Luz Esther Benitez (born approx. 1948), better known in the music world as Lucecita Benitez, is a native of Bayamon who became a famous international singer. Her brother, Wilfredo, shares his name with Puerto Rican world boxing champion Wilfredo Benitez.

Lucecita was a member of what is historically known in Puerto Rico as the New Wave, or Nueva Ola of popular music, alongside Ednita Nazario and Chucho Avellanet, among others. She was a participant of Telemundo channel 2's El Club del Clan (The Clan's Club) television show, and she occasionally would show up at the Show de Las 12 (12 O' Clock Show) to sing too. In 1964, she had her first major hit, with the song Un Lugar Para los Dos (A Place For the Both of Us).

That began a series of hits for Lucecita, and at the same time, it began a rivalry between her and fellow New Waver, Cuban born Puerto Rican resident Lissette Alvarez, also a musical legend.

Benitez's most important career step came in 1969, when she won the Festival de la Musica y la Cancion (Festival of the Music and the Song) in Mexico. That led to her performing with Sammy Davis Jr. and to an appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. RCA signed her immediately, and her career's star rose considerably, touring all over Latin America and in Spain. She also performed for many years at the Caribe Hilton hotel in San Juan.

Benitez still does world tours and performs live frequently. She has her own recording company, Grabaciones Lobo (Wolf Records). In 1994, she participated in Banco Popular's dedicatory to Jose Feliciano. At the same time, she also performed at Carnegie Hall, where she recorded a live album to honor the memory of salsa singer Ismael Rivera. Recently, Puerto Rico's government celebrated her 1969 triumph of "Genesis" with a gala celebration. The town of Caguas dedicated a museum of memorabilia in her honor. Her old friend and fan Roberto Tirado has contributed to this museum with many items personally owned by Lucecita which he saved during her time at the height of her fame.

See also

• List of famous Puerto Ricans