In six months, Venezuela went from opening its doors wide to concerts by international stars to a hotly disputed election, all while the Venezuelan music movement surges stronger than ever. What are artist’s roles in the current climate? Billboard Español Deputy Editor, Sigal Ratner-Arias discusses their roles with some of the most famous and prominent Venezuelan artists in Danny Ocean, Lele Pons, Mau y Ricky, Elena Rose and Nacho at Billboard’s Latin Music Week 2024.
En los últimos seis meses, Venezuela pasó de abrir sus puertas a conciertos internacionales a ser la sede de una elección presidencial criticada y controversial. A la vez, el movimiento musical de artistas venezolanos surge más fuerte que nunca. ¿Cuál es el rol de sus artistas?
En los últimos seis meses, Venezuela pasó de abrir sus puertas a conciertos internacionales a ser la sede de una elección presidencial criticada y controversial. A la vez, el movimiento musical de artistas venezolanos surge más fuerte que nunca. ¿Cuál es el rol de sus artistas?
Category
🎵
MusicTranscript
00:00When Dania spoke to me and told me what was going on, well, I already knew, but when she told me that she wanted to do something with Todos Unidos Nosotros, I said,
00:06how am I not going to do it? I mean, it's my country, it's everyone's country, and not only that, it bothered me that there were people who followed me who didn't know what was going on.
00:15And I said, who is going to tell them? For me, the most important thing I have done in my career is to be a voice for the people who needed a voice,
00:22because I read the comments, I read what people told me, and it bothers me, I can't do almost anything, but what I can do is use my platform,
00:29and that for me was, I can do more, if we can do more, but for me, at that moment, it was the most important thing.
00:42Welcome to this panel, which has been on my mind for about a year now, and I am very proud, since before the elections,
00:51this panel was born before, when we saw the rise of so many Venezuelan artists around the world, not only in Venezuela, but rather around the world,
01:00so many Venezuelans entering the Billboard charts, nominated for the Latin Grammys, this year I think there are more than 20, so congratulations to everyone,
01:07including three here who have multiple nominations, and others who have already been awarded in the past.
01:13It is a great honor, I wanted to have 40 Venezuelans here, but obviously there were not enough, they gave me a limit of 5, and with Teamau and Ricky as one,
01:21because I also needed them all. Everyone who is here, I'm going to sit down, they have a special reason to be here,
01:31they are artists who have not only stood out in music, as I said, like many others, but they have also made music with a purpose about Venezuela,
01:41and in the case of Lele, she has used her social media in a super responsible and super significant way, especially right now,
01:49to express herself about situations close to her heart, in this case, what is happening in Venezuela.
01:55So welcome, they are also our October cover, which we are unveiling for the first time, it is something historical,
02:03that a cover with six Venezuelan artists appears, so we are very happy and proud.
02:11On Tuesday, the written interview comes out, we met three weeks ago, we overcame hurricanes, we overcame storms,
02:20some traveled, Dani was on tour on the west coast, she had to go to Mexico, and she came one day,
02:25she arrived from the airport directly to the site, and from there she went straight to the airport to continue with her tour,
02:31it was just that, and based on Dani's calendar, we all settled in, because it was very important that everyone was here,
02:38but Dani was the one who had the biggest schedule conflict, and Elena, for example, was in Italy recording,
02:43and she came from Italy, so I want to thank everyone, that day we met was a really magical day,
02:50I don't know how you experienced it, for me it was magical, I had a smile from ear to ear,
02:54I couldn't believe how happy I was to have made this possible, so welcome, and how good to have you here.
03:03Well, after that super introduction, well, as we said before, you are part of a group of Venezuelans
03:10that is standing out in a way that we haven't seen from Venezuelan artists,
03:15I think that since the 80s, when artists like José Luis Rodríguez came out of Venezuela,
03:19like his father Ricardo Montaner, like Franco Evita, but suddenly we see a giant wave of Venezuelans.
03:27Nacho, you who, maybe in those years you were one of the only ones who came out in 2010,
03:33one of the few, because one heard Venezuela and music, and I think those years it was more associated with classical music
03:38than with the system and dudamel, what do you feel when you see this giant wave of artists,
03:44and what do you think triggered that?
