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Willie Gomez has found his place out of the background and into the spotlight. For over a decade, the 30-year-old devoted his time on stage, dancing next to some of the biggest entertainers, including, Jennifer Lopez , Christina Aguilera and the Princess of Pop (and his pal) Britney Spears . Now, it’s his time to live out his dreams singing. “It’s amazing that I’m able to now focus on something that I really wanted to do for a long time,” he tells HOLA! USA. “I’m recording my album and writing a ton of material for it.”
Willie decided that it was time to put himself out there by the best way, social media – performing his own songs as well as covers of Sebastian Yatra. “I started doing all these covers and uploading all of that stuff to social media,” he shares. “I feel like nowadays, it’s the way you put yourself out there and get heard and seen.”
At the height of the coronavirus pandemic, Willie found another way to show his talents to the world. With the support of Live Nation, he was able to perform in their first ever virtual world tour. “I feel like where we are right now,” everyone is trying to find ways to keep moving forward.” In this edition of New, Now, Latinx , Willie talks to us about his decision to leave the world of dance behind, what he’s bringing to the world of Latin pop, and what it means to get a musical blessing from Britney Spears.
HOLA! USA: First, explain who exactly is Willie Gomez? “I am Dominican. I‘m an artist. I grew up in Miami. I’ve signed my first record deal at the end of last year. So, I’ve been able to focus, to give all my energy toward the music, which is what I’ve been wanting to do for a long time. Before I mainly focused on dancing. I got to work with people like JLo, Britney, Christina, Katy Perry and a bunch of others to name some.”
Why did you leave your successful career as a dancer? “When I started dancing at the age of 14/15, I also took acting and singing. My first job that I got offered was as a dancer, and I found myself kind of making some money. Then, I stopped everything else, and I stuck to just being a dancer for some time and got to dance with a lot of people that I admired. And I feel like I reached a point that I wanted to keep growing and keep doing things, that fulfilled me.”
You worked alongside some of the greats in pop music – has that contributed to your sound? “Yes! It’s Latin pop. You‘re definitely going to get a couple of ballads. You know those heartfelt sap songs, because I love those. But the album is going to have some mid-tempo and a lot of up-tempo stuff too because I need that for me and for everyone else. I feel like everyone misses that big energy type of music, as a dancer. The stuff is definitely something that I need to have on my album for sure. So that I’m able to really push everything that I can do, you know as an artist.”
Will you be singing in Spanish or English? “We‘re focusing on the Spanish side of the market. You’re definitely going to get a bunch of my songs, that will have a little bit of English in there, but they’re Spanish-focused. Spanish, Latin base, my roots, this is what feels natural to me. And I feel that the Latin industry right now and Latin market is so big. The way that it’s been accepted in the entire world is a massive thing. The fact that I’m able to be a part of this now, I think it’s very special.”
Who are some of your influences? “I love Ricky Martin . I listen to J Balvin , Maluma . All of these amazing artists that we have nowadays. I’m listening to all of them and get inspiration a little bit from each of them of course.”
You have worked with Jennifer Lopez, Christina Aguilera and Britney. Have any of them reached out to give you any advice? “I have a really good relationship with Britney. I’ve worked for her the longest out of all of them. When she found out that I was focusing on music, she got super excited. She asked me to share with her all the stuff that I had recorded. And when I gave her all the demos and things that I was working at the time, she couldn’t believe it.“She even went in her social media and posted a video. She was like, ‘One of my dancers Willie Gomez, talent. I didn’t know he could sing like that. I wish him the best on his adventure.’ I think that was very special. And apart from her, not having really gotten that from another celebrity, I couldn’t believe it. When she did it, I was in shock. It’s a very rare gesture.”
What’s next? “I‘m still working on finishing my album. We have a big single that we’re trying to put out soon, but just because of the whole situation has been pushed back a little bit. We’re also working on a remix of Malice and the 900, the featuring we can’t play through just yet. That’s also the end of work. That will come on hopefully very soon. And just keep creating and writing for right now, from home. We don’t know how long we’re going to be in this. So we have to keep putting stuff out there and stuff.”