Abel Díaz Rodríguez, popularly known as El Chulo and The President of the Neighborhood, is a Cuban reggaeton artist belonging to the urban music genre. He was born in Belén, Havana on June 24, 1990.
When he started making music in Cuba, in the Havana neighborhood of La Habana Vieja, the representatives of the urban genre were Los Generales, Michel Delgado, the son of Issac Delgado, and Jose Juanqui, with whom he formed a group. He always knew he wanted to emigrate to the United States. He was always drawn to the reggaeton genre. His childhood was spent in an environment marked by marginalization.
In Cuba, he worked as a backing vocalist for Chocolate MC, with whom he recorded the song that launched him to fame and inspired him to start making music. He owes his nickname, El Chulo, to his mother, who gave it to him with the implication that only her son could live off her.
In 2016, while living in Miami, he was arrested and charged with second-degree attempted murder for shooting at an officer, to which Díaz Rodríguez eventually pleaded guilty and served time in prison. After completing his sentence, he found significant support from a friend who owned a recording studio and who taught him to sing, as he only knew how to rap and found it impossible to perform choruses. His perspective on his own music changed, and the goal of his current career, as he has stated, is to make the Reparto genre international.
El Chulo has participated in multiple performances alongside other representatives of the urban genre from Cuba, such as El Micha, El Taiger, Yakarta, Jacob Forever, Señorita Dayami, Baby Lorens, Lenier Mesa, Yomil y el Dany, the Puerto Rican Lary Over, and with members of Zona, with whom he recorded "Loco por bailar contigo" in 2019. He has achieved significant success with his music and has performed in New Jersey. His songs have over 1 million views on YouTube.
In September 2018, he was involved in the alleged assault against Cuban singer Gorki Ávila that took place a week earlier at the studios of Channel 41 in Miami when asked about Decree 349, which the Cuban government seeks to use to limit the freedom of artists on the island. El Chulo defended his fellow professionals who refused to talk about politics and ended up physically attacking Gorki. Gorki called the police, and El Chulo was eventually expelled from Channel 41.
His singles "Qué mostra eres tú" and "Te estoy explicando" reached Gold Record certification in June 2020.
In 2018, he joined the spectacular concert in Miami featuring Gente de Zona, Marc Anthony, Leoni Torres, Diana Fuentes, and other Cuban artists.
In May 2020, he published a video in which he clearly states his political stance against the Cuban regime, which he criticizes by referring to himself as part of the resistance, and promises to denounce the dictatorship in every interview he gives. "How long will this continue? Years and decades keep passing, and the people are still oppressed," he stated. His comments received a strong reception among his followers.
On his social media, he boasts about his financial achievements and has recently made headlines for sharing photos of his new $175,000 Rolls Royce purchased in cash, while also announcing his upcoming purchase of a house, also in cash. In May 2020, he sent money to a disabled woman in Cuba whose story had been shared on social media, which moved the artist to publicly disclose the amount of his donation in hopes that other artists would follow his example.
His album El Presidente is scheduled for release in October 2020.