03:48Well, I feel a great emotion and a huge pride to see how the country shows that it has a talent
04:00that has also been dragging all this knowledge that was left to us by those who were the precursors
04:09in what is the internationalization of the pop music of Venezuela,
04:14and there I also dare to name Giordano, Frank Quintero too, I feel that we come from that formation,
04:26so many have not heard their music, because all that has been mutating and evolving to what is happening today,
04:37so I feel that we have to be grateful to all these teachers who have opened the doors to the world,
04:45and well, of course the situation that lives in our country, and I don't want to go into that topic too much,
04:53but obviously we have to name it, has pulled out the claws of all the talented people in the country,
05:01you know, there are people who cry in crisis, others who sell handkerchiefs to dry their tears,
05:08and I believe that Venezuelan talent has fought against adversity,
05:13and only that has made them successful abroad, their talent,
05:18beyond the work that can be done in terms of promotion or distribution of their music,
05:27they have had to fight adversity to show what they are capable of,
05:32so I feel very proud of all those who are doing something cool in music.
05:39A round of applause, yes.
05:44Something that really caught my attention are the lyrics of the Venezuelan artists,
05:49unlike others that are playing to dance and are very cool,
05:53I feel that there is a kind of depth that is felt in the lyrics of the Venezuelans,
05:57we see Joaquina, for example, and not necessarily from politics, we see Joaquina singing about the anguish of adolescence,
06:03well, Dani, you released a spectacular EP, super heartbreaking about Venezuela, just before the elections,
06:09we see Nacho recording songs like Valiente, Elena Caracas in 2000,
06:13Mau and Ricky, a whole album dedicated to Venezuela too, Hotel Caracas,
06:17Elena, you as a composer, what do you attribute this to, the depth of the lyrics of the Venezuelan?
06:24Well, first, very happy to be here today, I love you very much,
06:29how nice that you took the time to come and receive this love that we want to give you,
06:36I think that Venezuela as such, and many know it, for those who do not know,
06:40I tell you, it is a rich country in a thousand ways,
06:43especially because I feel proud that we share values like love, like faith, like happiness,
06:54and I think that is transmitted through any artist who comes from a place like that,
07:02because I feel that the Venezuelan has a very particular sensitivity,
07:06that he has a way of seeing life that makes us unique, really.
07:10I agree with you, for example, that our generation has been exposed to very difficult situations,
07:18and as you say, there are many people who in difficult situations can cry, give up,
07:28take off, but the Venezuelan continues to fight and continues to look for reasons to move forward,
07:36and the artists right now, Venezuelans, have a message behind what they do,
07:41they have a purpose, they have an intention, just as we want Venezuela to shine,
07:46and that the same love with which we grew up, that people can receive it in the world.
07:51So that's why I know that there is nothing that will stop us,
07:55but rather now we are stronger and we will continue to be,
07:59and that our country receives that with a lot of love, do you understand me?
08:03I know that Venezuela smiles with every achievement we have on the outside,
08:07because at the end of the day what we want is that,
08:09to see a country that deserves to be happy, that deserves to be free, as we all know,
08:14and from our place and from where it is up to us,
08:19which is music, which is the closest thing we have to God here on earth,
08:24to transmit who the Venezuelan is and the essence of the Venezuelan is our task.
08:29So that's why what is happening here today is so beautiful.
08:33Wow!
09:03I think it depends on each artist and it depends on their vision
09:25and how they want to take their own artistic career,
09:29and what they also want to express.
09:31I think that's an opinion that depends on each artist,
09:35whether they do it or not, it is still respected, it is still understood,
09:40but I think it depends on each artist, honestly.
09:45Well, yes, a little bit of what Dani says.
09:47I think it is important to be responsible with the instinct that one has.
09:54In my case and Mau's, the way we had, in one way or another,
09:59was to put our eyes in Venezuela and do this project called Hotel Caracas,
10:03where, apart from the album, we went to record it in Venezuela,
10:07where what we really wanted was to show people why we are fighting
10:13or what we are defending.
10:15To be able to show the beautiful country we have, its beautiful people,
10:20that we have the excellence of working with my Venezuelan countrymen.
10:24And that was a little bit like the responsibility
10:27that my brother and I felt with this project and at this moment,
10:30as Venezuelans and representing our country,
10:33which is different from the responsibility that Dani felt,
10:37or that Elena felt, or that Lele or Nacho felt.
10:39And that's wonderful, that as colleagues and as countrymen,
10:44each one can be putting their grain of sand
10:47to put their eyes in Venezuela and in our beautiful country.
10:50By the way, of the three nominations that Hotel Caracas received,
10:53they received a long video for the documentary,
10:55and I know that for you, they told me that was the most special.
10:58That is the most special.
11:00Because it is literally a love letter for Venezuela,
11:05it's like a nomination for Venezuela, you know?
11:13It's like a nomination for all those people who worked,
11:16a lot of people who worked on those videos,
11:19more than two hundred and something people,
11:21who feel that that nomination is theirs.
11:25So, it makes me feel proud to think that it's not just ours.
