Look up visa in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Visa (see in Latin) or VISA may refer to:

• Visa (document), a document issued by a country's government allowing the holder to enter (or to make a formal request to enter) or to leave that country
• Visa Inc., issuer and marketer of Visa products including credit and debit cards
  • Visa Debit, a debit card issued by Visa in the EU
  • Visa Electron, a debit card issued by Visa in all countries except Australia, Canada, and the United States
• Citroën Visa, a supermini automobile produced from 1978-1988

Popular culture[link]

• "The Visa", a Seinfeld episode
• V.I.S.A., a French independent record label
• Visas Marr, a character from the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II - The Sith Lords video game
• Visa (Malayalam film), a 1983 Malayalam film directed by Balu Kirieth

Geography[link]

• Visa, the Hungarian name for Vişea village, Jucu Commune, Cluj County, Romania
• Vişa, a river in Romania.

VISA[link]

• Virtual Instrument Software Architecture (VISA)
• Valores Industriales S.A., the predecessor of Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B de C.V. (FEMSA), a Mexican beverage company
• Vancomycin-intermediate Staphylococcus aureus

See also[link]

• All pages beginning with "Visa"
• All pages with titles containing "Visa"
• Vis (disambiguation)
• Visage

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (August 2011)

Juan Luis Guerra
Juan Luis Guerra during a concert in Boston, Massachusetts.
Background information
Birth name	Juan Luis Guerra Seijas
Born	(1957-06-07) June 7, 1957 (age 55)
Origin	Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Genres	Merengue, bachata, salsa, Latin pop
Occupations	Record producer, songwriter, musician, composer, arranger, guitarist
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, piano
Years active	1984–present
Labels	EMI Records
Associated acts	Juanes, Enrique Iglesias, 440
Website	www.juanluisguerra.com

Juan Luis Guerra (born June 7, 1957) is a singer, songwriter and producer from the Dominican Republic who has sold over 30 million records, and won numerous awards including 12 Latin Grammy Awards, two Grammy Awards, and two Latin Billboard Music Awards. He recently won 3 Latin Grammy Awards in 2010, including Album of the Year.

He is one of the most internationally recognized Latin artists of recent decades. His pop style of merengue and bolero and Afro-pop/Latin fusion has garnered him considerable success throughout Latin America. Guerra is sometimes associated with the popular Dominican music called bachata, and while this association is partly true, he actually uses the basics of Bachata rhythm with a more bolero feel to the melodies in some of his songs.^[1] He does not limit himself to one style of music, instead, he incorporates diverse rhythms like merengue, bolero-bachata, balada, salsa, rock and roll, and even gospel as in the song "La Gallera". "Ojalá Que Llueva Café" ("I Wish It Would Rain Coffee") is one of his most critically acclaimed self-written and composed pieces. A remix of "La Llave de Mi Corazón" ("The Key of My Heart") with Taboo from The Black Eyed Peas is also an example of his fusion of genres.

Career[link]

Early life[link]

Born Juan Luis Guerra Seijas in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, he is the son of Olga Seijas and Gilberto Guerra, a basketball player. Before he committed to music, Guerra studied philosophy and literature at the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo. He then studied guitar and music theory at El Conservatorio Nacional de Música de Santo Domingo, then decided to go to the United States to attend Berklee College of Music in Boston. He graduated from Berklee in 1982 with a diploma in jazz composition.^[2] After his return to the Dominican Republic, he released his first album, Soplando (1984) with a group of local musicians that subsequently became known as Juan Luis Guerra y 440. The group members were Maridalia Hernández, Roger Zayas-Bazán, and Mariela Mercado. The band's name in Spanish is officially publicized as Cuatro Cuarenta (Four Forty), a shortening of the normally strict reading of number "four hundred forty". The 440 part of the band's name refers to the standard tuning of A440. Reportedly the name for the band came from a practice session where Juan Luis's brother suggested the name because the name would reflect how "in-tune and precise they were".^{[citation needed]} According to Guerra, this first album was based on jazz tunes and concepts he had learned at Berklee, and it "wasn't intended to be a commercial hit." Subsequently, however, he began to write more merengues.^[2]

Two albums followed, Mudanza y Acarreo and Mientras Más Lo Pienso...Tú. The band was nominated to attend the Festival of OTI (Organization of Iberoamerican Television) to represent the Dominican Republic.

