she heard from her mother’s piano, her father’s vinyl records, her siblings’ CDs and from the clubs she frequented on Manhattan’s lower east side.
“Eljuri is the best guitar player in the Latin Rock Scene.” –Oscar Sarquiz, IMER RADIO MX
Managed by Alexandra Gatje from the independent label Manovill Records and backed up by a rotating lineup of seasoned musicians from the US and Mexico, Eljuri released her first solo album ‘En Paz’ in 2008. The critically acclaimed album was supported by her first international tours and a new and enthusiastic fan base from Latin America who Eljuri explains, “truly understood my music for the first time. Not only because of the reference to Latin rhythms but, because as a solo artist, I found that my lyrics were coming naturally to me in Spanish.”
“Her songs marked by fusions of pop and rock with Caribbean rhythms, emphasize the use of her guitar, which has been described as reminiscent of a young Santana.” — AL BORDE
Having gathered stories from musicians and fans she met while on tour, Eljuri went back into the studio to record her second solo album in 2012. This time recording songs with a ferocious yearning to express her anger and give voice to atrocities we as a global society were witnessing. The album’s title, ‘Fuerte’ was intended to encourage strength and the courage to stand up for what is right, what is true and what we can change using the power of our voices.
“With her exuberant stage presence, Eljuri delivers songs with memorable hooks that immediately engage the listener.” — EL NUEVO HERALD
For over a decade, Eljuri has performed on world renowned stages; at Vive Latino, Mexico’s most celebrated music festival attended by more than 250,000 enthusiastic fans; the Luminato Festival where she made her 2015 Canadian debut; the Houston iFest where she shared the main stage bill with Los Lonely Boys, War and Steel Pulse; at Chicago’s famed Millenium Park where the Chicago Sun Times proclaimed “Eljuri among the best bets, at the Viva Chicago Music Festival”; as featured international performer and guest of Doctor Krapula at the Viva el Planeta Festival in the Bogota Sports Stadium, Colombia; at the 2015 Mujeres Al Frente Fest in Guadalajara, Mexico where she headlined her first festival; in 2016 as headliner of the Prismatic Festival in Halifax, Nova Scotia and as a leader of the Women’s Movement in 2017 for the Festival CDMX por los Derechos de las Mujeres held on the iconic stage in the main Zócalo of Mexico City, at the 2018 Women’s March on NYC and looks forward to her first performance at Musikfest 2019 in Bethlehem, PA.
Self-described as a songwriter primarily, Eljuri found herself digging deeper than ever before into both her Spanish and Lebanese roots and into her experience as an immigrant to the US for the collection of songs on her third solo album, ‘La Lucha’ (Manovill Records 2016). Eljuri reaffirms her relevance in a constantly changing global music landscape.
“Cecilia Villar Eljuri is a triple threat: She’s an accomplished songwriter, a great vocalist and one hell of a guitar player.” — NPR MUSIC, Alt-Latino
“I continue to look at myself, my journeys passed and my path forward — I’m evolving and embracing it,” says Eljuri. She titled the album, ‘La Lucha’ (The Fight) for her lyrical messages. She continues, “The themes of these songs center around stopping injustice. I’m using my voice and guitar to drive and inspire positive social change. Like the Rolling Stones say ‘you can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need.’”
“‘La Lucha’ bounces confidently between fiery Santana-esque rock, reggae, Motown pop and vintage Cuban dance rhythms.” — THE VILLAGE VOICE
You get what you need, and you make what you need. Eljuri wrote a motivating theme to inspire her sisters and brothers who are in the fight against injustice for the long haul. Her message and the title of the track is ‘Keep it Up’. Caught off guard and inspired by this undeniable tune, Eljuri and her label, Manovill Records, decided to record and produce ‘Keep It Up’ in time to release the song before the 2018 midterm elections in the United States. This was the first time Eljuri released a single independent of an album.
With new material and a refreshed look to her collection of original reggae songs, Manovill Records released ‘Resiste: La Colección Reggae de Eljuri’ on Friday April 12, 2019. No stranger to the reggae genre, Eljuri comes to this juncture in her career naturally. She has been writing reggae tunes since her early days with the Trouble Dolls on New York City’s lower east side. True to her activist self, Eljuri ripped the lyrics for ‘Resiste,’ the title track and first single from the collection, straight from today’s headlines. Also included on the album are the songs ‘Una Ola’ and ‘El Aire‘ from her debut album ‘En Paz,’ which were deemed roots-reggae by Dermot Hussey the legendary broadcaster and musicologist; and winner of the John Lennon International Songwriting Contest (World Category) Eljuri’s anti-gun violence song ‘BangBang’.
