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Carlos Varela, the Havana singer-songwriter nicknamed the "Cuban Bob Dylan," turns 63 years old this Saturday and celebrated with a message of gratitude posted on his Facebook account, accompanied by nighttime photographs where he can be seen holding star-shaped red balloons, dressed in black with his characteristic gray beard and round glasses.
"On my birthday, I always end up reflecting on everything I've experienced. The years, the friends, my neighborhood, the stories, the songs that are still by my side and those that have been left behind. Thank you all for being there, for accompanying me… and for so much love and affection. God bless you!" the artist wrote.
Born on April 11, 1963 in Havana as Carlos Victoriano Varela Cerezo, and also known as "El Gnomo," he is one of the most influential singer-songwriters in the history of Cuban music.
It belongs to the so-called "newest trova," the third generation of the Nueva Trova Cubana, alongside Santiago Feliú, Frank Delgado, and Gerardo Alfonso. This generation came after Silvio Rodríguez and Pablo Milanés and self-identified as "the generation of the moles" due to their questioning style in the face of censorship.
Unlike its predecessors, it incorporated influences from rock and a more direct urban language, becoming the voice of those who came of age during the Special Period of the 90s, raised with the promise of socialism but witnessing its collapse.
His first album, "Jalisco Park" (1989), recorded in the Canaries, catapulted him to fame with songs that depicted the social deterioration in Cuba, some of which were banned from official radio from the very beginning.
His song "Guillermo Tell" became an anthem for a generation: it reverses the classic legend so that it is the son who asks the father to hold the apple, and it was widely interpreted as a message from Cuban youth to their leaders.
In 1995, he undertook an extensive tour with Joaquín Sabina across Spain, recorded "Como los Peces" —winner of the Ondas Award for Latin Revelation Artist— and composed "Tan Joven y Tan Viejo" together with the Spanish musician, which appeared on Sabina's album "Yo, Mí, Me, Contigo."
Her song "Una palabra" (album "Nubes", 2000) was selected by Alejandro González Iñárritu for a BMW short film in 2005 and by Tony Scott for the final scene of "Man on Fire" (2006), starring Denzel Washington, becoming her most covered and translated song into a dozen languages.
In 2015, HBO Latino premiered the documentary "The Poet of Havana," featuring testimonials from Benicio del Toro, Jackson Browne, and Iván Lins, which tells the story of the influence of Cuba and politics on his work.
His discography spans over three decades and includes "Nothing is Like Before" (2024), which features the song "Elephants" with critical lines such as "This is unbearable".
Varela's stance toward the Cuban regime has been consistently critical. In February 2025, in an interview with PBS News, he stated: "I don’t like politics, and I don’t like politicians either. All politicians should be on Animal Planet. But I have social concerns. That's why for 43 years I have written songs that unsettle politicians in Cuba and beyond".
In that same interview, he stated that he dreams of a free Cuba: "Of course democracy in Cuba is possible. I have faith and dream that it will be, and I hope it will be very soon," and he added that to achieve this, "many dinosaurs have to disappear," referring to the so-called "historical generation" of Castroism.
The regime of Díaz-Canel continues to censor their songs on official radio. In November 2020, he defended the Movimiento San Isidro with a phrase that encapsulates its philosophy: "Being critical in the society one lives in must be an untouchable right". In November 2021, he supported the march on 15N, quoting his song "Walls and Doors": "Freedom only exists when it belongs to no one."
In July 2025, he took the stage at the concert of Leoni Torres in Madrid and shouted Viva Cuba libre, generating an immediate ovation. Months later, in November and December 2025, he had to postpone his two sold-out concerts in Miami twice because his work visa for the United States was not approved by the consulate in Madrid.
"I deeply love my country. This could be a wonderful and prosperous nation simply by opening the doors and embracing the soul and individual freedom of all Cubans to develop their full potential in their own land. For that to happen, many dinosaurs must disappear," Varela stated in his interview with PBS News, words that continue to define his work and life at the age of 63.
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