Willie Estrada

Willie Estrada was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico, and raised in the South Bronx during one of the most turbulent and creative periods in New York City’s history. An author, producer, and cultural historian, he documents the real story of a generation that turned from violence to peace through music and dance. As the founder of Latin Empire Productions, he preserves Puerto Rican and Bronx history through books and film. His South Bronx Legacy Series includes The Dancing Gangsters of the South Bronx and Memoirs of the Concrete Jungle, with Book Three: The Lost Generation on the way. Willie helped bring peace to his neighborhood through Latin Hustle and Rocking parties at St. Mary’s Recreation Center during the summer of 1974, and later served as Technical Consultant and actor on Netflix’s The Get Down. His work remains honest, unfiltered, and full of Puerto Rican soul, honoring the people who chose peace when the world around them burned.