11:31Ricky and I, well, we are a little bit the excuse,
11:33and we are, well, yes, maybe the face,
11:35but together with Daniel Duran,
11:38we had the vision of wanting to capture, as Ricky said,
11:42the most beautiful beauty of our country,
11:45and that is the people, but also all the landscapes that we have,
11:50and to see that people got that to their hearts,
11:54and that they felt that they deserved to be nominated,
11:57it's very cool.
11:58I don't know if we were going to win or not,
12:00but if we win, it's for Venezuela.
12:04How nice, Lele.
12:05Well, a round of applause for that too.
12:07You won, right?
12:08Of course.
12:09Of course.
12:11Lele, in your case, you also used your huge social media platform
12:16for a live with the opposition leader, Maria Corina Machado,
12:19which was seen by millions of people, thousands of people,
12:23and for which Maduro later mentioned you in a speech.
12:26What did you think when all this happened,
12:29and why did you decide to give your platform to Maria Corina?
12:32I think that, look, I think that everyone here has a voice,
12:36and it's very important to use it,
12:39because I'm like an influencer, right?
12:42I've done a lot of things in my career, like, you know, 12 years,
12:46and I think that for me, I told her,
12:49Mom, Dad, I think this is the most important thing I can do,
12:52because with my friends too, we all came together,
12:59and when Dania spoke to me and told me what was happening,
13:02well, I already knew, but when she told me she wanted to do something together,
13:05I said, how am I not going to do it?
13:07I mean, it's my country, it's everyone's country,
13:09and not only that, it bothered me that there were people following me
13:13who didn't know what was happening.
13:15And I said, who's going to tell them?
13:17And I saw it, and I'm not going to start commenting, oh my God, you know, no.
13:20So I decided to do it in a way, you know, for everyone,
13:25in Italian, in English, in whatever, I don't know French, sorry,
13:29but I tried to say it.
13:30We subtitled it, we subtitled it.
13:32But for me, the most important thing I've done in my career
13:35is being able to be a voice for the people who needed a voice,
13:38because I read the comments, I read what people said to me,
13:41and it bothers me, I can't do almost anything,
13:43but what I can do is use my platform,
13:45and that for me was, I can do more, and we can do more,
13:48but for me, at that moment, it was the most important thing.
13:50I thought it was very nice to see how a social media leader
13:54gave space to a political leader in Venezuela,
13:58and it was very nice to feel that support and that fraternity from outside,
14:01that was so important for those who are outside to find out about these things.
14:05Yes, yes, yes.
14:06Dani and Nacho, you were very vocal after the elections on July 28th.
14:12You both, in your own way, called the armed and police forces
14:15to prevent the use of violence in the demonstrations.
14:19Nacho, you even said, and it moved me a lot when I saw your video on Instagram,
14:24and I'm going to quote it in quotes,
14:26I promised my family, for everyone's safety, that I wouldn't do this again,
14:31but I can't see what's happening in the country and stay quiet.
14:35Have you ever feared for your life while in Venezuela?
14:42The truth is no, but it's because I feel that when I was a little boy,
14:49I was very afraid of physical disappearance,
14:54but I think that since I opened my heart to God,
14:57that's no longer a concern that I have.
15:00No, I really feel that I have lived a wonderful life,
15:04and I hope to have a much longer life,
15:08but if I had to withdraw from the physical realm,
15:12I think I would already be very grateful for everything I have lived
15:16and everything that has happened in my life,
15:19and I think the only concern would be to miss my children
15:24until the last of my daughters is completely independent.
15:29I think at that moment I said,
15:31No, she's barely nine months old, girl.
15:36Yes, I'm missing a little while, you see me sitting here too,
15:39because I think I still have about 20 years of work left,
15:42so I have to stretch my youth, apart.
15:45You are doing very well, Nacho.
15:47Yes, but no,
15:50I feel that fear that something will happen to me for a third,
15:58I think I've never felt it, but I have felt concern
16:03because the repercussions of my communication
16:07are not towards me, but towards someone I love,
16:12and beyond the feeling I have for that person,
16:15is the fact that I feel that many people in my family
16:20could feel responsible for me,
16:23and say, Hey, why are you being irresponsible with us?
16:28Right?
16:29It has happened.
16:30Yes, it has happened to me.
16:32I'm not going to tell you who exactly in my family,
16:35there have been a couple, but they have told me things like that.
16:39Hey, for example, it has happened to me at work,
16:43or I lost my job,
16:45which is something I can tell you with all due respect,
16:49that I lost my job because I am such and such a thing as Nacho.
16:52Right?
16:53And Nacho has been very vocal and very upfront
16:58with the issue of opposing the policies of the country.
