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Chiko Méndez

Born in Dominican Republic – Chiko arrived in New York only months old adopting English as his first language. Still a child; he returns to his place of birth and as life became tough and poor, Chiko’s only mission was to finish school no matter what. He excelled in reading and writing becoming proficient in both English and Spanish. Throughout school he minored in theatrics and discovers his passion for music. Along the way he picked up an old wooden guitar that eventually helped unveil his singing ability.

Fighting through the environmental distress, Chiko often performed song and dance routines in local plays called “veladas”; where his hand-drawn tickets were a mere 5 cents and the curtain was nothing but a bed sheet strung up between two trees and tied with hand-braided twine; yet, hitchhiking across town barefoot with friends and a 3-string guitar to perform live on a local radio contest as a group they called “Los Mestizos”; that was another favorite after-school pastime.

Continuous years of loyal dedication lead to multiple appearances in television shows like NBC’s Saturday Night Live, Junkyard Wars, A&E’s Watching the Detectives, Japan TV’s Astonishing News, Spain’s Tele 5, HBO’s Sopranos, Law & Order, etc. On his journey for artistic evolution he attends HB Studios to further flex his acting chops - after which he was involved in over 150 TV/ film projects which he affectionately refers to as the “boot-camp” of his career highlights. One of those was a coveted role as a backup singer to Marc Anthony in the movie “El Cantante”, starring Jennifer Lopez, John Ortiz; directed by Leon Ichaso. Another was a pivotal scene with the sultry Mexican actress, Ana de La Reguera in “Paraiso Travel”, starring John Leguizamo; directed by Simon Brand. Soon after he was given a supporting role in “Lavoe”, another film about the famed Salsero, Hector Lavoe, starring well-known performers as Raul Carbonell, La India and Patricia Monterola. In addition to his credits, Chiko’s worked with other successful actors such as Rachel Castro (Jersey Girl), Horatio Sanz & Fred Armisen (SNL), Debbie Rochon (Toxic Avenger), Paul Kratka (Friday the 13th), Javier Sarda (Tele 5, Spain), stage directors such as Richmond Shephard (Richmond Shephard Theatre), Michael Beckett (HB Studios), playwright Dennis Richard and many more. Chiko’s theater experiences include The Producer’s Club, Manhattan Repertory Theatre, LaTea, The Poet’s Den, etc. As an apt and versatile performer, Chiko’s other media interviews include El Diario, El Especial, Un Chin, Daily News, The Source Magazine, Kiss FM, La Mega and featured in a book published by Spain’s Tele-5 super-host; Javier Sarda.

On the music forefront, Chiko is also a vocalist, lyricist, composer, musician and producer. Tinkering in electronics lead him to build his first computer which eventually morphed into a home studio where “Music Production 101” was self-taught. Throughout the following years he collaborates with artists such as Lisa Lisa, Dave Valentin, Tito Puente Jr., John Benitez, Phoenix Rivera, Jimmy Sabater Sr. & Jr. and many more. He is consistently working on various music projects targeting that one hit. As a songwriter; Chiko’s material has been featured on film soundtracks, many of which are now on commercial DVD’s; along with self-published CD’s also available worldwide on Netflix, Blockbuster, CD Baby, Amazon, Itunes, etc. Amongst his music highlights are the “MTG All-Stars” (the musicians behind the film ‘El Cantante’; starring Marc Anthony & Jennifer Lopez), “Get Busy”, Chiko’s funk-rap lyrical & vocal rendition of the classic Chano Pozo/ Dizzie Gillespie tune “Manteca”; by the “Revival All Stars” arranged and produced Delgado Rhythms with Babi Floyd on scat, (Little Ray Romero’s last session) and a versatile merengue-bachata music project where Chiko exhibits his songwriting, music arrangements and vocal performances in Spanish, English and Italian.

Though based in New York, Chiko’s work spans the globe with travels to Europe, Central and South America – and while continuously recording in various languages and genres for eventual worldwide release; he continues to flex his artistic muscles while currently active in both; English and Spanish speaking markets.

Years of tenacious dedication to “artistic performance” have placed Chiko behind the scenes as well, where in association with similar minds; is now researching and developing Film, TV and music projects. As a firm believer in learning new things as he works on his craft; he’s furnished us with a personal quote he himself practices frequently; “Do what you can, when you can, while you ‘still’ can.”