Female dance singer.Maria Nocera (born 1967), known by her stage names, Nocera or DJ Nocera, is a Sicilian-born American club DJ, trip hop, pop, and freestyle singer. She is probably best known for her 1986 Latin freestyle hits "Summertime, Summertime" and "Let's Go".

Early years

Born in Sicily, Nocera was raised in Parma,Emilia-Romagna, in central Italy, before emigrating to the United States when she was 18 years old.[1]

Nocera signed with independent Sleeping Bag Records in 1986, and released the single, "Summertime, Summertime" that same year. The single, produced by Floyd Fisher, and remixed by Kurtis Mantronik, was included in Nocera's 1987 debut album, Over The Rainbow, and reached #2 on Billboard's Hot Dance/Club Play chart in 1986.[2] The album also featured "Let's Go," a track remixed by Little Louie Vega, which reached #8 on the Hot Dance/Club Play chart in 1987.[2]

Following the release, tour, and promotion of Over the Rainbow, Nocera began work on a second album, but the album was not completed or released due to the closure of Sleeping Bag Records in 1991.[1]

Following the demise of Sleeping Bag Records, Nocera sang background vocals for freestyle acts Sa-Fire, India, and Information Society in the early to mid 1990s.[1] She also toured both nationally and internationally with Information Society, providing background vocals and keyboard play.

In 2000, Nocera formed the trip hop group Voice of the Satellites with guitarist Gregg Fine and keyboardist John Roggie.[1] The band's sound has been described as "a loose, trippy blend of hip hop, acid jazz, and points in-between and elsewhere."[3] The band has released a couple of EP's, but has yet to be signed to a major label.[1]

Nocera is also currently a club DJ based in New York City, and toured the United States with the Freestyle Explosion concert series in 2006, where she favorably reprised her mid-1980s hits from Over the Rainbow.[4]

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