Singer and Composer Edesio Alejandro Dies in Madrid

March 6, 2025

Singer, composer, music and film producer Edesio Alejandro died this Wednesday in Madrid, after months of fighting an aggressive prostate cancer. He was 66 years old, much of his life dedicated to creating works that remain in the memory of several generations.

The news shared on social media recalls that during recent months, the talented and versatile musician was undergoing medical treatment.

"Despite his fight, his health deteriorated, ultimately leading to his death," wrote journalist Aníbal Oliva. This death is another blow to Cuban music and culture, following the deaths of troubadour Eduardo Sosa and the popular Paulito FG.

Born in Havana, Edesio Alejandro stated in an interview with Diario de Cuba in early 2024 that he had been "living with prostate cancer for four years," the reason for his trip to Madrid, since "in recent times, medicine and the vaccine that controls that cancer have run out in Cuba."

Shortly after, in mid-year, the musician launched a campaign aimed at raising funds to cover the costs of treatment for his illness. In a message at that time, he explained that he was admitted to a sanatorium in Madrid and that although cancer had not defeated him, he was "in a very close fight and things are not going well."

"I am in the sanatorium because the disease is causing a lot of pain, and we will be here until God decides"

Edesio Alejandro's extraordinary talent has marked Cubans with a good number of magnificent works for television and cinema.

In film, his creations are remembered in films such as Kleines Tropicana (Daniel Díaz Torres, 1997), Un Rey en La Habana (Alexis Valdés, 2005), Clandestinos (1987) and Madagascar (1994), the latter two by Fernando Pérez, with whom he shared many other projects, among which his masterful Suite Habana (2003) also stands out.

In television, the musician's contribution was canonical in series such as Hoy es siempre todavía, the adventure Misterio de un tesoro, the telenovela Salir de Noche, and the children's program El mago del cachumbambé, according to the En Vivo website listing.

In 2010 he was nominated for a Latin Grammy for 100 sones cubanos, a production that a year later received another Grammy nomination. It is a record collection that includes five CDs that took him three years of work and that reflect Edesio Alejandro's interest in diverse genres of Cuban music, as he demonstrated with rumba.

The National Center for Popular Music mourned the death of Edesio Alejandro, and from its social networks, recalled the National Prize for Music that was awarded to him in 2020 together with maestro Huberal Herrera.

"There is so much music, so many projects that bear his mark that we would not have enough time. We only want to say in these days of such pain that we are left with his humility, with his music, with his desire to help everyone. Today we again lose a beloved son of Cuban culture," the message reads.