Freddie Colloca (One Voice) Unconditional – April 16, 2002
Miami-based One Voice Records Latin pop artist Freddie Colloca has worked hard on his recent release, which was produced by Hal Batt (Julio Eglesias, Chayanne) and Don Koch (4HIM, NewSong). Freddie, who has been called Christian music’s answer to Ricky Martin, is currently the host of CBN Network’s 1-Cubed, a music video show that reaches over 25 million viewers.
Freddie made a big splash in 2001 with Dance El Ritmo (Dance the Rhythm), the English-language version of his 2001 Dove-nominated Mas que un Sentimento. Dance El Ritmo garnered him three Dove Award nominations, including two 2002 nominations in the Rap/Hip-Hop/Dance Recorded Song of the Year category, as performer and writer of the title song. “Savior My Savior,” the first single from Unconditional, did well on the A/C charts.
He recently participated in the 25-city NewSong Winter Jam Tour and gave audiences a sneak preview of music from Unconditional. During the tour, Colloca shared company with Christian music greats NewSong, Newsboys, and Michelle Tumes, among others.
“I had the honor of introducing Freddie Colloca to over 100,000 of our fans during the recent Winter Jam Tour,” says NewSong1s Eddie Carswell. “His musical talent, energy, and communication skills are overshadowed only by his tremendous passion and heart for Christ. We’re sure to hear more from this young man.”
Within the past year, Colloca has also received three Viva Award nominations. He has taped three seasons as host of CBN1s International Latin show One Cubed, which reaches 25 million households.
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He recently was in Nashville for GMA Week. Freddie started his GMA Week with an outstanding
performance at the
CMVR Field Trip to Vince Gill and Amy Grant’s house on Sunday, April 21. Later that
evening, he joined Michael W. Smith and a
host of great artists to lead GMA registrants into an atmosphere of worship at the Sunday
Evening Worship Service held at the
Ryman Auditorium. On Wednesday, April 24, Freddie was among Latin music’s most
prominent people at the “Livin’ La GMA
Latin” Showcase and Seminar. He joined the musical ranks of Jaci Velasquez, 180 and
Alejandro Alonso in giving attendees a
helping of the increasing popular Latin sound and he also made an appearance at the Doves media room, commenting on the growth of Latin music in the CCM industry.
I had the opportunity to interview Freddie with his drummer,
Benjamin at GMA Week. Freddie was low-key and yet passionate about his music and his ministry.
Growing up in a Christian home, Freddie began his musical career playing the organ!
“My dad is very musical. He plays every instruments,” Freddie told me. His mother is also musically talented and plays guitar and sings. He fondly recalls times his mother would be playing the guitar while his father moved from one instrument to another while he and his brother sang. “When my sister grew older, she sang, too. I thought we would be a family band!” However, Freddie and his siblings developed different styles from their parents and Freddie wound up with a successful solo career.
Freddie made several decisions growing up to
follow Christ. When he was 10 years old, his parents told Freddie he had accepted Christ at an earlier age. “We were watching the movie ‘Thief in the Night’ about the second coming and I was crying and wanted to make sure.” As the years passed, Freddie learned a lot about his walk with Christ from attending church, but he said, “You reach an age where you make the decision — do we still want to follow Christ or go another way.” Freddie made the decision to serve Him more while he was leading worship at 16 or 17 years old. “I am not satisfied with that,” he shared. “I
want to get closer to God.”
He is also dissatisfied with the media hype that often
compares him with Ricky Martin. “There are similarities in our music but not our
message,” he says adadmantly. “My songs are about getting into a deeper relationship and falling more in love with God, about deep service to God.”
His single “Savior, My Savior” has been holding steady on
the charts, recently holding the Number 13 position on the R&R AC chart and the Number 18
position on the CCM Top 20 Countdown.
Unconditional is distributed by Provident Music Group and Latin Door Distribution.
Related Articles & Links
Freddie Colloca New Host of CBN’s One Cubed
Spotlight: Freddie Colloca
Freddie Colloca Receives Dove Nomination.
Christian Activities Freddie Colloca Forum.
