Carrie Rodriguez Laboratorio

Led and curated by singer-songwriter/violinist Carrie Rodriguez, Laboratorio is an annual four-part concert series hosted at the Paramount State Theatre in Austin, Texas. It is an immersive live performance experience that celebrates and explores Latine culture through world-class musicianship, visual arts, and storytelling. Each show features the all-star Laboratorio house band, led by Rodriguez, collaborating with different guest artists.

This edition of Laboratorio features Austin born, internationally acclaimed singer-songwriter Gina Chavez and Felix Contreras, journalist, percussionist, and host of NPR’s Latin music and culture program Alt.Latino.

Gina and Carrie, longtime friends and collaborators, will perform their own songs and cowritten pieces, along with the stellar Laboratorio band. In addition to the music, Felix will lead engaging conversations filled with stories behind the songs and plenty of entertaining chisme (gossip). And if we're lucky, Felix, also a fabulous conguero, will be sitting in on some percussion as well!

Gina Chavez (she/they) is a Latin Grammy nominee, recording artist, wife and philanthropist. She is a 16-time Austin Music Award winner who’s first all-Spanish language album, La Que Manda, was nominated for a ’20 Latin Grammy in Best Pop/Rock, making them the third Latine born in the continental U.S. to ever be nominated in history of the category (and the first queer Texan). Gina’s NPR Tiny Desk concert has more than 1.3 million views and she is featured on Brené Brown's hit podcast, Unlocking Us, for which she co-wrote the theme music with Carrie. Gina tours internationally as a cultural ambassador with the U.S. State Department and runs Niñas Arriba a college fund Gina and their wife founded for young women in gang-dominated El Salvador.

Felix Contreras is co-creator and co-host of Alt.Latino, NPR's pioneering radio show and podcast celebrating Latin music and culture since 2010. In addition to his post behind the mic, Contreras programs music from the Latin diaspora for the acclaimed Tiny Desk concerts and appears regularly on NPR's award-winning newsmagazines, All Things Considered and Morning Edition.

A knowledgeable international ambassador for Latino heritage and arts, "Tio Felix" travels extensively in search of new talent and new music, and captures important legacy performers in jazz and Latin genres. He's a recovering TV journalist whose first post at NPR in 2001 was as a Producer/Reporter for the NPR News Arts Desk. He is also NPR's resident Deadhead and performs around the DC area with his Latin music Beatles cover band, Los Day Trippers