Their next album, in 1989, brought them international acclaim. Ojalá Que Llueva Café, a slow melodic number with superfast background tracks, became a number one hit in many Latin American countries, with the hit song of the same name. Subsequently, a video of the song was filmed and Juan Luis Guerra and his 440 band began touring. (The song's fame was revived in 1996 and 2008 with covers by Mexican band Café Tacuba and Spanish singer Rosario Flores.)

1990s[link]

In 1990, they released their next album, Bachata Rosa, which became a major hit and earned Guerra his first Grammy award. The album, having sold more than five million copies at that time, allowed Guerra to keep touring Latin America, USA and Europe. This album contains memorable love songs such as "Burbujas de Amor" (Bubbles of Love), "Bachata Rosa", "Rosalia", "Como Abeja al Panal" (Like a Bee to Honeycomb), "A Pedir Su Mano" (Asking For Her Hand), "Carta de Amor" (Love Letter), and "Estrellitas y Duendes" (Little stars and elves).

Guerra became a controversial figure in 1992 after he released his next album, Areíto (which is a Taíno word for song and dance). It featured the hit single "El costo de la vida", (The Cost of Living), whose video clearly has an anti-capitalist message. Other songs included in this album protest against the poor conditions in many Latin American countries, the celebration of the 'discovery' of the Americas ("1492"), and the double standards of first-world nations. "El costo de la vida" was his first number-one hit in the Hot Latin Tracks. Guerra became the first performer of tropical music to achieve this feat.

In his next album, Fogaraté (1995), he stayed away from recording any protest songs. This album is particularly centered in the more rural and lesser known types of Dominican music, like the Perico Ripiao.

Guerra's 1998 release Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual (Neither The Same Nor Equal) garnered much critical acclaim, winning three Latin Grammys in 2000 for Best Merengue Performance, Best Tropical Song, and Best Engineered Album. Its hits include "Mi PC" (My PC), "Palomita Blanca" (Little White Dove), and "El Niágara en Bicicleta" (The Niagara on Bicycle - literal; to ride a bicycle across Niagara Falls, i.e. a difficult task - coloquial "al pasar el Niagara en bicicleta", Cuban).

Juan Luis Guerra in concert in Madrid, Spain, during the Para ti tour. July 2005.

2000s[link]

In 2003, Guerra released his first new album in six years. Entitled "Para Ti" (For you), the album's songs are mostly religious in nature, reflecting Guerra's fervent Christianity. With this album the singer won two awards at the 2005 Billboards, in the categories of Gospel-Pop and Tropical-Merengue, for the hit single Las Avispas (The wasps), the first time ever that one song has won these two categories at the same time. Other hits included "Para Ti" and "Soldado" (Soldier). At the same time, Guerra was honored with the Latino Special Award for the Music Academy of Spain for his contributions to the music of his country and the Caribbean in the last 20 years.

In January 2006, Juan Luis performed at Berklee's 60th anniversary along with other artists such as Paul Simon, Herbie Hancock, Michel Camilo and Chiara Civello. That same year, he recorded with Diego Torres in "Abriendo Caminos" (Opening roads) and with Maná in "Bendita Tu Luz" (Blessed your light).

Notably, Juan Luis Guerra was part of the former highest grossing music tour of all time,(U2's 360 tour is currently the highest grossing music tour of all time) as he was the opening act for The Rolling Stones' A Bigger Bang Tour at their San Juan, Puerto Rico show in February, 2006.

