From ballads to ballots ...
Earlier this year, Marc Anthony appeared in a Latinos for Obama video, encouraging Hispanics to back Barack's reelection bid. And over the last seven months, the soulful salsero has increasingly poured his energy into the president's reelection bid, shifting his focus from music to politics.
"Latinos are a force that can, and will, help decide this election," Marc Anthony said in the ad. "And it's a good thing that we've got so much to say, right? We have jobs, the economy, [and] education. President Obama is on our side on all of them. We just have to make sure that he gets four more years to make more progress. The president has our back."
The president's record, however, has suggested otherwise.
In December 2011, ABC News reported that under Obama's administration, an average of 400,000 people were being deported from the United States each year, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
Over 95 percent of deportees in 2010 were Hispanics, the same group that makes up 80 percent of the country's illegal immigrants and a "key constituency for Obama's re-election campaign."
The prez and his campaign apparatus has had to work tirelessly to regain the Hispanic vote. A few "Yo Decido" t-shirts and "Latinos for Obama" bumper stickers won't convince immigrants that POTUS is on their side. It takes Puerto Rican star power. And Marc Anthony's video was only the beginning of his Latinos for Obama campaign.
Shortly after appearing in the ad, the 43-year-old salsa king hosted a private dinner with the president at the Miami home of Abigail and F.J. Pollak, charging upwards of $40,000 per person for the three-course feast that featured duck confit, key lime diver scallops, and dark rum chorizo pecan ice cream.
But with just three months left until the November 6 election, Anthony seems to have put the campaigning on hold. He'll hit the road on a 14-city trek dubbed the Gigantes tour, alongside Mexican crooner Marco Antonio Solis and Puerto Rican pop singer Cheyenne, beginning on Friday, August 3, in Miami.
Though it's the first time the three superstars will tour together, the three men have collaborated on other projects in the past.
"I think it's helped that we worked together," Anthony said in April. "We all want to present a spectacle that connects the three of us in one show. Our fans deserve this kind of show."
"Being in front of an audience is special, but doing it along with Marco and Marc will be unforgettable," Chayanne said at a promotional event earlier this month. "In some ways we are very different, but when it comes to putting on a great show for our fans, we have very much in common. Plus, we've got a few surprises in store for everyone."
Maybe a voter registration rally?
Gigantes Tour with Marc Anthony, Chayanne, and Marco Antonio Solis. Friday, August 3, and Saturday, August 4. American Airlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., Miami. The concerts begin at 8 p.m. and tickets cost $54 to $229 plus fees via ticketmaster.com. Call 786-777-1000 or visit aaarena.com.
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