17:02So, I can't stop feeling guilty, you know?
17:06Like, well, we all live from our work,
17:09we all need that support for our families,
17:12and to feel that someone has lost it because of me is strong.
17:16So, to certain members of my family,
17:18I told them, look, I'm going to take things in a lighter way,
17:23apart from the fact that I feel like I'm at another point in my life.
17:26It's not that I don't care anymore,
17:28I care passionately about what happens in my country,
17:32because I am extremely passionate about everything that has to do with Venezuela,
17:37from studying its musical culture,
17:40to going from town to town,
17:43getting to know the traditions of each of those places,
17:46because I feel like that's the only thing I take with me from my country.
17:51But I feel that now I can communicate in a much more mature way,
17:56and not stop saying what I feel,
17:59but obviously with words that are less hurtful, for example,
18:05or that are less rude.
18:08Because I feel that everything that came to me as news
18:12made me get a boost from a different person than I am today.
18:17But that doesn't mean that there's going to be some injustice
18:21and I'm not going to get ahead in protest.
18:25And I also want to complete a little bit with the previous question.
18:29I believe that we cannot impose duties on our colleagues, right?
18:34Because everyone goes their own way.
18:37But what we cannot do, and this is addressed to our audience,
18:42is to limit their possibility of being more than just citizen artists.
18:47Because it is true that we are artists,
18:49that we have built that in our lives,
18:51or our career has been built through art.
18:54But that doesn't mean that we are not normal human beings,
18:57that we are just like Venezuelans,
19:00that we also eat arepa and enjoy it.
19:03You know, that we enjoy a pavilion or a joropo, you know?
19:07And we do it not as artists, but as Venezuelans.
19:11So we cannot deny the possibility,
19:14coming less from the public towards us,
19:17of being able to express ourselves freely.
19:19Because apart from that, we are in an extremely privileged place.
19:24Grateful to God for everything he gives us,
19:27but we are in a privileged place.
19:29So we don't do this directly towards our situation,
19:33but towards the situation of those in Venezuela
19:36and those who are going through those hardships.
19:39So imagine being in defense of your people
19:44and receiving from your people a negative saying,
19:48you are an artist, don't express yourself.
19:50You know?
19:51So you say, well, who am I fighting for?
19:53So I think that is something we have to correct as a society.
19:57Very good.
19:58Very good.
19:59Very good.
20:03Dani, you released an EP, Venecia, dedicated to Venezuela,
20:08just before the elections.
20:10And it took me back to Me Rehuso, which was your first song.
20:14It had just come out in Venezuela.
20:16You started your career the following year,
20:18I think you came out of Venezuela and released Me Rehuso,
20:21which was about the pain of emigrating.
20:25Why did you do Venecia?
20:27Why did you release it just before the elections?
20:32Look, I...
20:34To be honest, I needed to get those songs out of my system.
20:40I had a lot of accumulated songs written for Venezuela
20:44and I felt that this was the right time
20:47to say everything I was feeling.
20:51Obviously, my life changed after Me Rehuso.
20:54It changed very drastically.
20:56And I feel that I have always wondered, after that song,
21:01how the change was so drastic.
21:03I have always wondered, wow, why that song?
21:07Why all of a sudden?
21:09I think that when things happen that way,
21:13as time goes by, you start to wonder and question these things.
21:18And...
21:20I always get to the closest answer I can get,
21:24which is why I made that song.
21:27And that song is always tied to that feeling
21:30of having to leave someone behind in Venezuela
21:33to look for a better future.
21:35And that injustice of having felt that.
21:38So, I think that Venecia is also simply
21:42a way of thanking the universe for how my life has changed.
21:46Let me explain.
21:48And I want to give Venezuela that hint.
21:52And I think that, more than anything,
21:54I want to thank the 8 million Venezuelans,
21:56almost 8 million Venezuelans, who are out there
21:58and what we long for and what we feel
22:01about not even being able to spend Christmas at home.
22:05So, I just wanted to tell that story
22:08in my own way, in a very personal way.
22:13In addition to releasing the EP,
22:16I'm going to continue with Dani here,
22:18since I have your full attention.
22:20You also made a call to the fans
22:23who had relatives in the police forces
22:26to talk to them and make them come to their senses
22:29so that they would avoid the use of violence
22:31in the demonstrations.
22:33What is your message today for them?
22:35The same. I hold my message the same.
22:37I think that relatives are a key part
22:41so that the Venezuelan National Armed Forces
22:45can do something about a decision
22:49that many of us make.
22:51I think that's their responsibility.
22:54I think that's what the National Armed Forces are there for,
22:56to protect us, to protect our decisions.
