Sebastián Yatra, the artist who was already a millionaire before achieving fame

Since he started his short musical career about 9 years ago, Sebastian Yatra continues to reap success. Hits like “treacherous” and “Give me my heart back”, took him down the path of the Latin Grammys in 2017 and 2018, and this year, he celebrates it twice with the nomination for Oscar about the topic “two caterpillars“, of the movie “Charm”, as Best song and his foray into acting in the series “Once upon a time… but not anymore”, which premieres Netflix this March 11.

But what is behind this Colombian who will visit Peru on August 19? Let’s go back to his childhood.

Sebastián Obando Giraldo is the real name of Yatrawho uses this name that means “sacred path to the divine” in Hindi. And, although he is characterized by his humility in front of and behind the cameras, the young man from Medellín enjoyed a somewhat austere life during his childhood and youth.

His beginnings in music took place in the city of Miami, where he lived a large part of his life from the age of five. She became interested in being a singer after starring in the musical High School Musical at his school, which prompted her to take singing and stage presence classes. Seven years later, she released her first single, “The psychologist” (2013), whose video was directed by Simon Brandthe renowned filmmaker behind the videos of Carlos Vives, Fanny Lu, Shakira and Ricky Martin.

Strong Colombian roots

Son of Aníbal Obando Agudelo and María Adelaida Giraldo Moreno, Sebastian Yatra He is the youngest of three brothers (Juan Manuel and Andrés) and was the darling of the house. His artistic pretensions were supported by a family with a great reputation in Colombia. Although his parents studied law, both took different paths. He ended up dedicating himself to the field of construction and transportation; while she focused on raising her three children in Medellín.

However, shortly after, the Obando Giraldo family moved to Cartagena, escaping the violence and drug trafficking that prevailed in Colombia in the 1990s.Medellin was a place full of drug trafficking. A place that at that time was very difficult. My dad, there was a point in which he himself walked around with a gun to defend himself for anything”, counted Yatra in an interview with Caracol Television.

Such was the threat that one of the singer’s political uncles was kidnapped and disappeared forever; event that ended up convincing the patriarch of the Obando to migrate to the United States and settle in the vacation home they owned there.

But who were the Obando Giraldo to be fearfully threatened?

Aníbal Obando Agudelo, father of Sebastian, is a prominent Colombian businessman who founded, more than 50 years ago, the oldest transport and distribution company in Colombia, Coordinadora Mercantil, dedicated to moving messages, packages and merchandise throughout the coffee country. Currently, the company is run by Aníbal’s sister and Yatra’s aunt, María Elena Obando Agudelo. And since everything stays within the family, Aníbal’s other brother also stands out in the paisa business world, although in another area.

Ivan Obando Agudelo, uncle of Sebastian Yatra, also has more than 30 years in the media sector, founding the television production company Producciones Cosmovisión SA His professional success has recently earned him the Don Juan del Corral Order of Merit from the Medellin Council. As if that were not enough, Yatra’s uncle has an artistic side. He eventually publishes romantic songs and books. His literary work “You will take me in you” was, in fact, the best-selling in December 2016 in Colombia.

Given this family legacy, the singer has managed to stand out in the music industry with his own name. Opting for an alternate surname is no accident. This distance from the recognition of his own has served him to break through beyond his country of origin and today enjoy his more than 20 platinum singles and two gold records in Chile, Mexico, the United States, Colombia, Spain, Ecuador and Peru.

On his acting debut

“Once upon a time… but not anymore” is a Spanish series produced, written and directed by the Mexican Manolo Caro. It is the first musical fiction in Spain that will review some of the classic themes of Spanish and Latin pop. According to Caro, this story bets on a reinvention of fairy tales.

The story revolves around two lovers who were tragically separated and who must meet in another life to break the spell that has fallen on the eccentric town they inhabit. Now, in the present, the arrival of two tourists will jeopardize the only chance they have of breaking the spell.

Together with Yatra, complete the cast Rossy de Palma (“Broken Embraces”, “Women at the edge of a nervous attack”), Asier Etxeandia (“Sky Red”, “pain and glory”), Mariola Fuentes (“Someone has to die”, “Broken Embraces”), Itziar Castro (“Vis a Vis”, “Skins”), Chilean actress Daniela Vega (“A Fantastic Woman”, “The Visit”) and the Mexican Mariana Treviño (“Club de Cuervos”, “La casa de las flores”) among others.

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