Isha M. Renta

Semilla Cultural is a non-profit organization developing and cultivating a community that embraces Puerto Rican culture and arts in the Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia region. We focus on raising cultural awareness by teaching, sharing and performing the Puerto Rican musical genre of Bomba, as well as educating the community about the historical events that shaped this music. Semilla Cultural connects with the community by using the arts as a medium of unity and empowerment. We are a grassroots organization committed to educating and representing with pride and respect our love for Puerto Rican arts, culture, and traditions.

Isha M. Renta López is the founder and director of Semilla Cultural, a non-profit operating across Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia promoting and preserving the Puerto Rican heritage through bomba music and dance. Isha, born in Ponce Puerto Rico, having moved to Washington DC for schooling and a meteorology career, began her studies of bomba in 2007 with the local organization ‘Raíces de Borinquen’. Since then, Isha has dedicated herself to the preservation and propagation of the Puerto Rican arts and culture. Throughout her journey, Isha has studied bomba percussion, dance and songs from multiple bomba masters from Puerto Rico and the United States. Having founded Semilla Cultural in 2014, Isha now teaches, performs, provides seminars and builds community throughout Washington DC, Virginia and Maryland. Isha is fully committed to preserve and disseminate her culture to empower the communities while she continues her growth in this field.