Rumba Love

Cancel the noise.

Listen.

Music's everywhere.

We breathe and we swallow with the place.

Pay attention to it.

Do let it connect.

There's a pleasing combination of elements.

They all have different callers and different sounds.

Listen to them.

There is a deep structure.

Music aligned.

The harmony that complements the melody.

Don't pay attention to the noise.

That is only noise.

Concentrate your attention.

Recalibrate your mind.

Music is inside.

It resides inside of you.

Just feel it.

Just sense it.

Embrace it.

It's coming from you. It's coming from your heart.

Music is right there.

That's what I learned from you.

Hello, everyone. Welcome to Minton's Playhouse,

the most iconic jazz parlor in Harlem, New York City,

the United States, and the world.

Minton's was established in 1938.

We are celebrating 81 years of musical legacy.

Today we have a very special guest,

He is a great Cuban-American singer,

so please, help me welcome Mr. Nico Quevedo.

Thank you for that.

You know, this moment...

...right here, right now...

...is all we have.

It's all we are.

This night.

So let's have fun tonight. Right?

Let's give it up for the band.

Now this song,

this one's special for me,

because I couldn't sing this song in a while.

And as we said, tonight is the night.

As the old ones used to say in Cuba,

if you want your rumba to be profound,

you have to learn how to sing out of your own pain.

You want your rumba to be heard,

let the drums cry your sorrow.

Allow your heart to sing your blues.

I made this song

when I learned how to transform my pain into music.

You have to help me on this.

I really need you.

Nico!

Nico.

Yeah.

Yeah, why not? I'll take it to go, though.

-Thank you. -Go?

Good old days, huh? Good old days are gone, Chino.

I'll pay for it next week. Thank you.

You're cheating on the world.

What are you talking about?

I don't get it.

I don't fucking get it!

You said you were gonna help me on this.

You told me that.

You're full of shit.

Full of... Fuck.

I have to endure all this by myself,

and you can't even keep your word?

What's wrong with you?

What's the matter?

I stayed here because of you.

We had something. It was something special.

It was real.

What do I have now?

Nothing. I have nothing.

You don't wanna talk to me. You don't wanna listen to me.

You don't wanna pay attention to me. You don't wanna help me.

What do you want? What the fuck do you want?!

You want rum?

Let me get you a little bit of rum.

You wanna go to the beach?

Hmm?

I can take you to a baseball game if you want.

We can have drinks.

We can go out.

We can have fun. Is that what you want?

Huh?

What do you want? What the fuck do you want?!

What do you want?!

You...

You're not clear with me.

There's just no communication at all.

You don't wanna be my friend no more?

Why?

Why are you doing this to me? Why?

I can't sing.

I can't... write.

I can't... I cannot play because I don't feel it.

I don't have it no more.

I don't have...

Don't take that away from me, bro.

Don't take it away from me because that's all I have.

That's all I have.

Don't take it away.

Don't take it away from me.

Don't take it away from me.

Don't take it away.

Thank you.

Hey, really cool music, Nicolas. Nicolas, is it?

Yeah. Yeah.

Man, I heard you're not even from around here.

I was born in Jersey, but I'm Cuban.

And what brought you back out here?

Well, you know, oh, music.

Well, listen. You got that music thing down.

Is it all, like, your music?

- -Eh.

Wrote it with my best friend.

Anyway, listen. Really, really cool music.

-I'm Bob Arenas, by the way. -Ah, Nicolas .

So which one was he in the band,

your friend in the band?

He's dead. Passed away three months ago.

Sorry about that, man. I-I didn't know.

What was his name?

Celso.

Celso Quiñones.

-It was nice meeting you. -Um...

Hey, you know...

I'm a music manager and producer in New York.

Check it out.

[children shouting playfully in distance]

Listen, I would like to discuss with you the possibility

of bringing you back out there, man.

I really like what you have, seriously,

and I think New York is a better market--

Look, I'm-- I'm not interested.

You must be the only Cuban musician

that has no interest in getting out of here.

-Gotta go. Thank you. -Hey, Nico.

Just... Listen, think about it.

The number in the back is where I'm staying.

Check out the back.

If you change your mind, hit me up.

I can help you. Trust me.

Nico!

I thought I would never see you again.

I promised I was gonna come back.

Yeah.

That was four years ago.

I never said when.

And I had a good teacher.

I can't believe he's gone.

Yep.

We had good times together.

Ahh.

We wanted to change the world with music.

We wanted to take all this...

our roots, our background, the poetry,

and to put it out there.

I wanted to understand who I was, and now...

I don't even know who I am.

And then... cancer.

Cancer took everything from him.

I took care of him all the way to the end, you know.

One day...

One day we were celebrating his last birthday,

and I sang a song I wrote for him.