22:59And I just wanted to send a message,
23:02because I know that there are many people,
23:04there are many children of them who listen to my songs,
23:06and I just wanted to tell them
23:09to remember that their parents,
23:13or their mothers, or their brothers, or some friends,
23:16above anything else, their priority
23:19are first the Venezuelan citizens.
23:21So I think it was...
23:23I still hold my message.
23:25I think it was very necessary at that moment,
23:27because those were just a couple of days,
23:30the results of the elections,
23:33and I think we were on the edge.
23:35And we knew, I think we all knew
23:38that the role of our armed forces was so important.
23:42So it's just a call from a normal citizen
23:46telling them, hey, we need you
23:49so that this really changes,
23:51because this is affecting all of us,
23:53the reality, those who are inside and those who are outside.
23:56So, yes.
23:58Thank you, Daniel.
24:05Mau and Ricky, returning to the wonderful Caracas Hotel,
24:09traveled for the first time in many years,
24:12since they were children,
24:14and I remember that they told me when we spoke
24:16that they wanted to let go of that impostor syndrome,
24:20of saying, I'm Venezuelan, but people would say,
24:22oh, but you've never been to Venezuela,
24:24you haven't returned.
24:26Tell me how that reunion with Venezuela was
24:28and the importance of this project for you.
24:30That trip changed my life.
24:33Well,
24:38leaving as a child,
24:40and having people from your family
24:43who stayed, even friends and all those who tell you,
24:47you're not Venezuelan anymore because you left,
24:50and you don't deserve to say that you're Venezuelan,
24:54is something that, when you...
24:56Or you deserve to give your opinion, etc.
24:58It's something that breaks you.
25:01Even if you don't realize it,
25:03in time, you start to realize
25:05all those wounds you have.
25:10Also, that starts to generate
25:13almost like a domino effect,
25:15because you start, as a human being,
25:19to feel insecurities of thinking, for example,
25:22oh, no, no, no, no,
25:23since they're telling me this,
25:24maybe I shouldn't give my opinion
25:26about certain things that happen in my country.
25:29Yes, because they're right.
25:32And that makes you live for several years
25:35with a huge fear and anxiety
25:38of feeling like you're not really Venezuelan.
25:43And this trip for us,
25:46apart from a thousand beautiful things that we healed,
25:49one of the main reasons why we came back
25:53was because it was coming
25:56to a point where I couldn't continue
25:59postponing this.
26:01I just had a child.
26:03I just...
26:05Also, after the pandemic,
26:07I stayed with my brother a little bit,
26:09with a little thing there
26:12that I felt was
26:15almost like an identity crisis.
26:18And...
26:19Yes.
26:20And...
26:22And we decided,
26:23despite all the terrible fear
26:25that we had,
26:26forgive me,
26:27but Venezuelans understand.
26:29We take advantage.
26:31Of Venezuelans, not Colombians.
26:33Exactly.
26:34Forgive the Colombians,
26:35I didn't mean that.
26:37But...
26:40The point is that
26:42we obviously had a lot of nerves and fears of coming back
26:47because it was more than 15 years
26:49of accumulating those fears.
26:51And so,
26:52coming back to us meant healing
26:55many things that, apart from...
26:57Nowadays,
27:00apart from feeling that
27:02I have the most beautiful country in the world,
27:05I feel that
27:07I can say it with
27:09certainty and pride,
27:11because it's true that
27:12you have to live it a little bit bigger.
27:14I mean, I...
27:15Look, that doesn't make me less Venezuelan,
27:18but I loved being able to get to know my country
27:20the way I knew it.
27:21Because Ricky and I went
27:23in a plan
27:24of going to heal those things ourselves.
27:27Then the fact arose that, well,
27:30let's document it.
27:31Yes.
27:32And then it arose, well,
27:33let's take advantage and make all the videos
27:35and create all this concept.
27:36Yes, but
27:37the main reason for coming back to Venezuela
27:39right now was
27:40because I needed,
27:41and Ricky needed,
27:42to heal those things
27:43so that I could also tell my boy,
27:45hey, you come from here.
27:47This is your country too.
27:48And
27:49I wanted to have
27:50all the tools possible
27:52to be able to tell him
27:53and communicate it to my boy
27:54in the way that
27:55I feel that today I can communicate it to him.
27:58Yes.
27:59Bravo.
28:00And going back just a minute
28:01to the question
28:03that was asked to Elena
28:04or that you asked Elena
28:05about why Venezuelans have
28:07or our letters are
28:09like that.
