RamiroBurr.com

When an artist takes on a production role for the first time, it can be a major gamble says Tex-Mex singer Michelle.

“It can be very frustrating and there’s always a lot of pressure

 your first time,” Michelle said in a recent interview. “The most  frustrating moments of this CD were the long studio hours that the musicians, engineers and I had to put in to complete this CD the way we wanted it.

“It was a real challenge, trying to keep up everyone’s moral up especially when everyone was tired because they had  been recording and working hard for many, many hours. “

The result is Michelle’s latest CD, “Todos a Bailar,” a 10-track collection of fun cumbias, pop ballads and polkas.

The first single is the high-energy tune “Booty Bump,” a fast-paced urban cumbia designed to get the party started on the dance floor.  Fueled by hard percussions and a piping accordion, the lyrics invite fans to join the line dance.

“We wanted an easy tune for anyone to get into, from young couples, parents, and even kids,” said the singer who is known by her first name. Her last name is Garcia.

Michelle also collaborated on several songs with noted producer/songwriter Tony Guerrero of the venerable Tejano band La Sombra. She went so far as to record La Sombra’s classic tune “El Sapo.”

“ `Sapo’ was always one of my favorite songs. I remember sang it once live with Tony Guerrero and La Sombra in concert a long time ago,” she said. “Tony and I decided to change it up to fit the cumbia pop format on this CD and I recorded it.”

Michelle’s version is a little faster and she added a touch of hip-hop.

Because Michelle was producing for the first time, the album recording took a little longer than usual.

“The hardest part of this production for me was finding the right musicians and the material for this CD,” she said,. “This is the first CD that I have ever produced myself. Usually, I only co-produce my CD's, so  it was a hard task for me. It took several months to put it together.”

Other highlights on the CD include the mid-tempo cumbia “Pensando en ti,” the dance tune title track  “Todos a Bailar”and a cover of Jay Perez’s “Cumbia con Salsa.”