In musical terms, what genres do you consider most influential in your artistic production? The most influential genres for my music are funk and trova fundamentally. Afro- Cuban has also influenced me a lot, the Yoruba chants, traditional music, pilon, mozambique, son, chachacha. The last one, it’s incredible how some element of it always appears in my songs.
Following your success with ‘Me Voy’, your career definitely reached a cusp moment. What challenges do you face to remain popular with the public so they follow and support you? ‘Me Voy’ is not my favorite song from the Terapia album, it’s a song I enjoy but it’s not my favorite. The song was very well received by the public and still is, and I think they’ll continue listening to the song for some time. What challenges, I try not to expect too much, to try and stay on top, that’s always complicated. I try always to stay satisfied, and enjoy it myself so that that feeling reaches the audience.
I always try to stay away from what could mean pressure, a challenge, a difficulty, because when you put that in the music, you brush with danger and start to question many things as an artist, especially within the artistic process. When that happens, the creative act stops being authentic and becomes something predictable and ordinary.
For lovers of artistic revolutions, good music and the very necessary sound experimentation, listening to the music of Cimafunk is a joy and a burst of strength and vitality. Erick Iglesias, director and lead singer of the band, gave an exclusive interview to CubaPlus, where he outlined various aspects of his artistic career.
For how long has Erick Iglesias championed music? I’ve been making music since I was a child, when I started singing with the Christian church choir in my town in Pinar del Rio. Later on from that far off time, I made reggaeton in the pre-university and then I was part of the trova movement in my native province until I left for Havana and started working in the genre that I do now.
Is there any antecedent to what we now know as Cimafunk? Everything is an antecedent to what we do every day. Everything lived is a reference, the music I’ve listened to, the places I’ve visited...What I consumed in my infancy and youth contributes directly to the music I’ve been making. Everything is an influence to arrive at this point, and this is an influence for what will come after.
Does Cuba represent your most important market? Cuba is the genesis from which my art feeds itself, the people, the everyday. It’s the country where I’ve always been most interested for my music to reach, because I am from here. I would like to continue playing music without having the obligation to follow the market and the art marketing machine.
What do you hope to achieve in the short and long term in your career? I want to able to share my music, to reach more and more people, and that the people are nourished and I am nourished as well, that they show me a little what they feel, what they think, because after all we are all in the same boat, we all want the same, we think the same, some with more, some with less.
What I hope is to enjoy myself and not stop doing music either now or in the future. I really hope to maintain what I have, beyond the popularity….keep my aura, my energy and the energy there is around everything I am doing right now. I hope the good vibes remain because that’s what makes me happy. Now I relish the recognition, but before, when I was less well known, I was also happy.