Andy Ernesto Vázquez Toirac is a Cuban comedian born in 1975 in Baracoa, Guantánamo, Cuba.
At the age of 14, she appeared in the telenovela Prefiero las rosas by Raúl Pérez Sánchez. Later on, she made several appearances in regular Cuban television shows such as Tras la huella, Jura decir la verdad, and No quiero llanto. She served as a judge on the well-known comedy program on the island, Los amigos de Pepito.
Andy Vázquez's opportunity came with his inclusion in the popular and notable comedy 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, establishing him as one of the leading comedians in the Cuban repertoire.
Alongside the cast of Vivir del Cuento, he received several awards in Cuba at various festivals, such as Aquelarre (2002), the Television Festival (2013), the Caricato Award for Acting, and the Barrio Award, 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 motivated by the alleged repercussions within Cuba of the material titled "Las Chivate-rías de Facundo," where the character stated that the policy of basic, non-basic, and directed goods would be re-implemented in the capital, a strategy used by stores in Cuba to regulate products in the early decades of Fidel Castro's revolution.
"Each resident of Havana will be required to go to the Cuatro Caminos market once a month and will be allowed to buy one of each product. The basic item is meat, and one can choose between chicken, pork, or lamb; the non-basic allows for a detergent, a floor blanket, or tomato puree; and the regulated category includes asparagus, seasoning, and fabric softener," he said.
The criticism was sparked by 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.
Facundo's material unsettled the authorities, and the artist was expelled from the popular television comedy.
In December 2019, he traveled to Miami and although initially he hinted 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, “Andy Vázquez a misunderstood civic? Come on, spare me that story." In August 2020, the official journalist Jesús Álvarez López referred to the comedian and other Cuban artists as "victims of weak legs.”
To the characters he was already bringing to life in Cuba, Andy has added Lina la Javá, who enjoys great popularity, Amore H “La Calentica,” along with others that make him one of the most beloved comedians in Miami due to his artistic versatility.
