Atahualpa, Atahuallpa, Atabalipa, or Atawallpa (March 20, 1497 – August 29, 1533), was the last Sapa Inca or sovereign emperor of the Tahuantinsuyu, or the Inca Empire, prior to the Spanish conquest of the Incan Empire. Atahualpa became emperor upon defeating his older half-brother Huáscar in a civil war sparked by the death of their father, Inca Huayna Capac, from an infectious disease which may have been smallpox.

During the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire, the Spaniard Francisco Pizarro captured Atahualpa and used him to control the Inca empire. Eventually, the Spanish executed Atahualpa, ending the Inca Empire (although several successors claimed the title of Sapa Inca ("unique Inca") and led a resistance against the invading Spaniards). After Atahualpa died, the Incan Empire began to erode.

When questioned by his Spanish captors in the Cajamarca prison about his origins, Atahualpa personally declared that he was the son of the Inca Huayna Capac from Tomebamba (Ecuador), and his mother was the Quito princess Paccha Duchicela, from Caranqui(Ecuador). The union was a politically expedient one, as the southern Ecuadorian Andes had been conquered by Huayna Capac's father, Túpac Inca Yupanqui some years earlier and Huayna Capac had recently conquered the northern Ecuadorian Andes, which Paccha Duchicela royal family had some influence.

Atahualpa Yupanqui (31 January 1908 – 23 May 1992) was an Argentine singer, songwriter, guitarist, and writer. He is considered the most important Argentine folk musician of the 20th century.^{[citation needed]}

Yupanqui was born as Héctor Roberto Chavero Aranburu in Pergamino (Buenos Aires Province), in the Argentine pampas, about 200 kilometers away from Buenos Aires. His father was Argentine, descended from indigenous people, while his mother was born in the Basque country. His family moved to Tucumán when he was ten. In a bow to two legendary Incan kings, he adopted the stage name Atahualpa Yupanqui, which became famous the world over.

In his early years, Yupanqui travelled extensively through the northwest of Argentina and the Altiplano studying the indigenous culture. He also became radicalized and joined the Communist Party of Argentina. In 1931, he took part in the failed Kennedy brothers uprising against the de facto government of José Félix Uriburu and in support of deposed president Hipólito Yrigoyen. After the uprising was defeated, he was forced to seek refuge in Uruguay. He returned to Argentina in 1934.

Haydée Mercedes Sosa (9 July 1935 – 4 October 2009), known as La Negra (literally: The Black One), was an Argentine singer who was popular throughout South America and many countries outside the continent. With her roots in Argentine folk music, Sosa became one of the preeminent exponents of nueva canción. She gave voice to songs written by both Brazilians and Cubans. She was best known as the "voice of the voiceless ones".

Sosa performed in venues such as the Lincoln Center in New York City, the Théâtre Mogador in Paris and the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, as well as sell-out shows in New York's Carnegie Hall and the Roman Coliseum during her final decade of life. Her career spanned four decades and she has been the recipient of several Grammy awards and nominations, including three nominations which will be decided posthumously. She served as an ambassador for UNICEF.

Sosa was born on 9 July 1935, in San Miguel de Tucumán, in the northwestern Argentine province of Tucumán, of mestizo, French, and Quechua Amerindian ancestry. In 1950, at age fifteen, she won a singing competition organized by a local radio station and was given a contract to perform for two months. She recorded her first album, La Voz de la Zafra, in 1959. A performance at the 1965 Cosquín National Folklore Festival -where she was introduced and brought to the scene while seating among the public by fellow folk singer Jorge Cafrune-, brought her to the attention of her native countrypeople.

Luis Ángel Cereceda Parra (born 27 June 1943) is a Chilean singer and songwriter, son of Violeta Parra, notable Chilean folklorist and brother of Isabel Parra. He travels abroad helping to maintain the Nueva Canción tradition in Chilean expatriate communities in Europe, North America, and Australia. His son—also named Ángel Parra—is the lead guitarist for the band Los Tres.