He was also invited by Sting to sing with him at a concert at Altos de Chavón, La Romana in the Dominican Republic in 2006. At the Premio Lo Nuestro awards in 2007, he was given the honorary lifetime achievement award. He also performed the lead single of his new album, "La Llave De Mi Corazón", released in March 2007.

"La llave de mi corazón" reached number one on the Billboard charts for four consecutive weeks, and was the #1 selling album in Colombia while climbing the charts in other countries^{[citation needed]}. Guerra won more than 20 awards with this CD, including 5 Latin Grammy Awards, 6 Premios Casandra awards, 4 billboard Awards, 2 lo nuestro, and one Grammy Award.

On April 6, 2006, Juan Luis Guerra was honored as a BMI Icon at the 13th annual BMI Latin Awards. Named BMI's 1995 Latin Songwriter of the Year, Guerra's songwriting has garnered 14 BMI Latin Awards.^[3]

Juan Luis Guerra was honored at the Latin Grammy Awards in 2007 with 5 awards, sweeping each category he was nominated in: Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Tropical Song & Best Merengue Album. The engineers of the album, Allan Leschhorn, Luis Mansilla, Ronnie Torres, and Adam Ayan were awarded Best Engineered album. One night prior to the Latin Grammy Awards he received the Academy's Person of the Year Award for his contribution to Latin music and for his philanthropy.

On March 10, 2008, Juan Luis was honored with 6 awards in los Premios Casandra, the most important award event in the Dominican Republic. He won for Orchestrator of the year, Outstanding artist abroad, Music album of the year for "La Llave de mi Corazón" and "El Soberano" (The Sovereign), the most important award of the night.

On March 16, 2008 He and other artists participated in the Paz Sin Fronteras concert raised by Juanes, because of the conflict in recent days between Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador.

On April 11, 2008 Juan Luis Guerra was the Billboard Latin awards big winner, with 7 nominations and 3 awards.

On September 15, 2008 Guerra was named a UNESCO Artist for Peace "in recognition of his efforts for the benefit of children with disabilities and children in need."^[4]

On May 9, 2009, Guerra was awarded an honorary doctorate from his alma mater, Berklee College of Music at its commencement ceremony.

2010 Juan Luis Guerra was featured in Enrique Iglesias' Spanish single, Cuando Me Enamoro, and appeared with Iglesias in the music video. The single has currently spent 17 non-consecutive weeks at #1, the longest tenure at the peak position for both artists. In addition, the single was a self-replacement at #1 for Guerra as it replaced his own single Bachata en Fukuoka from his album A Son de Guerra.

Singing in other languages[link]

Guerra has recorded several songs in English, like "July 19th" on his Fogaraté release (1995), and more recently "Medicine for My Soul" and "Something Good" with Italian singer Chiara Civello. Some of his songs have verses in both English and Spanish such as "Woman del Callao", "Guavaberry", "Señorita" and more recently "La Llave de Mi Corazón". Album Areíto featured two songs, cover-title song "Areíto" and "Naboria daca, mayanimacaná" which are sung in the Arawak language of the extinct Taino natives of Hispaniola. Juan Luis Guerra also recorded the album "Bachata Rosa" in Portuguese. He uses Japanese words in Bachata en Fukuoka (Bachata in Fukuoka), 2010 Latin Grammy winner for Best Tropical Song.

Lyrical style[link]

Being a native Dominican, his music is heavily influenced by native Caribbean rhythms, such as merengue and bachata.

His lyrics are often charged with intentionally simple, heavily metaphorical, erotic, or popular expressions, such as "Burbujas de Amor" (Bubbles Of Love) or "El Niágara en Bicicleta" (Niagara on Bicycle), an idiom for something difficult to do.

Discography[link]

Singles[link]

440 band members[link]

• Roger Zayas
• Maridalia Hernández
• Mariela Mercado
• Marco Hernández (replaced Maridalia Hernández)
• Adalgisa Pantaleón (replaced Mariela Mercado)
• Quico Rizek (replaced Marco Hernández)

Quotation[link]

This section is a candidate to be copied to Wikiquote using the Transwiki process.

