Willy Chirino

Wilfredo José Chirino, known artistically as Willy Chirino, is a Cuban singer-songwriter and music producer based in Miami, who was born on April 5, 1947 in Consolación del Sur, Pinar del Río, Cuba.

In 1961, Chirino emigrated to the United States. In 1962, he formed a rock band, The Whailers, and later moved to New York, where he worked with Julio Gutiérrez, Tito Puente, and other renowned musicians.

In 1974, he recorded his first album, One Man Alone, which has been followed by more than 40 productions. Willy Chirino is one of the creators of the Miami Sound, emerged from the fusion of rhythms brought by musicians and orchestras immigrating and performing in Miami in the 70s and 80s. Chirino's music encompasses salsa, merengue, Cuban music, rumba, rock, and other Caribbean rhythm fusions.

He has shared the stage with Celia Cruz, Arturo Sandoval, David Bisbal, Oscar de León, Baby Lorens, among others, and his compositions have been recorded by other singers such as Raphael with his famous "Escándalo", Ricardo Montaner, Celia Cruz, etc. As a producer, he has also produced albums for Raphael, Rocío Jurado, Magneto, etc. He owns his own record label, Latinum Music, Inc., since 1997.

In 2014, he was awarded a Latin Grammy for Excellence.

Chirino is one of the most beloved and influential artists in the Cuban community, not only for his music but also for his humanitarian work and involvement with Cuban emigrant rafters, for which he has received significant recognition.

In 1994, following the so-called Rafter Crisis, thousands of Cubans took to the sea and the United States temporarily housed them in camps while immigration authorities processed them. Chirino visited several of these centers in Panama and Guantanamo. His song "Ya viene llegando" became the anthem of a whole generation yearning for freedom, especially for the rafters detained in these makeshift shelters, who welcomed him with open arms.

Regarding his most famous song, which belongs to the album "Oxígeno" that became very popular in Cuba in 1991, Willy commented in an interview with Alexis Valdés: "I wrote 'Ya viene llegando' as a way of letting off steam, as therapy." "I really never imagined what that song would become, because I didn't write it with that intention, I just wanted to share a little about my life," said the singer.

In 2010, he collaborated on the recording of the Latin version of the song "We Are the World," along with many well-known Latin faces, whose profits have been destined to the victims of the earthquake in Haiti.

In 2013, he joined voices with Gloria Estefan in the Connect Cuba campaign, an effort to bring free internet to the majority of Cubans.

Recently, following the release of the film "La Red Avispa," Chirino has been in the news for his statements against the movie, which he described as an infamy, especially regarding the role assigned to Basulto and the Brothers to the Rescue Organization. "I knew José Basulto and his family very well. He is a decent, brave man, a patriot with courage who has fought greatly for Cuba, for the freedom of Cuba. He has saved thousands of lives in the Florida Straits with his Brothers to the Rescue organization. I had the opportunity to fly with them and see firsthand their work."