Rocker Juanes to offer Sept. 20 concert in Havana

HAVANA — Colombian rocker Juanes wants to hold his second "Peace Without Borders" concert in Havana's storied Revolution Plaza next month with a host of regional stars — and says he has met with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in hopes that American musicians can join the extravaganza.
In what could be the latest sign the art world is well into a thaw of nearly a half century of icy U.S.-Cuba relations, Juanes' manager, Fernan Martinez, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the concert will be Sept. 20.
He said organizers are waiting for Cuban government permission to use the sprawling concrete plaza, which is flanked by a huge homage to fallen Argentine revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara and houses offices for Fidel and Raul Castro. Hundreds of thousands of Cubans gather there each May 1 for International Workers' Day celebrations.
A similarly huge crowd could come to rock, making the event one of the top Cuban concerts in recent memory. The first installment of Juanes' "Peace Without Borders" concert in March drew 100,000 fans to the border between Venezuela and Colombia.
The Cuba concert coincides with U.N. International Peace Day and could feature up to 12 artists from Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Cuba and, Martinez said, the United States. He refused to divulge all the names.

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