Carlos Vives paid homage to the greatest composers of the vallenato genre at Colombia’s 2018 Festival de la Leyenda Vallenata Monday night (April 30).
The 51st edition of the festival was in turn a tribute to Vives, the singer/songwriter who put and has kept the music long associated with Colombia’s cowboys on Billboard’s Latin charts with his signature fusion, beginning with his breakout hit “La Gota Fria” in 1994.
On the festival’s closing night, Vives invited 18 guests to the stage to join him in performing his well-known songs and those of other Colombian artists.
During the three-hour show, Vives also premiered a video of his new song, “10 Razones de Amarte,” a collaboration with the late vallenato singer Martín Elías, who passed away in April 2017. Vives said he found out too late that Elías wanted to record a duet with him; the two voices were brought together posthumously in the studio. Elías had previously recorded the song with accordion player Juancho de la Espriella, who joined Vives on the stage of the festival.
The festival held in the Northern colonial city Valledupar ran from April 25-30. After five days of performances and musical battles, eleven-year-old Julio Gil was named the King of Vallenato in the juvenile category, awarded for his improvised verses. Ronal Torres was named the accordion king, and Santander Bornacelli won in the professional category for his improvisational lyrics.
Watch the video for “10 Razones de Amarte” below.
