The Musical Journey of León Larregui: From Graphic Animator to Rockstar

2024-01-06 13:38:25

Two years before founding the band Zoé, the Mexican singer León Larregui had not yet exchanged his computer for a microphone, working as a graphic animator and occasionally modeling for brands like Armani, or in music videos, as in the song “Se qué, se mata” by a young Shakira, who was reinventing herself for the first time in the music industry. After several years of sporadic small jobs, Larregui earned enough money to embark on his own musical path, leaving behind brief appearances to give major presentations all over the world.

During the video clip of Shakira’s song, released as part of the album ‘Pies Descalzos’ (1995) and directed by Juan Carlos Martín, León Larregui plays Braulio, a young man with a dark and mysterious appearance who, together with Danna, his partner, faces a worrying situation. According to the plot of the video, which addresses delicate and controversial topics for the time such as teenage pregnancy and abortion, both make the decision not to have the baby and go to a clinic. The story concludes with a young León Larregui packing his suitcases in the middle of his room.

“That day I went with my girlfriend at the time to make the video. I didn’t even know who Shakira was nor was I interested, but I needed to pay the rent and I was short on cash. I accepted simply because. There was no background of friendship with her, I was just a 22-year-old boy who wanted to pay the bills and start a band,” León Larregui mentions from her home in Brussels, in an interview with El Comercio.

This new production continues to touch on themes such as love, in addition to being strongly influenced by the stage of covid 19 and the information age.

After forming the band Zoé with Sergio Acosta on guitar, Jesús Báez on keyboards, Ángel Mosqueda on bass and Rodrigo Guardiola on drums, and consolidating their presence in the Mexican rock scene with 6 tours, 4 albums, 2 EPs and an MTV Unplugged session, Larregui would begin his personal parallel project with the release of his album “Solstis” in 2014.

“It was a moment of personal need, of exploring what I was experiencing, my path. It was never my intention to end Zoé, but rather to carry out the exploratory work necessary to maintain a healthy balance. I already had some songs composed, pieces that didn’t quite fit in the band, but that were suitable for my solo career,” says Larregui, who defines his personal style as a spiritual search.

The new album produced by León Larregui himself is made up of 15 songs entirely written by the Mexican singer-songwriter.

love and women

Behind the extensive musical repertoire created in his 27 years of career, there are hidden love stories that Larregui went through, something he calls adventures of encounter, disagreement, loss, maternal and paternal love. Some of her most popular songs born in this way are “Paula”, “Love”, “Poli”, “Miel”, among other songs that demonstrate the impact of her ex-partners on her art.

“Female figures are always present, when I was very young I lived alone with my mother, learning how difficult it is to be a single and independent mother. From what I experienced with her to my personal romantic relationships, that is what fuels the lyrics,” explains Larregui, who maintains a special bond with her mother, to whom she dedicated her song “Arrullo de Estrellas,” a song that she managed to hear. one day before his death.

His new album Prismarama was also influenced by a female figure, Margaret Turck, wife of the artist and mother of 8-year-old Lucian Larregui. “Once he told me: ‘I have to tell you that I really like your demos better, not in the studio or with Zoé, but when you make them at home,’ so I took those words into account a lot. That’s why I ventured into this project and producing this new album,” explains the singer.

The album was recorded in Paris like his other solo albums, but it did not feature production by Adan Jodorowsky.

Controversies and social networks

Zoé’s success was accompanied by controversies due to León Larregui’s behavior at different times in his life, added to his attitude called “introverted” by the artist himself. These factors caused the Mexican singer-songwriter’s stay on social networks to always be a visit where it is inevitable for him to respond constantly.

“I started at a time when the networks were friendlier. Now, as Featherweight says, everything is more bellicose. It’s fun, although you have to be careful. “Sometimes I use it to vent and nothing more,” says the singer, who is not afraid to write tweets where he defends his ideas, although they always end up in digital discussions.

Unlike social media users, Larregui seems to enjoy more the company of close friends like Enrique Bunbury from Spain or Adrián Dárgelos from Argentina, with whom he has some collaborative songs. For this new presentation, he is preparing a special event together with Laurent Brancowitz and Christian Mazzalai from Phoenix. “We hope to sing together on stage. It would be great to be able to get up and sing some songs. It’s funny because sometimes they ask us to sing on social media… it’s difficult to understand what they want,” concludes Larregui.”

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