We write for our home audience. We play music that appeals to those at home, a music that feels natural and intuitive.^[7]

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Manuel, Peter. Caribbean Currents: Caribbean Music from Rumba to Reggae. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Juan Luis Guerra

• Official website in English and Spanish.
• Biography of Juan Luis Guerra With particular focus on his relationship to bachata.
• Juan Luis Guerra at National Geographic World Music
• Juan Luis Guerra Online Scholarship from Berklee College of Music
• Juan Luis Guerra at the Internet Movie Database
• Encarta bio (Archived 2009-10-31)

Julio Jones

Jones with the Falcons in 2011
No. 11     Atlanta Falcons
Wide Receiver
Personal information
Date of birth: (1989-02-03) February 3, 1989 (age 23)
Place of birth: Foley, Alabama
Height: 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) Weight: 220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
College: Alabama
NFL Draft: 2011 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6
Debuted in 2011 for the Atlanta Falcons
Career history
Atlanta Falcons (2011–present)
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
Sporting News SEC Freshman of the Year (2008)[1] Sporting News All-Freshman Team (2008)[2] AP Second Team All-SEC (2008)[3] SEC Coaches' All-Freshman Team (2008)[4] Preseason All-SEC Coaches Football Team (2009, 2010) Playboy Preseason All-American Team (2009,2010) [5] 2009 SEC Championship[6] 2010 BCS National Championship[7] NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month (12/2011)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2011
Receptions 54 Receiving Yards 959 Receiving Average 17.8 Receiving TDs 8 Stats at NFL.com

Quintorris Lopez "Julio" Jones^[8][9] (born February 8, 1989) is an American football wide receiver for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Falcons with the sixth overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide. During his sophomore season with Alabama in 2009, he helped lead the Tide to an undefeated 14-0 season including a victory in the 2010 BCS National Championship Game.

Early years[link]

Jones played his high school career at Foley High School in Foley, Alabama. He completed his senior football season in the fall of 2007. Jones participated in the High School Under Armour All-America Game, where he was recorded at 6 ft 4 in and 218 lbs.

During his high school career, Julio Jones' dominating play and rare physical attributes quickly identified him as a special athlete. At the Baton Rouge Nike camp in May 2007, Jones ran a 4.45 40 yard dash, an event-best 38.6-inch vertical jump and was recorded at 6'4", 215 pounds. He once ran a 4.38, 40 yard dash when clocked at Foley High School.

The buzz surrounding Jones began to swell to NFL proportions. Sports Illustrated likened him to wide receiver Terrell Owens, saying he was, "a big, physical wideout with great strength, amazing jumping ability and uncanny speed for such a big player."^[10] ESPN.com compared to him to another NFL great, saying, "This guy is a unique, rare prospect for the wide receiver position with his supreme blend of size, power, speed and agility. He reminds us of a high school version of Michael Irvin, but at this stage Jones is more explosive and faster."^[11]

Entering February 2008, Jones was one of the most highly rated and sought after high school football recruits in the country, having been awarded a 5 star rating (the maximum) by national recruiting outlets Rivals.com^[12] and Scout.com.^[13] Overall, Jones was nationally ranked as the #2 overall prep prospect by ESPN^[14] and #4 overall by Rivals.com,^[15] being the top-ranked receiver by both. He also drew comparisons to Arizona Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald.^[16]

Recruitment[link]

Jones and fellow-receiver A.J. Green led a 2008 NCAA recruiting class that is dubbed as being the class that brings back the tall, physical receiver.^[10] Being one of the top prep players in the country, many college teams sought his signature on a National Letter of Intent. As the recruiting process started to wind down, he narrowed down his possibilities to five schools: Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Oklahoma, and Texas Tech.^[17] On February 6, 2008, Jones ended months of recruiting, committing to the Alabama Crimson Tide on National Signing Day,^[17] as he announced his decision live on ESPNU.

