Fifteen singers gathered last evening, in front of four judges, at the Cultural Center on the Isla Cuale to compete for the chance to represent Puerto Vallarta in the upcoming State Youth Finals in Guadalajara.
Juventudes—ranging from 13 to 29 years of age—sang a range of songs from traditional bolero/ballads in Spanish, a few slow, wistful songs in English, a splash of punk rock, and Angeloo's second, and winning solo, Sinful Passion, was in Russian.
Born in Vallarta 13 years ago, Angel Covarrubias has won the hearts of tourists and residents over the past three years, during which he began appearing on various stages around town, entering every contest that came up and winning most of them.
He is fearless in front of any audience, and his performance on the small stage at La Catrina Cantina, where he has a weekly show, is the same as on the giant stage of Teatro Vallarta, where he won his first major contest - 'So, You Think You Can Rise' - when he was ten.
Angelo taught himself to sing and to speak English using PlayStation. He can play piano, guitar and drums and has recently taken up the saxophone. Whenever I hear how terrible it is for children to have access to the internet, I think of Angelo. He is also a good student, winning awards for his various scholastic projects.
Last year, he won the children's division of La Voz de Zapopan with a song by his hero, Dimash Qudaibergen, a Kazakh singer with an over-five-octave vocal range. During the World Cup, Angelo performed a Tribute to Dimash in Zapopan just outside of Guadalajara. He and his dad, Oscar Corral, will be in that city again this coming November 17, when Dimash performs his World Tour at the Telmex Auditorium. It is Angeloo's dream to sing with the man who has inspired him, even for a few seconds, and failing that, to at least meet him, shake his hand, and say thanks.
Stranger things have happened, and I am betting on Mexico's magic to bring Angeloo's dream to life, in whole or in part!
