Daymé Arocena Brings Her 2024 Album ALKEMI to The Wallis

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The Cuban-born singer brings genre-defying artistry to the Bram Goldsmith Theater in Beverly Hills.

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On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 7:30pm at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts (The Wallis), Daymé Arocena takes the stage with a bold, genre-defying performance Alkemi that fuses her Afro-Cuban roots with neo-soul, jazz, and contemporary Latin pop in one dynamic exchange.

Heralded by NPR as “a cross between Celia Cruz and Aretha Franklin ,” A GRAMMY-nominated and Juno Award–winning artist, Arocena has continually expanded her musical language through her critically acclaimed albums, “Nueva Era” (2015) and “Alkemi” (2024), as well as her featured performance on the 2026 GRAMMY-nominated project “The Original Influencers: Dizzy, Chano & Chico.”

Born in Cuba and now based in Puerto Rico, Arocena brings a rare emotional intensity to the stage, moving seamlessly between intimate, soul-bearing moments and surges of explosive power. Backed by a dynamic band, she transforms each song into a living, breathing exchange, where voice, rhythm, and spirit meet in real time.

Daymé Arocena is a Grammy-nominated and Juno Award–winning Afro-Cuban singer, composer, and choir director. Relying on instinct and intuition is how Arocena has managed her career since she burst onto the international scene with “Nueva Era”, her prodigious debut album, in 2015. In 2021, she became the youngest Latin American musician to complete Berklee College of Music's Signature Artist program, joining the ranks of legends who have influenced aspiring musicians at the prestigious institution. She reinvented her sound with “Alkemi”, released in February 2024, blending neo-soul vocals, Afro-Caribbean rhythms, and modern pop. Produced by Eduardo Cabra and featuring special collaborations with Vicente García on “A Fuego Lento” and Rafa Pabön on “Suave y Pegao,” the album embraces influences ranging from jazz to urbano stylings, pushing the boundaries of contemporary Latin pop.

In 2025, she released “Daymé y Yo,” an EP presenting fresh reinterpretations and new versions of her repertoire. Most recently, Daymé received a 2026 Grammy nomination for Best Latin Jazz Album for “The Original Influencers: Dizzy, Chano & Chico,” a project honoring the roots and ongoing evolution of Latin jazz, while spotlighting her remarkable contribution as one of the leading voices of the new Cuban musical wave.

When Daymé Arocena decided to switch gears and record her fourth studio album in Puerto Rico with a legendary Latin producer, she never imagined that she would end up moving there. “From the moment I stepped foot on the island, I realized that I never wanted to leave,” says the 31 year-old Cuban singer/songwriter with a hearty laugh. “At the time, I had spent three years away from Cuba, living in Canada with my husband. I called and asked him to come over to Puerto Rico, and to please bring all my stuff. It wasn't a conscious decision on my part. It was simply love at first sight.”

Now, she has fully reinvented her sound with “Alkemi“ (Brownswood Recordings), a revolutionary – and transformative – fusion of neo soul singing, Afro-Caribbean beats and slick new millennium pop. From the cosmopolitan smoothness of lead single “Suave y Pegao” – an effortless fusion of jazz, bossa nova and urbano stylings with emerging star Rafa Pabönon guest vocals – to the smoldering neo-soul of “A Fuego Lento,” with Dominican singer Vicente García, Arocena's latest relies on sacred formats of the past but rearranges them in a conscious quest to redraw the very definition of what Latin pop is supposed to sound like. “It was definitely a team effort,” she reflects from her new home in San Juan.

“Flexibility may well be my biggest virtue. I'm always open to every possible suggestion when it comes to making things better. My piano player, Jorge Luis 'Yoyi' Lagarza, and I worked on the demos with the rest of my band. Then with Eduardo Cabra's direction, we enlisted musicians from all over the Caribbean – Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic. Everybody added their energy and coloring.” It was Arocena's piano player who suggested she contact Eduardo Cabra – former member of supergroup Calle 13, now a star producer known for combining commercial aptitude with a refined sense of craftsmanship. Not only did Cabra accept the singer's offer, but he also invited her to stay at his home during the five months when they recorded Al-Kemi in his Puerto Rico studio.

“I had no idea that he was familiar with my music,” she enthuses. “Eduardo has been in the industry for a long time, and he comes from a world that is more global and commercial than mine. He was the ideal candidate for this project, but I initially didn't know if he would understand the social, psychological and personal complexities of the message that I wanted to express.”

“Daymé is one of the most talented musicians that I've ever worked with,” says Cabra. “Working together was a joy, because she knew exactly the kind of fusion that she was going for: a cross between her Afro-Cuban roots – which clearly are strong on this album –with the more contemporary vein of analogue synths, samples and a bit of electronica. We wanted both worlds to communicate, to be both respectful and disrespectful to the ancestral colors. I feel comfortable with both, and even Calle 13 walked the two paths. This is also the album where Daymé opened up to the Caribbean at large. Her understanding of harmony and her performance skills are out of this world.” No other song on the album embodies Arocena's artistic liberation like “American Boy” – an exhilarating, futuristic slice of progressive pop.

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_Originally reported by [BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/los-angeles/article/Daym-Arocena-to-Perform-ALKEMI-at-The-Wallis-20260911)._