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Cuban reggaeton artist Yomil Hidalgo responded to the wave of criticism, memes, and attacks he received after his controversial statements over the weekend regarding the situation in Cuba, reaffirming his stance without retracting and challenging his detractors. The singer's response was captured in Yomil's statements amid the protests, while the opposing reply was documented in the article about José Daniel Ferrer responding to Yomil.
Far from stepping back, the singer —who resides on the island— hit back at those who criticized him, labeling them as "hurt" people who "cannot stand to hear the truth." He issued a direct invitation: "just go ahead and buy a ticket and come to the land where I’ll be waiting for you." He also downplayed the memes and insults he received, proclaiming himself "the most media-savvy Cuban artist of this decade." He closed with a jab at his critics: "without messing with anyone, since I came back, it's been all against me, and I understand, I generate more intrigue for them than their girlfriend."
The statements that sparked controversy were published last weekend, during the tenth consecutive day of protests in Cuba. In a series of Instagram stories, Yomil directed his harshest criticisms at Cubans engaging in political activism from abroad, asserting that "99% of those who speak from there now never did anything" while they lived in Cuba, and that many "went to marches, attended CDR meetings, were the most prominent, and were part of communist organizations."
The reggaeton artist also emphasized his status as a resident of the island: "I don't live in yuma, all of us who live in Cuba experience day by day in the real heat, keep that in mind." He challenged those who criticize from afar: "Everything is behind a phone, knowing that they will sleep peacefully with light, with air, with food, and the next day they open their phones without any pressure." The debate on whether Yomil is right regarding Cubans abroad quickly spread across social media.
At the same time, he expressed respect for Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara and Maykel Osorbo, lamenting that "no one remembers" them or the political prisoners who "are in a cell waiting for a signal from you that will never come." He closed his original stories with a phrase that sparked significant debate: "If you are democrats, you also have to respect differing opinions, because if that’s not the case, then the real communists are you."
One of the most emphatic responses came on Monday from José Daniel Ferrer, the general coordinator of the Unión Patriótica de Cuba (UNPACU) and former political prisoner detained over a hundred times. "Yomil, many of us who speak and act from abroad are fighting in Cuba and have experienced the worst prisons on the planet," he wrote on X. "Those who divide, who discourage, who do not focus on what is important, feed the tyranny, not the people rising up inside and outside," Ferrer concluded.
Yomil's statements come in the context of the protests triggered on March 5 by the collapse of the Antonio Guiteras power plant, which left 68% of the island without electricity. The demonstrations—featuring pots and pans clanging and shouts of "Freedom" and "Down with communism"—spread to Havana, Morón, Santiago de Cuba, and Mayarí. In Morón, protesters caused damage to the PCC headquarters and a young person was injured by gunfire.
It is not the first time that Yomil has sparked controversy due to his stances. In April 2025, he participated alongside Yulién Oviedo in a debate organized by the Ministry of Culture of Cuba, which was criticized as a legitimization of the regime. Chocolate MC publicly questioned him, and Yomil defended himself by publishing the full record of his speech. In 2021, he participated in the protests on July 11, was briefly arrested, and shared a video of his detention.
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