College career[link]

Freshman[link]

In the opening game of the 2008 season, Jones became the first true freshman receiver to start in a season opener for the Crimson Tide,^[18] as he started against the Clemson Tigers in the 2008 Chick-fil-A College Kickoff. In the game, Jones caught four passes for 28 yards and a touchdown in a 34–10 rout.^[19] In a 41–30 win over the #3 ranked Georgia Bulldogs, Jones had a breakout performance as he caught five passes for 94 yards, including a 22–yard touchdown reception from John Parker Wilson.^[20][21] His first 100–yard receiving game occurred in the annual rivalry game versus Tennessee, as Jones had six receptions for 103 yards en route to a 29–9 victory.^[22] However, two weeks later versus #16 LSU, Jones topped his previous performance with 7 catches for 128 yards.^[23] His 23–yard reception in overtime set up a game-winning touchdown by John Parker Wilson,^[24] giving Alabama a 27–21 victory.^[25] In the 2008 SEC Championship Game, Jones caught five passes for 124 yards versus a talented Florida Gators secondary.^[26] In the first quarter, Jones caught a 64–yard pass which set up the Crimson Tide's first score of the game.^[27] However, Alabama fell to #2 Florida 31–20, giving the Crimson Tide their first loss of the year.^[28]

On December 8, the Southeastern Conference announced the annual All-SEC first team, second team, and individual awards, as voted by the Associated Press. Jones was named to the second team All-SEC, SEC Freshman of the Year,^[3] and the SEC Coaches' All-Freshman Team.^[4] Jones finished the regular season with 58 receptions, 924 yards, and four touchdowns.^[29]

Sophomore[link]

Preceding the 2009 football season, Julio Jones was voted to the All-SEC Coaches' Football Team (first team), one of only four players to be voted such unanimously (along with Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, Tennessee safety Eric Berry and LSU offensive lineman Ciron Black).^[30]

Jones in a game against Arkansas in 2010.

Jones and Alabama again opened their season at the Georgia Dome, this time facing Virginia Tech for the 2009 Chick-fil-A College Kickoff. However, the Crimson Tide's rushing game dominated the game, led by eventual Heisman Trophy winner and teammate, Mark Ingram. Jones finished the game with four receptions for 46 yards,^[31] with Alabama winning the game 34–24.^[32] His first touchdown of the season would not come until the end of September, as the Tide routed the Arkansas Razorbacks 35–7 in Tuscaloosa.^[33] Jones caught a 50–yard touchdown pass from quarterback Greg McElroy, coming from a trick play, to put Alabama up 14–0 midway through the first quarter.^[34] He would finish the game with two catches for 65 yards.^[34]

After experiencing what some writers called a "sophomore slump",^[35][36] Jones's production increased during the second half of the 2009 season. In a rivalry game against LSU, Jones had his first 100–yard performance of the season.^[37] He finished with four catches for 102 yards, including a 73–yard game winning touchdown in Alabama's 24–15 victory.^[38][39]

Alabama continued through the regular season undefeated at 12–0, working their way to a SEC Championship matchup with the Florida Gators. Jones made the first catch of the game, an 18–yard catch from McElroy.^[40] The Crimson Tide won the game 32–13,^[41] earning a chance to play for the BCS National Championship in the 2010 title game against the Texas Longhorns.^[42][43] His 23 yards receiving led the Tide in the title game, as the passing game struggled.^[44] However, the running game again took over, and led Alabama to a 37–21 victory.^[45][46]

Junior[link]

Heading into the 2010 season Julio Jones was voted a member of the Pre-Season All-SEC and Pre-Season Playboy All American teams.

Jones kicked off his season with a 6 catch, 93 yard performance that including a dazzling one handed catch from Freshman QB AJ McCarron for a TD in the season opening blowout win over San Jose State. The following week on a National TV Jones once again led the team in receiving with 49 yards on 4 catches in a 24-3 win over 18th ranked Penn State. Jones then had his first 100 yard performance of the season with a 5 catch, 106 yard, 1 TD game against Duke.

