in this industry and a lot of them don’t get their time in la Onda Tejana.”

Diva Mania will showcase 10 female artists for the free event on Friday, September 16, 2022, at Veterans Memorial Park in Angleton, Texas. Artists scheduled to perform include De La Paz, Monica Saldivar, Anjelique, Savannah V, Sarah Monique, Demmi Garcia, Magali Delarosa, Karla Christina, Devin Banda, and Alize Nino. There will also be a “Million Dollar Band” under the musical direction of Mario Ortiz Jr. and JR Gomez, and an array of many great musicians consisting of an eight-piece band including two horns and a percussionist.

Savannah V stated that music producer Gabriel Zavala highly recommended her to Luna, and that “being a female in any genre or job is hard enough, whether working in a doctor’s office or an artist in the entertainment industry, women are often not perceived as strong as men or capable getting the job done right or even paid as much. We need to be bold, strong, and work together so we can bring unity to this industry…and this is just the beginning for us and for all other female artists out there.”

Sonja De La Paz summed up the whole concept of this amazing, historical event, when asked what this Diva Mania concert meant to her, and stated, “Chingona, Unity, and Spark.” From one voice to now thousands of others, this is just one testimony of what the power of media and one’s opinion, and motivation can do.

On The Move with Enrique Santos