Musicians - La Lupe

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	Musicians - La Lupe

Lupe Yolí (La Lupe or La Yiyiyi) was one of the biggest singers in Latin Music and Salsa .

Born Guadalupe Victoria Yolí Raymond on December 23,1936 in the barrió of San Pedrito, Santiago, Cuba just like her closest counterpart, Celia Cruz, she was a schoolteacher teacher before she became a singer.

She married in 1958 and formed a muscial trio with her husband Eulogio "Yoyo" Reyes and another female singer. This group "The Tropicuba Trio" broke up with the marriage in 1960. She began to perform her own act at a small night club "La Red" in Havana and acquired a devoted following also appearing on radio. She released her first album "Con el Diablo en el Cuerpo" ("With the devil inside") on Discuba in 1961. Her expressive performances with their violent sexuality attracted criticism that she was a poor example to the revolutionary state, this led to professional difficulties which together with personal problems made it difficult to stay in Cuba.

In 1962 she exiled to the United States via Mexico. In New York City she performed at a Cuban cabaret at "La Barraca" where she was discovered by Mongo Santamaria and started a new career, making more than 10 records in five years.

Her passionate performances covered the range of Cuban music: son montuno, bolero, Guantanamera venturing into other Caribbean styles like merengue, boogaloo, golpe tocuyano, busamba, salsa. In the sixties she was the most acclaimed latin singer in New York City due her partnership with Tito Puente. She was the first latin singer to sell out a concert at Madison Square Garden in February 19th., 1969. She also did a wide variety of cover versions in either Spanish or accented English, including Yesterday, Dominique by The Singing Nun, "Twist & Shout", "Unchained Melody", Fever and America from West Side Story.

She was a Santera and a devotee of her namesake saint Our Lady of Guadalupe. However due to the decision by her record label, Fania Records, to end her contract in the last 1970s (in part because of pressure from Celia Cruz), she saw herself destitute in the 1980s. After being healed miracously by a evangelical Christian faith healer, she abandoned her Santeria roots and became a born-again Christian. She died in the Bronx,New York on February 29,1992 of a massive heart attack. She is buried in St. Raymond's Cemetery, Bronx, New York City. Her grave can be found in the St Matthew Section, row 7, grave 88.

In the 1990s, interest in her music was re-sparked when Pedro Almodóvar included "Puro Teatro", one of her boleros of love and breakup in his film classic Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown. Due to her similarities to American singer Judy Garland such as her strong, yet raspy voice, and her energetic and unpredectable stage performances, she has become an icon among many gays in Latin America and Spain.

In 2002, The City of New York renamed East 140th Street in The Bronx as La Lupe Way in her memory.

Complete discography

"Con el Diablo en el Cuerpo", 1960.
"La Lupe is Back", 1961.
"Mongo Introduces La Lupe", 1963.
"The King Swings, the Incredible Lupe Sings", 1965. (with Tito Puente
).
"Tú y Yo", 1965. (with Tito Puente
).
"Homenaje a Rafael Hernández", 1966. (with Tito Puente
).
"La Lupe y su Alma Venezolana", 1966.
"A mí me llaman La Lupe", 1966.
"The King and I", 1967. (with Tito Puente
).
"The Queen Does Her Own Thing", 1967.
"Two Sides of La Lupe", 1968.
"Queen of Latin Soul", 1968.
"La Lupe's Era", 1968.
"La Lupe is The Queen", 1969.
"Definitely La Yiyiyi", 1969.
"That Genius Called The Queen", 1970.
"La Lupe en Madrid", 1971.
"Stop, I'm Free Again", 1972.
¿Pero Cómo va ser?, 1973.
"Un Encuentro con La Lupe", 1974.
"One of a Kind", 1977.
"La Pareja, 1978". (with Tito Puente
).
"En Algo Nuevo", 1980.

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Musicians - La Lupe

Complete discography

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