February 03, 2010

By By Ayala Ben-Yehuda, L.A.

Voto Latino is partnering with iTunes to encourage participation in the 2010 U.S. Census. The organization, which promotes political engagement among youth and was co-founded by actress Rosario Dawson, is offering a free download of 25 songs to anyone who visits BeCountedRepresent.com and pledges to be counted in the Census. Those who take the pledge will receive a code by which they can redeem the following tracks on iTunes:

Pitbull "Across the Waters"
Morrissey "When Last I Spoke to Carol (Toy Selectah mix)"
Aventura ?Su Veneno"
Mos Def "No Hay Nada Mas"
Los Tigres del Norte "El Emigrante"
Jaguares "Visible"
Rodrigo y Gabriela "Hanuman"
Juan Luis Guerra "La Travesia"
Ozomatli "Believe"
Los Tucanes de Tijuana "Los Illegales"
Paulina Aguirre "Esperando Tu Voz"
Ruben Blades "Las Calles"
Kinto Sol "Voy a Sacudirme"
Os Mutantes "Querida, Querida"
Nortec Collective "Tengo La Voz"
Antibalas "Che Che Cole (Makossa Mix)"
Los Amigos Invisible "Mentiras"
Ce? "Grains de Beaute"
Maleco Collective "Yo Soy La Voz"
Panda "Solo a Terceros"
Pacha Massive "If You Want It"
Brownout "Ayer y Hoy"
Hip Hop Hood?os "Agua Pa' La Gente"
Alvaro Torres "Te Sueno Grande"
Reyes del Bajo Mundo "Cuanto Cuesta"
Mishka "3rd Eye Vision"

In addition to determining Congressional representation and federal funding for local projects, the Census results will be used by media outlets targeting Hispanics to court advertisers. The looming survey is projected to show Hispanics, already the nation's fastest-growing and largest minority group, making up more than 16% of the U.S. population (up from 12.5% in the 2000 Census).

Subscribe to Billboard magazine today!