Alabama kicked off the SEC season with a win over the 10th ranked Arkansas Razorbacks. In the game Jones had 5 catches for 55 yards and then only had 4 catches for 19 yards the following week in the Tide's blowout win over 7th ranked Florida. Jones, however, had the longest punt return of his career with a 41 yard return that set up a Mark Ingram TD run. Jones rebounded with an 8 catch, 118 yard, 1 TD game the following week in Alabama's first loss of the season, at South Carolina.

The following week Jones only caught one pass for 8 yards in a blowout win over Ole Miss but then rebounded with the biggest game of his career against Tennessee. Jones set the single game Alabama record in receiving yards (221) in a single game on 12 catches (2nd in Alabama history in a single game). Jones had his second straight 10 catch game when he had 10 catches for 89 yards and a TD against 12th ranked LSU the next week in Alabama's 2nd loss. He also had a 31 yard Kickoff Return as well. Against Mississippi State Jones only had 3 catches for 41 yards but also had his first career rushing TD when he turned a reverse into a 56 yard TD run.

Julio Jones had his first 2 TD game of his career the next week against Georgia State along with 7 catches and 86 yards. The next week in Alabama's heart breaking Iron Bowl loss against 2nd ranked Auburn Jones had another huge performance with 10 catches, 199 yards, and a 68 yard TD. Jones added 65 yards in Kickoff Returns as well. The Junior closed out his Alabama career in the Capital One Bowl as Alabama blew out 7th ranked Michigan State. Jones had 3 catches for 49 yards and also had a 35 yard TD as well for his 2nd rushing TD of the year and his 9th total TD of the year.

Julio ended his Junior campaign with an Alabama record 78 catches and 1,133 yards along with 7 TDs (4th in school history). He also had 8 rushes for 135 yards and 2 TDs along with 5 punt returns for 44 yards and 5 kickoff returns for 129 yards. Jones ended his Alabama career 2nd in career receptions (179) and yards (2,653) and 4th in TD catches (15). He had 8 career 100 receiving games (2nd in school history). Jones was a unanimous 1st Team All-SEC selection in 2010.

College career statistics[link]

Professional career[link]

Pre-draft[link]

On January 7, 2011, Jones decided to skip his senior season of college football, instead he chose to declare eligibility for the NFL Draft with teammates Mark Ingram and Marcell Dareus.^[50][51] Jones was later invited to the "All-Star Football Challenge", a skill contest shown by ESPN on February 4.^[52] He excelled at the 2011 NFL Combine, posting the longest long jump and the third fastest 40-yard dash among receivers,^[53] despite having a broken bone in his foot.

Atlanta Falcons[link]

The Atlanta Falcons selected Jones with the sixth overall pick of the 2011 NFL Draft. Atlanta had traded five draft picks to the Cleveland Browns to move up into their spot and take Jones, giving up their 27th, 59th, and 124th picks from the 2011 draft, and their first and fourth round picks from the 2012 draft.^[55] Jones wears number 11, in tribute to the year he was drafted into the NFL. Jones came to terms with the Falcons on July 28, 2011, signing a four-year contract worth $16.2 million, all of which was guaranteed.^[56] In addition, Jones earns income from an endorsement deal he signed with Under Armour.

Jones recorded his first NFL touchdown on Week 9 of the 2011 season, against the Indianapolis Colts. He finished the season leading all rookies in touchdown receptions with 8, while his 54 receptions for 959 yards ranked him second among rookies in each category, behind A. J. Green.

Awards and honors[link]

References[link]

Jones accomplished his second two touchdown game in week 17 against Tampa Bay

External links[link]

• Atlanta Falcons bio
• Alabama Crimson Tide bio
• NFL combine profile
• ESPN bio