28:10I think because
28:11without knowing it,
28:12and sometimes as you grow up
28:14you find out too,
28:15we all have many wounds
28:17because we left the country,
28:19because we have relatives
28:21who are there and can't leave,
28:22or people who can't come back, etc.
28:24And those wounds
28:25turn into songs.
28:28So,
28:29without a doubt,
28:30why our letters
28:31have that depth
28:33or have that meaning,
28:34because
28:35we are healing too.
28:37And people who maybe
28:38are not from Venezuela,
28:40maybe they can understand it,
28:41yes, they immigrated,
28:42but
28:43it's not the same.
28:44It's like
28:45my dad,
28:46who always tells me,
28:47he tells me,
28:48when I was very little
28:49I left my country
28:50and I couldn't come back.
28:51But he could come back.
28:53We spent more than 15 years
28:55without being able to come back.
28:56So that reconnection
28:57made us realize
28:59who we are
29:00and being able to stand
29:01on any stage
29:02and say long live Venezuela
29:03and knowing that
29:04you are saying it
29:05not only with knowledge of the cause,
29:07but I feel more Venezuelan
29:08than the fuck,
29:09you know?
29:10Than the fuck.
29:11The arepa.
29:16Of that super experience,
29:17that beautiful trip you had,
29:19if you could summarize
29:21what you liked the most
29:23about the trip
29:24or what you remember the most,
29:25what is it?
29:26The people.
29:27Yes.
29:28The people of Venezuela.
29:29The people, our countrymen.
29:30That made me realize
29:33why when we meet
29:34in any corner of the world,
29:36be it in Madrid,
29:37be it in Africa,
29:40in Ecuador,
29:41in Argentina,
29:43there is a connection
29:44that goes beyond
29:45and you can't explain it
29:47to anyone
29:48until you go.
29:49And when you live it,
29:50you realize
29:51why I am like this,
29:52because I come from here.
29:53And something vibrates.
29:54When you step on Venezuelan soil
29:56and you are from there
29:57and you have so much time without going
29:58and you have been dreaming about it,
29:59it was physical.
30:00I felt like
30:01my feet were vibrating.
30:02It is very strong.
30:03And the Venezuelan people.
30:04It is the work of Cruz Diez
30:05at the airport
30:06that makes us all vibrate.
30:07What?
30:08The work of Cruz Diez
30:09at the airport.
30:10Yes, it is very beautiful.
30:11And I tell you something,
30:12Venezuelans
30:13have a characteristic
30:14that I love
30:15and it is that
30:16despite all the heavy struggle,
30:19our people are happy.
30:22And you greet them
30:24and even if they are having a hard time,
30:26they greet you with a smile
30:28and they are very helpful.
30:30And they always say,
30:31hey, how are you, my friend?
30:32Here, very good,
30:33thank God,
30:34you know, my friend,
30:35it's good to see you.
30:36Uff, how beautiful that is.
30:37That is very strong.
30:39That is very beautiful.
30:40And I think that is also why
30:42as artists and as Venezuelans
30:45what is happening
30:47is happening.
30:48Because there is something different in us.
30:50And there is something that makes
30:52that when we enter a room
30:54there is a specific joy
30:56and there is something that is not explained
30:58that is a gift that God gave us.
31:00We do not deserve it at all.
31:02But it is something that God decided
31:04that we were going to have.
31:06And that is spectacular
31:07and I am very proud of that.
31:10How beautiful.
31:14I wanted to talk a little bit
31:16about what it has been for you,
31:17because unlike Mexico, Colombia, Puerto Rico,
31:19which have started in their countries,
31:22except for the case of Nacho,
31:24who did build a career in Venezuela first,
31:27with the support of a local industry,
31:30what have been the biggest challenges
31:32for those who started outside Venezuela
31:34to make a career here?
31:37Well...
31:42I think we talked about it
31:44the day we all met.
31:49The fact of not having an industry,
31:51the fact of not having
31:53an economic attraction, right?
31:57Not having the possibility of having
31:59an economic attraction
32:00so that industries or record companies
32:02can go to Venezuela
32:05and be able to invest quietly,
32:07without risk, right?
32:11That means that our numbers
32:13are not concentrated in one place.
32:16The numbers of...
32:17I am referring to all the digital numbers.
32:20It is very difficult for them to be concentrated
32:22in a single place,
32:24because apart from the fact that we are
32:26watered down, right?
32:28Everywhere.
32:31There is also a very cultural work
32:33that has to be done in Venezuela, right?
32:36To be able to align ourselves
32:38with our neighboring countries,
32:40such as Colombia, Argentina,
32:42Puerto Rico, Mexico.
32:44I think we also have to do
32:46a great job as a country brand.
32:48Honestly, not only in the field of music,
32:50but in all fields.
