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Leonor González Mina (June 16, 1934 – November 27, 2024) was an Afro-Colombian musician and actress, known as "la Negra Grande de Colombia" ("The Great Black Woman of Colombia"). She is known for her work in several genres of Colombian music, including bolero, pasillo, bambuco, and especially cumbia. She is known for songs such as "Mi Buenaventura", "Navidad Negra", and "Yo Me Llamo Cumbia".
Leonor González Mina | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Mina in 2016 | |
| Born | June 16, 1934 Jamundí, Valle del Cauca, Colombia |
| Died | November 27, 2024 (aged 90) |
| Nationality | Colombian |
| Other names | "La Negra grande de Colombia". |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, singer |
| Spouse | Esteban Cabezas Rher |
Life and career
editLeonor González Mina was born in Jamundí, Valle del Cauca, Colombia on June 16, 1934.[1] The musical career of Leonor González Mina began when she was 18 years old, when she decided to leave her home. After six months, she participated as a dancer in a ballet by Delia Zapata Olivella and her brother Manuel, acting before an audience in Paris. With this dance company she travelled internationally to countries including China, Germany, and the Soviet Union. When she returned to Colombia, she produced her first record, titled "Cantos de mi tierra y de mi raza".[2]
Leonor González Mina was a reference of cultural identity, Valluna and Colombian, that for more than 60 years of a successful artistic career took the Afro-Pacific culture to many areas of the planet. She demonstrated all the rhythms of Colombian culture, from a cumbia to a bambuco, her life and work was a legacy of musical identity and nation. She recorded more than 30 records during her lifetime.[citation needed]
In 1975, González Mina represented her country in the fourth edition of the OTI Festival, which was held in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Her competing song, entitled "Campesino de ciudad" (City farmer) talks about the difficulties that the people from the rural areas face in the big cities in search of a better life. The song, which summarized a sad reality in Latin America, moved both the audience and the juries and she got the third place in a tie with the Venezuelan entrant, Mirla Castellanos.
Leonor González Mina also acted in a Colombian television series,[3] and participated in the congressional elections of 1998, when she was elected as a cameral representative for Bogotá with the Colombian Liberal Party.
González Mina died on November 27, 2024, at the age of 90.[4]
Songs
editSome of her songs are:[5]
- Toto La Momposina - La Mar de Musicas (Cartagena)
- Liliana Montes-"Aguacerito llové" del álbum Corazón Pacífico
- Mi Buenaventura/Mi Peregoyo - Leonor González Mina by Mulato de Jesus Maria
- Navidad Negra- (Pescador de mi tierra) Leonor González Mina
- Simplemente la Negra Grande de Colombia -Soy de Buenaventura
References
edit- ^ "Ibagué en su 26º Festival Nacional de la Música Colombiana - diario El Pais". Archived from the original on 2014-05-08.
- ^ http://78rpm33rpm.blogspot.com/2009/03/leonor-gonzalez-mina-la-negra-grande-de.html [permanent dead link]
- ^ "Leonor González Mina. El alma de la Negra Grande de Colombia". Archived from the original on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2014-05-08.
- ^ Saavedra, Frank (27 November 2024). "Adiós a la 'Negra Grande de Colombia': Leonor González Mina murió a los 90 años". Infobae. Retrieved 27 November 2024.
- ^ Ortiz, Alberto José Echeverri (2016-11-21). "Leonor González Mina, la vida y obra de la negra más grande". Cali Creativa (in European Spanish). Retrieved 2019-02-27.
External links
edit- (in Spanish) News report on Leonor Gonzalez Mina's 72nd birthday
- Festival Petronio Alvarez, 2010
- Leonor González Mina discography at Discogs
- Leonor González Mina at IMDb