“I feel compelled to testify honestly, powerfully and without fear. I’ve learned from the masters of reggae how to speak my mind boldly and to give voice to the concerns of many. I am so inspired to live in a time where we are all confidently pressing for change together.” –CECILIA VILLAR ELJURI
Eljuri performs as a power trio; touring with stellar professional musicians, many of whom have played with her for five years or more. Cecilia Villar Eljuri leads on guitars and vocals; with Alex Alexander, drums (David Bowie, Youssou N'Dour, Eminem), Winston Roye, bass (Soul Asylum, Shakira, Lauren Hill), Johnny Pisano, bass (Deborah Harry, Marky Ramone, Ryan Adams), Tracy Wormworth, bass (B52s, Sting, Wayne Shorter), Coca Cortes, bass (Los De Abajo) and Javo Sosa, drums (Maldita Vecindad).
“Outstanding Ecuadorian-born, New York-based singer-songwriter Eljuri... Fusing socially conscious lyrics with blistering guitar rock, she blended missionary fervor with impeccable musicianship.” — CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
As a musical activist, Eljuri has been a lead organizer for the Women’s March on NYC since the original march in January 2017. Through benefit performances and by lending her music to globally significant causes, Eljuri has helped to raise funds for immigrants to the US through a benefit concert for the NYCLU, for victims of the recent earthquake in Ecuador and has built clean water centers with and serves on the Boards of ViaTalenta and Aquality International (formerly Water Ecuador). She developed and offers her bilingual ‘Eljuri on Guitars / Eljuri en las Guitarras’ workshops to schools, community centers and as a master class to music schools for aspiring guitarists and musicians. As a role model to the Latinx community, Cecilia leads her ‘Artivism: How to Find and Use Your Voice / Artivismo: Como encontrar y usar su propia voz’ and emphasizes the importance of education and music as a vehicle of expression at engagements including as a keynote speaker at Columbia University / Barnard College. She serves as a member of the artist coalition for VotoLatino, a US based organization that provides culturally relevant programs to empower Latinos to be agents of change and to build a more inclusive democracy and the Women’s March Alliance helping to raise awareness about the organization’s work.
“No doubt, the activist Eljuri raises awareness about the themes that she weaves through her songs. . . in Mexico City, she motivates us to defend our rights and speak up in the face of injustice.” —REVISTA GM5
Eljuri has garnered awards for her songwriting from Billboard, the USA Songwriting Competition, and the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, twice, was designated a finalist in the 2018 World Citizen Artist Awards, and was just named the winner of the 2019 Songs for Social Change Songwriting Competition by the Renaissance Artist and Writers Association.
‘Ya Es Hora,’ her video about a soldier returning from service and suffering from PTSD was selected as an official video to five international film festivals winning Best Music Video at the 2015 Voiceless International Film Festival. Her original music has been heard in movie scores (Solitary Man, Snitch, Away from Here) and on internationally syndicated TV shows (NCIS LA, Dexter, ESPN, From Spain with Love, Privileged, One Night Stand with Annie Sibonney, I Used to Be Fat, Workin' Moms).
Eljuri proudly endorses Gibson Guitars, D’Angelico Guitars, JH Audio Custom In-Ear Monitors, Mono Cases and Moody Guitar Straps.
For more information about Eljuri, visit her website and EPK:
www.eljurimusic.com www.sonicbids.com/eljuri
CONTACT and booking in the US, Canada and Europe:
Alexandra Gatje, Manovill Records, tel: 917.744.9464, alex@eljurimusic.com
Media Contact for US and Canada:
(Latin) Elena Rodrigo, The Music Joint, tel: 818.210.5125, erodrigo@themusicjointgroup.com
(World) Ron Kadish, Rock Paper Scissors, tel: 812.339.1195, ron@rockpaperscissors.biz
Media and Booking in Mexico / Media Contact for South America:
Monica Frias Gil, Verbigracia, tel: 011 5255.4752.7796, monica@verbigracia.com.mx