32:52If we want to start competing,
32:54we have to do many things
32:56and we have to change many things
32:58and be able to bring all this knowledge
33:00that we are having outside
33:02to try to use it in a single place
33:04and have this place concentrated
33:06to go from inside to outside.
33:10For me, I think that is the case
33:12of the country theme
33:14and how it affects us.
33:17Because all the roads have...
33:22They are not difficulties,
33:24but like...
33:25There are stones, you know?
33:27You have to walk it for something.
33:29You can't fly it and pass it.
33:31The case of the Venezuelan as such
33:33is that he is very self-taught
33:35in many things, right?
33:37And we always have a plan B.
33:39Plan A, B, C, D, U,
33:41like that in the moment.
33:43What happens?
33:45Even though music
33:47has blessed us
33:49with this creativity,
33:51with this love that lives inside of us,
33:53it is also nice to educate ourselves
33:55about the structure,
33:57the business models,
33:59the ways of working,
34:01because there are many
34:03that are good, positive,
34:05correct.
34:07What do I mean?
34:09Venezuela right now
34:11doesn't have an ideal structure
34:13that protects,
34:15that represents
34:17what it means to be an artist.
34:19It is a country where,
34:21unfortunately,
34:23the people who have power,
34:25the people who have control
34:27respect
34:31the culture of music.
34:33What does it mean?
34:35There are many artists,
34:37and that's why I wanted to take advantage of this space
34:39to say it, because I know that these videos
34:41are later on social media,
34:43which are still there, right?
34:45And my message is directly for them.
34:47Why?
34:49Because they don't deserve to feel
34:51that they have to sell their soul,
34:53so that through their music
34:55they can exist or survive.
34:57Give us an example, Elena.
34:59I'll give you an example.
35:01Exposing the artist
35:03to have to
35:05be part of
35:07situations
35:09that take you away
35:11from your responsibility
35:13as a musician, which is making music.
35:15That is, not having to mix
35:17music with politics,
35:19with situations
35:21that really
35:23prostitute you,
35:25because that's the truth, you know?
35:27And forgive the word, but
35:29it's very difficult
35:31when you're in a space of necessity
35:33where you're hungry,
35:35you know?
35:37And I've always said this,
35:39where you're hungry,
35:41to be exposed
35:43to make decisions that aren't.
35:45I mean, I always say this,
35:47just because you're hungry
35:49doesn't mean you have to eat shit.
35:51Pick up the phone, you know?
35:53Surround yourself with people who can educate you
35:55and tell you, hey, this is a business model
35:57that works.
35:59For $500 you don't sell
36:01a song of yours and then you don't have
36:03copyright
36:05on that song. It's not worth it.
36:07Your art, the gift that God gave you,
36:09has no price
36:11and you have to protect it.
36:13What about the Venezuelan outside?
36:15We've had the opportunity to educate ourselves
36:17about this. We've received the support
36:19of other wonderful cultures that already have
36:21a structure, that have historically
36:23gone through similar situations
36:25to ours, and they tell us,
36:27hey, no,
36:29your manager doesn't have to
36:31do this with you.
36:33You don't have to use your image
36:35to be part of X or Y
36:37in this way. So what happens?
36:39First, in Venezuela
36:41we need that.
36:43What is education, really?
36:45What is really
36:47understanding
36:49the power of your talent
36:51and how you have to protect it
36:53at all costs.
36:55For example, us,
36:57that we support each other,
36:59the fact that we went out and said,
37:01hey, Dani, you're from Venezuela,
37:03let's go together.
37:05Stefano is my best friend.
37:07But it wasn't easy.
37:09The first time we met,
37:11it was a rejection, but at the same time
37:13it's like, brother, you and I come from the same place.
37:15Do you understand me?
37:17We came from the same place, and we were going through
37:19the same situations.
37:21It's like, brother, let's
37:23hold hands right now.
37:25So, I know,
37:27I know that
37:29in all stages it's different, in all levels
37:31it's different, but
37:33the Venezuelan right now is in a very special
37:35and very particular moment, and it's the moment
37:37to keep
37:39holding hands,
37:41to keep, hey, look, I feel this way,
37:43I'm thinking
37:45about this project this way,
37:47that they can recognize,
37:49you have to have
37:51your lawyer, you have to have a team
37:53consolidated well, you don't have to do it
37:55by yourself, and you don't have to
37:57bend over.
37:59You don't have to bend over.
38:01Bravo.
38:05Isn't it wonderful?
38:07My cover group.
38:09This is just an appetizer.
38:11Read the cover on Tuesday.
38:13It's going to come out, because it's very exciting.
