Melanie Santiler, known as "La Mami Fina", surprised her followers this Monday by publicly introducing her new boyfriend on Instagram through a carousel of several images.
The post arrived just a few hours after the 24-year-old singer performed at a hotel in Havana, where Santiler arrived accompanied by a baby swan that she named Odette — referencing the character from the ballet Swan Lake — and where her partner had already drawn the attention of the audience.
The carousel shows the couple in a backstage setting, with black curtains, wooden flooring, and audio equipment in the background, embraced and in a loving, relaxed demeanor.
In one of the most intimate shots, Melanie rests her cheek against her boyfriend's tattooed neck in a tender and conspiratorial gesture that did not go unnoticed by her followers.
The young man is a Cuban tattoo artist with short dyed blonde hair and striking tattoos, who goes by @_by_argos_ on Instagram.
In the post's caption, Santiler wrote: "Everything is going soooo PERFECT for us. Thank you to my Mami Finas and Papi Finos for celebrating with me, you're the best. I'm very happy right now and I'm glad to share it with you all. We're starting a new stage. Odette sends a little kiss to all her fans and the haters too."
The mention of the animal in the caption directly links to the controversy surrounding the singer for bringing it to the concert, an episode that sparked a viral debate about animal welfare with comments like "Animals are not accessories" and "It's not that the swan is antisocial, it's that she took it out of its world and put it into one that doesn't belong to it."
There were also defenders: "If it were Lady Gaga who showed up with a duck in an interview, they would call her an IDOL and then everyone would want a duck. Since she’s Cuban, here comes another Cuban to criticize."
The content creator Kenny Robert published a parody making fun of the episode with phrases like “who is this girl's husband?” and “kiss the duck to see if it turns into me.”
Regarding her new relationship, Santiler was brief but smiled during the concert: "I'm happy, I'm glad, it's like I told you, it's a new stage."
The artist also took the opportunity that night to announce the release of a new album: "The album is coming. I mean, it's not just anything, it's the album."
Santiler has gained international recognition in recent years: Carlos Varela praised her after her concert in Madrid and Yomil Hidalgo highlighted her as one of the new talents in Cuban music, while her songs have taken off on digital platforms despite facing censorship in Cuba for songs like "Buen provecho."
With a new boyfriend, a new album on the way, and a swan that already has its own fans, "La Mami Fina" proves that her ability to generate discussion goes far beyond her music.
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