Tom Jones News

Venezuelan singer/songwriter Franco De Vita is often described as a "Latin Elton John" thanks to his memorably piano-propelled story songs.

With an arsenal of compositions that have virtually served as the soundtrack for generations, De Vita has redefined the scope of the Latin singer/songwriter tradition, remaining relevant for more than two decades with lyrics as poetic as they are colloquial. Following the 2006 release of his live album, "Mil y Una Historias" (A Thousand and One Stories), on Sony BMG, performing rights group ASCAP will recognize De Vita with its Latin Heritage Award on March 21.

De Vita spoke with Billboard about songwriting, his fans' taste and more.

ARE YOU AN AUTHOR OR A SINGER FIRST?

Both. If I weren't a songwriter, I wouldn't be a singer. If I couldn't write my own songs, I probably would have done something else with my life . . . I never thought to be a singer. I always thought to be a singer/songwriter.

HAVE YOU SUNG OTHER PEOPLE'S SONGS?

I had to sing everybody's songs. When I started, I had a cover band, and we played everything: Tom Jones, Led Zeppelin, Billos Caracas Boys. We would play little rock shows which were always shut down by the police because we had long hair, and we had to run out, hiding stuff inside our instrument cases.

DID YOU INCLUDE YOUR OWN SONGS?

Yes. We would play things that, sadly, I never recorded. They got lost along the way. I wrote a song about a very famous Venezuelan theater located just behind my home. The Caracas Theater. It was emblematic because I would sneak in there when I was a little kid to watch rock shows. I would plead with the ushers to let me in. And one day, a construction company tore it down. I wrote a song called "El Teatro Murio" (The Theater Died). I must have been 18. And I don't remember it anymore. It's a shame.

WHAT WAS YOUR BREAKTHROUGH SONG?

"El Buen Perdedor" (The Good Loser). And it still is. Most of my shows end with that song. I haven't been able to remove it from the playlist. It wasn't written for anyone in particular. In fact, when I wrote that song, I was living a beautiful relationship and I wrote many songs, simply by imagining that I could lose this wonderful thing.

WITH YOUR LAST TOUR, YOU MADE A POINT OF SPONSORING NEW

SINGER/SONGWRITERS AND INVITING THEM ONSTAGE ON YOUR DIFFERENT

STOPS. AS AN ESTABLISHED STAR, IS THIS A DUTY?

It's about helping them, and helping people hear them and hopefully having something happen. The truth is, they're good, and music has to keep going and it's a tremendous loss if we don't rescue them and we don't help people hear what they have to say. Most are songwriters. Some are still developing their songwriting. It's not an obligation. But it encourages and excites me greatly to hear these people. I'm optimistic, and I help them because I think they're the future of the industry. A lot of people can do electronic music. But few people can craft music that has true emotion.

YOU'VE BEEN DOING THIS FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS NOW. WHAT

DOES THAT TELL YOU ABOUT PEOPLE'S MUSICAL TASTE?

The genre has a lot to do with it. It's pop, and it's timeless. Of course, sounds change, forms change, and you have to change too. If you maintain the same writing you used 20 years ago, it's hard to last. Every album has to offer something different. But maintaining a simple language that everyone can understand and relate to, that isn't trite, making up new phrases, a hook phrase. We all speak about love and loss, but you have to find a way to say it that doesn't sound like someone else, or like you yourself said it 15 years ago.

Reuters/Billboard