38:15Nacho,
38:17what has to happen in Venezuela
38:19for there to be industry?
38:27Wow.
38:31Well, you are the most veteran here,
38:33the one who has lived the most in Venezuela.
38:35Well, look, I think
38:37what Elena says is very right,
38:39but there are many ways
38:41to sell yourself.
38:43Definitely, it's a very unfair way
38:45for those who don't know
38:47about the business, because
38:49I've really seen that.
38:51What she's saying, guys
38:53who are in some town in Venezuela,
38:55but obviously with the technology
38:57they handle the production software well,
38:59or whatever, they are great composers,
39:01great producers, and suddenly
39:03they make a very good song, and any artist,
39:05not only from Venezuela,
39:07but internationally,
39:09recognizes, especially when they are artists
39:11from other countries,
39:13they recognize the talent and say,
39:15look, I'll give you a thousand dollars for that song.
39:17That happens, I've seen it a lot.
39:19So they sign a work for hire, and goodbye.
39:21And suddenly the song is a great success,
39:23and it happens.
39:25But there is another way, too,
39:27and it's seen a lot in Venezuela,
39:29and again, I respect very much
39:31the decision of everyone
39:33to think what they want.
39:35I think that above ideology
39:37there always has to be objectivity.
39:39And objectively,
39:41whether you are on the side you want,
39:43or think what you want,
39:45you are seeing that there is a situation
39:47within the country.
39:49So I feel that there are many very talented artists,
39:51great writers,
39:53great producers,
39:55who have given up on the path,
39:57and in the search
39:59to be able to live
40:01prosperously, they have also
40:03understood in another way,
40:05and that is that they have joined
40:07an ideological side
40:09that is doing a lot of damage
40:11to the country. A lot.
40:13And to the industry.
40:15And to the industry.
40:17To their colleagues.
40:19Of course, because people are seeing that
40:21within the industry as an alternative.
40:23Well, on the way,
40:25I feel that I have struggled too much
40:27and that I have not reached where I want to reach.
40:29So I say, now I think this.
40:31And I want them to know,
40:33those artists who know who they are,
40:35and that we recognize
40:37their talent,
40:39that they are more than that.
40:41That they can give much more than that.
40:43That they deserve much more.
40:45And that they cannot give up
40:47on the way, because failure comes
40:49when you stop trying.
40:51If the process continues, no one can call you
40:53a failure. Now, from that point
40:55on, comes the technical part.
40:57And the technical part does have to do
40:59with what Dani said.
41:01Obviously, it is difficult
41:03to enter the country and feel safe,
41:05at least in terms of business,
41:07being a digital platform.
41:09To say, well, I am going to establish
41:11myself within Venezuela because
41:13I recognize that there is a lot of talent
41:15and not just wait and say, no, that boy
41:17is good, but let's wait for him to get his visa.
41:19So that he gets here
41:21and then we can do something
41:23with him. So,
41:25what do we get used to in the industry?
41:27That has to change. And I tell you from
41:29my own experience. When I started and
41:31still continues...
41:33When I started and still continues,
41:35there was a lot of prosperity
41:37in the country with the theme of entertainment.
41:39So, we were very used to
41:41the fact that
41:43only living from the live
41:45presentations was enough for you to have
41:47a super prosperous life within the country.
41:49And all that was declining.
41:51But we have to see the signs of God.
41:53Maybe that was declining so that
41:55we could say that
41:57the stage is not the end of your art.
41:59It is wonderful to be on the stage,
42:01to share with the audience and
42:03to hear people cheer the songs that you
42:05made. But if you get used
42:07to that and you only see
42:09that your business is based on that,
42:11then you start to lose
42:13everything else that you can do,
42:15not only for yourself as an artist, but in representation
42:17of your country. Look, unfortunately
42:19we are running out of time, but I would like to close
42:21with something positive, thinking of the many
42:23talents that are bringing up the name of
42:25Venezuela all over the world.
42:27Music can
42:29change lives. Music can
42:31change hearts. Do you feel that it can
42:33help change the course of history?
42:35Of course.
42:37In fact, it has not changed the course.
42:39It has always given the direction in
42:41history. Music, as I said,
42:43I feel it. It is the closest
42:45we have to God here in the
42:47world. And all of Latin America right now,
42:49I know we are talking about Venezuela today,
42:51but I dare to say that all of Latin America
42:53is really shining. And we are
42:55spreading that love through what we do
42:57and we are representing.
42:59And so we are going to keep history
43:01as we are. Love, love
43:03and happiness. So we have
43:05to keep going.
43:07Thank you very much. Thank you all
43:09for coming. It is beautiful to see a full house.