Andy Ernesto Vázquez Toirac is a Cuban comedian born in 1975 in Baracoa, Guantánamo, Cuba.
At the age of 14, she appeared in the soap opera Prefiero las rosas by Raúl Pérez Sánchez. Later, she made several appearances in regular Cuban television programs such as Tras la huella, Jura decir la verdad, and No quiero llanto. She also served as a judge on the popular comedy show on the island, Los amigos de Pepito.
Andy Vázques’s opportunity came with his inclusion in the popular and notable humor show Vivir del Cuento. His ability to portray such diverse characters as Facundo Correcto, Ángel Bueno (Aguaje), and Bienvenido Blanco Blanco earned him great popularity among the Cuban audience, solidifying his status as one of the leading comedians in the Cuban repertoire.
Along with the cast of Vivir del Cuento, he received several awards in Cuba at various festivals, including Aquelarre (2002), the Television Festival (2013), and the Caricato Award for Acting and El Barrio, both in 2014, among others.
In 2016, during his visit to Cuba, the President of the United States, Barack Obama, participated in a sketch with the main actors of "Vivir del Cuento" in which he plays a game of dominoes alongside Pánfilo and Chequera.
In 2019, Andy made headlines after being removed from the cast of Vivir del Cuento and was suspended by the authorities of the Cuban Institute of Radio and Television (ICRT). The incident was prompted by the alleged repercussions within Cuba of the material titled "Las Chivate-rías de Facundo," in which the character stated that in the capital, they would reinstate the policy of basic, non-basic, and directed products that were used in stores in Cuba to regulate goods in the early decades of Fidel Castro's revolution.
"Each resident of Havana will have to go once a month to the Cuatro Caminos market and will be able to buy one of each type of product. The basic category includes one type of meat, with options of chicken, pork, or lamb; the non-basic allows for a detergent, a floor mat, or tomato puree; and the directed category includes asparagus, seasoning, and fabric softener," he said.
The criticism arose from the incidents that occurred during the reopening of the popular Havana market Cuatro Caminos and the subsequent damage caused after its inauguration by a group of people who gathered at the site to shop.
The material by Facundo unsettled the authorities, and the artist was expelled from the popular television comedy.
In December 2019, he traveled to Miami, and although he initially indicated that he would return to the island, where his followers were asking for him to be given a second chance on the television show Vivir del Cuento, the comedian ultimately decided to stay.
From that moment on, Andy Vázquez had to deal with numerous threats made from the island as well as the disdain and insults typical of the official Cuban media. The Ministry of Education (MINED) tweeted in February 2020 the message "Is Andy Vázquez an misunderstood civic figure? Don’t mess with us, that story doesn’t fly". In August 2020, the official journalist Jesús Álvarez López labeled the comedian along with other Cuban artists as "victims of weak legs.”
To the characters he already brought to life in Cuba, Andy has added Lina la Javá, who enjoys the most popularity, Amore H “La Calentica,” among others, making him one of the most beloved comedians in Miami due to his artistic versatility.
