The Cuban singer Oniel Bebeshito featured an intensely emotional moment in the third episode of Cafecito Con, the interview series by Billboard Latin, published this Monday, when he recalled his friend and colleague El Taiger and shared how he experienced the moments upon learning that he had been shot.
Bebeshito recounted that he arrived in Miami on October 1, 2024, and that El Taiger immediately reached out to give him space with his family, being aware that he hadn't seen his wife, daughter, and loved ones for some time.
"And when I arrive in Miami, he texts me for a moment and says, 'My brother, I'm going to give you your time to be with your family, because I know you haven't seen your little girl, you haven't seen your wife in a long time, you haven't seen your family,'" the artist recalled with visible emotion.
Just two days after that message, on October 3, Bebeshito received the news that El Taiger had been shot.
"Because I found out first that the word was starting to spread. And I wrote to him immediately and said, 'Brother, respond, tell me it's a lie,'" he confessed, describing the impact it had on him to learn about what happened to his friend.
El Taiger, whose real name was José Manuel Carbajal Zaldívar, was found with a gunshot wound to the head inside a vehicle in the Hialeah area of Miami in the early hours of that morning. He was urgently transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he remained in critical condition for a week, until he passed away on October 10, 2024 at the age of 37.
Bebeshito described the loss as something that transcended the personal: "Yes, that was an impact. Yes, an impact on the culture of Cuba as well."
The friendship between both artists was close and was reflected in their collaborative work. They recorded tracks like Marca Mandarina and El Punto, and when the latter entered the Billboard charts in October 2024, Bebeshito publicly dedicated it to his deceased friend. While El Taiger was still hospitalized, the singer had offered the profits from their shared songs to help him financially.
In December 2024, Bebeshito paid tribute to him in Miami and requested a minute of silence in his memory.
The main accused in the crime is Damián Valdez-Galloso, known as El Narra, who was arrested in New York. Prosecutors in Miami-Dade formally charged him in November 2024, and in July 2026, he appeared in a Miami-Dade court to reject a plea deal, so the case continues its judicial process.
In 2026, Bebeshito continues to solidify his career. Billboard included him among the 26 Latino artists to watch of the year, and this month he starred alongside Wow Popy in the first official Cuban casting panel during Billboard Latin Music Week 2026.
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