I am from the Dominican Republic. Santo Domingo, the capital. I was born on January 1, 1955. I am 69 years old. How old are you? (60) I’m beating you by 9 years! Always! I have here 19 years in Barcelona. I arrived permanently in 2005.

My father always listened to music on the radio, and I always loved listening with him. He listened to Latin music, Spanish music. He listened to Salsa, Cumbia, Bolero and Cha Cha Cha. He listened to the Beatles, Nat King Cole, what a smooth sweet melodic voice, and Engelbart Humperdinck, Please Release Me Let Me Go. I play music after I was 10 years old. I was always singing when I was a kid. In the school, primary and secondary. I sing for everybody. I have a cousin who is a singer, too.

One guy in my street when I was maybe 10. I look at him and I say, “I want to play, man!” Immediately I say, “I want to play guitar.” I fell in love with the guitar. He said, “OK, look for a guitar.” A friend of my father lent me a guitar temporarily first and later my dad bought me a guitar, this guitar friend showed and explained guitar chords for me. I never studied music. I just watch people play and later go to my house and try to learn the songs and copy the players! Later, I played with this guy as a second guitarist. I think he was ten years older than me. Eventually, I went with him and serenaded people in Santo Domingo. We played for birthdays, weddings, and anniversaries.

I studied accounting in the university, just two years. After it was just music, music, music, and I drove a taxi. This was fine, but everyone knows I play music, so I drive but when a customer needs music in my car or another car, the dispatcher calls my number, “410. Someone wants music.” Then I stop driving and play music for them! Fantastic.

In 1986, I start a trio in Santo Domingo called Los Tainos. We played Cuban music and other Latin music. We played in many hotels like the Hotel Espanola and Hotel Santo Domingo with 5 stars. Everybody knows us.

In 1992, I came to play in Barcelona for 7 months during the year of the Olympics. A restaurant gave us a contract and we played every day. The owner saw us playing at the Spanish Embassy in Santo Domingo and invited us. They paid for food and apartment and paid us well. And many many tips. It was incredible. I liked Barcelona. It wasn’t expensive, and I think, “I want to go back sometime.” I see that life is more secure here.

When we came back, we were very busy playing and we played the Spanish Embassy many times again. They loved our music. We played every party, and they paid good. Our trio was famous in Santo Domingo. Later, in 2005, the Ambassador says that he will help my trio. He helped us get a visa to go to Barcelona for two months, and then I didn’t return! I liked Barcelona. He didn’t have any problem with me when I stayed. I found a job working construction for a year and tried to make music, too. It was difficult.

In 2006, I got a permit to play in the street. It was good then. Today, it’s so so. What’s good in the street is I get to know different people from different places. This is good. When people see me, they ask me to play in their weddings or parties. This is good because it leads to other work. I prefer other music work, and it pays better. Maybe 100 Euros for an hour. 200 for two hours in the private music work. The street is good for several days but somedays it is a routine. Repetition. Even I know more than 300 songs in my repertoire. The people love the popular songs more than my own songs. It feels like a job now in the street more than a passion. And there can be some difficult people bothering me when I play. But I don’t have other work. A taxi license is very expensive here!

Now I play 4 or 5 days a week for two hours and on Saturday sometimes four hours. I don’t feel fresh after so many years. I’m a little tired now at my age. The money is not great in the winter but it’s Ok in the summer, maybe 100 Euros for 2 hours. But I have my obligations to pay rent, electricity, water. These are my commitments.

Life is good for me here. It is difficult, but I have freedom. Life is more secure. In my country, there is a lot of delinquency. Life is much more difficult in The Dominican Republic. I have four daughters and one son. My youngest daughter lives here studying a course of Carretiera and the others are in Santo Domingo. My first daughter has an art degree. My next one is a photographer and the next is an actress. My son is a taxi driver and uber driver. I see them as much as I can. We call. I pay all the time for the kids, but then it was difficult during the pandemic. No work, but I found a job at night to take care of apartment buildings under construction, to watch the materials. I was lucky to have work.

In my future, I hope I can be good. I have always the illusion that someday things will be better. Music here is very difficult. In Santo Domingo there is music in all the hotels. It is better. Here, there is not much in the hotels. Here it is the street, but I am always positive. 

I still want to go to the United States to make music. My brother lives in New York City. So, I want to go with good luck. My dream when I was young was to become famous musically speaking, but now this is just an illusion. But I have survived with music, and when my music makes people happy, that makes me happy. I enjoy when the people enjoy. This is my purpose, and this is the pay. This is the best pay. A smile. When someone cries. The communication is the purpose. Sometimes I play and a person listens and says, “Thank you for making my happy day.” For me, I am content. This is satisfaction for me. Maybe people have problems, but to listen to me for some minutes and feel better, this is awesome. I’m human. People don’t know my problems, but I show them a good face. This is my purpose. And I feel better when I sing, too!

Before the end of my life, I would like to go back Santo Domingo. Maybe in 5 or 6 years. It is more peaceful, and I can be with my children. In Santo Domingo, people know me. I have many many old friends and many places I can play music.