Haila María Mompié González

Currently catalogued as one of the great Cuban interpreters, a faithful exponent of Son.

Born in Amancio Rodríguez in the province of Las Tunas, daughter of a father who was a singer by avocation and a mother who was a stylist. She began to feel an affinity for music since childhood, although she was initially inclined towards dance, which she studied at an Art School in Santiago de Cuba.

After several years dedicated to the study of dance, in 1991, Yaquelín Castellanos—a well-known Cuban interpreter—upon hearing her voice, proposed that she become part of her group. In this way, she began as a singer of the "Septeto Tradición", dedicating herself to cultivating traditional Cuban music.

A year later, she made her debut as a soloist at the cabaret "Las Avenidas" and later joined the group "Habana Son" directed by saxophonist "El Chino Lam". It is also in that same year that she was requested for the show "Guajira Habanera" and in this way, she performed her first international tour through various venues in Mexico.

In September 1994 she joined the musical project Bamboleo, where she stood out for her high level of improvisation and vocal strength.

As vocalist of Bamboleo she recorded 2 albums, and performed several international tours that covered venues in Italy, Holland, England, the United States, Belgium, France as well as Peru and Mexico among others, not to mention the intense work she did at the national level, managing to place that orchestra among the most popular in the country.

After that experience, in 1998, she joined the project of musician and composer Leonel Limonta and it is then that her name appears as founder of the Orchestra "Azúcar Negra" capturing the attention of musicians, specialists and the general public. It is also in "Azúcar Negra" where Haila performed several international tours through countries in Europe and America achieving great success, in addition to recording an album that reached the top positions of Cuban radio and television hits, thanks to her exceptional performances. To cite just one example, the song "Andar Andando" sung by Haila, became an anthem not only for dancers, but for audiences of all ages.

In 2001 after returning from a tour of Europe, Haila decided to embark on a new stage in her artistic career, debuting as a soloist.

In the years 2000, 2001 and 2002, Haila performed as a soloist in several venues in Japan where her talent was recognized, and she also shared the stage with figures of the caliber of Cheo Feliciano, Oscar de León, Rey Ruiz, Celia Cruz, José Alberto "El Canario", Osdalgia, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Chucho Valdés, Muñequitos de Matanzas, Mario Rivera, Juan Manuel Ceruto, Adalberto Álvarez, David Calzado and Isaac Delgado.

Haila has collaborated as an interpreter on several albums by Cuban musicians and on the album La rumba soy yo, winner of the Latin Grammy in 2001, in which in addition to showcasing her voice, she demonstrated her versatility.

The year 2002 was of great importance for her, as in addition to performing in venues in the United States together with Isaac Delgado and his Orchestra, she was selected as a guest figure at the renowned Tropicana cabaret. She also performed concerts in several European countries as part of the cast of the show "Festival Son Cuba" and as a member of the Cuban Grammys project alongside Eliades Ochoa, Juan Formell, Sampling, Chucho Valdés, Los Papines and Ernán López-Nussa.

On April 25, 2003 at the Copa Room cabaret of the Riviera Hotel, several important events took place in her artistic life. That night before guests of the Ministry of Culture, Artex, Musicalia, Bis Music, the Artex Electronic Commerce Agency, journalists, directors and animators from radio and television as well as critics and the general public, "The Diva of Son", presented her orchestra made up of musicians of proven talent who accompanied her from that day and for several months in all her national performances.

In that presentation, Haila announced to those present her contract as an exclusive artist of Musicalia, Artex's artistic representation agency, her album "Haila Live" produced by the record label Bis Music, which documents what happened at a live concert performed by the artist at the National Theater of Cuba where figures of the caliber of Chucho Valdés, Isaac Delgado, Mayito Rivera, David Calzado and the singers of the Charanga Habanera participated. The CD included 13 tracks and was produced and musically directed by Juan Manuel Ceruto.

It is also in that year that Haila performed in June an important tour of Europe and in the months of July and August she performed together with David Calzado and Charanga Habanera in several cities in Japan. In March 2004 at the proposal of Bis Music, ARTEX's record label, Haila performed in Canada for the purpose of promoting her album "Haila Live" presenting herself to the Canadian public.

In Cuba she is known as "The Diva of Son", she has had the opportunity to sing on stages alongside great musicians such as Adalberto Álvarez, David Calzado, Olga Tañón, Lázaro Valdés, among others.

She participated in the CD Cuba canta a Serrat, recorded in Havana in the studios Abdala, Ojalá, PM Record and Frank Fernández, which paid tribute to Catalan interpreter and composer Joan Manuel Serrat. This album, which initially contained 12 tracks and which today is a double album with more than twenty songs, turned out to be one of the most talked-about albums at MIDEM 2005 in France.

Her penultimate record production is titled Diferente, where David Calzado is the producer, with which she showed a new facet of Haila.

In 2011 she released her fifth and final record production titled Mala.

Haila is married to former singer of the Charanga Habanera, Aned Mota, who is today a producer and her representative and has a son Haned Mota Monpié.

Discography
Label Ahí Namá
"Te gusto o te caigo bien". Bamboleo, 1997.
"Yo no me parezco a nadie". Bamboleo, 1997.
Label Géminis Productions, RTV Comercial
"Gracias", Formell. 1997.
Label Bis Music
"Andar Andando". Azúcar Negra, 2001.
"Haila". Debut as soloist, 2001.
"Haila live" 2002.
"Diferente" 2004.
Record productions with other groups
"Tu querida presencia", Bis Music. 1997.
"Briyumba Palo Congo", Blute Note. 1999.
"La Rumba Soy yo". Bis Music, Latin Grammy 2001.
"Deep Rumba", American Clave, 2001.
"Las más famosas de Cuba II", Bis Music, 2002.
"Me gusta así". Bis Music, 2002.
"Latin Man". Aosis Records, 2002.
Tribute to Richard Egues, 2002. MALA BIS Music