The death of El Taiger shocks the music world: Major media in Spain react

The death of the Cuban reggaeton artist José Manuel Carbajal Zaldívar, known as El Taiger, shocked the music world and is making headlines this Friday in major media outlets in Spain, where his music was very popular and songs like La Historia were trending for several consecutive summers.

The newspaper El Mundo reported that the musician "has not been able to overcome the injuries sustained from a gunshot to the head and has died at the age of 37 after remaining in critical condition for seven days at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami (United States)."

He noted that during his hospitalization, "El Taiger mobilized Cubans inside and outside the island, inspiring vigils and prayers from Catholics and other religions, including Yoruba," while on social media, "the hashtag #FuerzaTaiger became a trend, demonstrating the magnitude of his influence and the affection people had for him in his homeland."

The medium recalls that "El Taiger began his music career in the 2000s and quickly established himself as one of the most influential voices in Cuban reggaeton. Throughout his career, he worked with artists of the stature of J Balvin and Cosculluela, and was known for his ability to blend reggaeton rhythms with traditional Cuban sounds. His hits like Habla Matador and La Historia became anthems for a generation that saw him as a representative figure of their dreams and aspirations amid the difficulties faced by the island."

For its part, the newspaper El País highlighted in its edition today that "the greatest exponent of the reparto genre has died."

Likewise, great musicians like Chucho Valdés, J Balvin, or Enrique Iglesias sent their support or dedicated a prayer, and even the Cuban regime, which usually remains silent about similar events when it involves artists in exile, did not remain quiet in the face of the incident that has moved the entire community, with statements from former Minister of Culture Abel Prieto Jiménez and Lis Cuesta, the wife of President Miguel Díaz-Canel.

He adds that El Taiger's convalescence "has sparked a debate among Cubans in recent days: it has pitted those who mourn his death against those who label him a drug addict, criminal, or problematic; those who pride themselves on being cultured against those who defend the reggaeton genre as the best musical rhythm to come out of Cuba in recent times; the extremists from South Florida who criticize him for visiting the island and performing on Cuban stages, against those who defend his freedom to do so."

Finally, the El País article concludes that some say that neither the Cubans, nor the music, nor the exile will be the same after El Taiger's death.

"A change without return in the urban genre and its exponents is coming, in the relationships they establish among themselves. Others say that the conservatism that has characterized the exile for years could begin to see changes. And many know that although there are several Cuban reparteros making good music, today we have lost the one who scored hit after hit, the one who moved between other genres like ballads or guajiras, the one who played with his lyrics like with his large gold chains around his neck, effortlessly, as if he knew and lived like the best, like a Taiger," the publication expresses.

The newspaper ABC also noted in its latest edition that "in Cuba, followers are bidding him farewell 'celebrating as he wanted' with 'party and joy'": "'Turn up the volume of your music, dance and celebrate his life,' the family added in the statement," the outlet quoted.

"With thousands of followers both in Cuba and in the Hispanic community of South Florida, Carvajal frequently traveled to the island to visit his grandmother, his two young daughters, and to give concerts, which earned him criticism from some sectors of the Cuban diaspora. Nonetheless, he was one of the Cuban musicians who condemned the government for the repression unleashed during and after the historic protests of July 11, 2021," it emphasized.