Wednesday, December 27, 2006


April 21, 2003
Reported by John Bridges

A pair of Lake Charles natives are turning heads in Mexico's music industry. To thousands of music fans in mexico, they're known as Ha-ash, a new musical group with a top ten hit. But to a number of Southwest Louisiana residents, Hannah and Ashley Perez are just normal everyday teenagers with a wonderful talent to sing. 17-year old Hannah says, "We started singing at churches, festivals, here at Contraband Days, Angola State Prison, railroad festivals. Wherever they invite us, we go."

The group's name comes from a combination of the girls two first names, Hannah and Ashley. Their current release, "Hate to Love You" is at the top of Mexico's music charts. The making of the video was a 23-hour ordeal, but the girls say they loved every minute of it. 16-year old Ashley: "I couldn't believe it was happening." Hannah: "Because I was thinking six years ago, we'd be in our rooms, my mom taping, my brother with the lamps. This is a dream come true."

The girls' style of music is something different for Mexican audiences. They call it the "Ha-ash mix." Ashley says, "I think it's something new. In Mexico, it hasn't been heard. It's a mixture of our three favorite types of music we like -- rock, pop and country."

One of the girls' goals is to crossover into the U.S. market. But for now, they' re taking it one step at a time.

The Perez sisters were here in Lake Charles for just a few days before Easter. They had to head back to Mexico to appear live on a national T.V. broadcast Sunday night. They expect their second single from the C.D. to be released next month.

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