June is known as Black Music Month, and every year, NY1 celebrates with our series called Soul's Survivors.  NY1's Dean Meminger catches up with a New York native who found success mixing his black and Latin culture for a unique sound.

Known as the King of Latin Soul, Joe Bataan says his style is really music of the world. 

"Joe Bataan was never a big, big star. I was always the street singer that was underground," Bataan says. "But for some reason, people took to my music."

He's recorded more than 20 albums. His first hit was a remake of "Gypsy Woman" back in 1966. And right from the start, he was mixing soul and Latin sounds, often called Boogaloo music. He sang about what was going on in New York City, especially in his East Harlem neighborhood.

"Unwed Mothers. Riots. Prayers to the Lord. Uptown. Ordinary Guy," he said.

Bataan was born in a tenement on East 119th Street and grew up on 104th Street. He started out singing in English, and then learned Spanish to increase his appeal.  

"For a long time, people just took it for granted that I was Latino. And yet, my heart is Latino. I can speak Spanish, but my mother is African-American and my father is Filipino, and I never denied that. And I can call myself Mestizo because I'm of mixed blood," he said.

Some 50 years after he started making music, he continues to travel the world performing. His fans are attracted to various songs from his career.

"In Colombia, South America, it's Mestizo. In Japan, it's El Bottela, the Bottle. In Europe, it's the rap song that I did in back in '79, Rap-O Clap-O, which a lot of people don't know," Bataan said. "Then, of course, there are my Latin compositions that are very popular in California."

Bataan says he almost died 20 years ago because of bad health. He shares that with his audiences by singing The Lord's Prayer at all his concerts.

He says his soul is blessed. And certainly, he's produced soulful music.

Joe Bataan is one of the stars of "We Like It Like That", a documentary film that tells the story of Latin Boogaloo and Latin Soul Music. The film premiered at South by Southwest earlier this year and will have it's New York premiere on August 5 at 8:30 p.m. as part of Lincoln Center's Sound + Vision series. The Lincoln Center Outdoors concert will be the following day (August 6) and feature Joe as well as two of the film's other stars, Richie Ray and Pete Rodriguez. The film will be officially released this fall.