Morat Shines in Viña del Mar Debut, Wins Gold & Silver Gaviotas

Their fans had eagerly awaited since Tuesday (Feb. 25), when the event had to be canceled due to a massive blackout in Chile, and Morat did not disappoint. In their debut at the Viña del Mar International Song Festival, the Colombian pop-rock band got the “monster” of Quinta Vergara excited with a show full of energy and heart.

On a luminous stage, the Bogota quartet comprised of Simón Vargas, Juan Pablo Isaza, Juan Pablo Villamil and Martín Vargas sounded impeccable as they performed hits like “No Se Va,” “Salir Con Vida,” “Por Si No Te Vuelvo A Ver” and “Amor Con Hielo,” which the audience sang along to from beginning to end, belting out the lyrics with emotion. It wasn’t long before they were awarded the Gaviota de Plata (Silver Seagull) award, and in the end, they also took home the Gaviota de Oro (Gold Seagull), the highest honor given by the audience at the event.

“You can’t imagine how much we dreamed of being here,” one of the band members expressed just before receiving the Gaviota de Oro. “Thank you, really. We love you with all our soul.”

Morat’s setlist also included “París,” “Llamada Perdida,” “Besos En Guerra” and, for the big finale, “La Policía.”

With hits including “No Se Va,” “Besos en Guerra” and “Cuando Nadie Ve,” Morat debuted in 2016 with the album Solo el Amor y Sus Efectos Secundarios, and received a Latin Grammy nomination for best new artist the same year. Morat’s fourth and latest LP, 2022’s Si Ayer Fuera Hoy, gave the band their first entry on the Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart, peaking at No. 18.

“How wonderful Viña, how wonderful!” the band exclaimed before ending their debut performance at the Chilean festival. “You can’t imagine the dream we are fulfilling here. Thank you so much for all the support, for all the love.”

Yatra closes Viña with philharmonic and other surprises

Six years after winning his first Golden and Silver Gaviotas in his debut with a full show in Viña del Mar, Sebastián Yatra triumphed again at the Quinta Vergara on Saturday, when, accompanied by a philharmonic of more than 50 musicians — in addition to his own band and a group of dancers — he closed the 64th edition of the festival with a flourish.

It was a spectacular performance that began with the Colombian star dramatically appearing on stage as the orchestra’s director, dressed in white and with a baton in hand, before performing a version of his 2018 reggaeton hit “Traicionera,” originally recorded with Cali & el Dandee and Cosculluela. The tempo increased little by little, with hits like “Por Perro,” “Pareja Del Año,” “Por Fin Te Encontré,” “Chica Ideal” and “Robarte Un Beso.” Although Yatra was a little hoarse, he carried the show with elegance from start to finish, keeping everyone engaged with his charisma, talent, and new arrangements.

“Good evening Viña del Mar!” he greeted the Chilean audience, who received him cheerfully. “We thought we weren’t going to be here, and we ended up closing the Viña Festival!” he added about the cancellation of his original show on Tuesday due to the blackout.

In a sublime moment, he sat down at a keyboard to perform the heartbreak ballads “Cómo Mirarte” and “Devuélveme El Corazón.” Then, he took up the guitar for the romantic “No Hay Nadie Más” and “Cristina” as his fans chanted word for word, some with tears in their eyes. “Viña I love you, I really do, thank you. That song was born here,” he said about the latter.

Yatra, who received Golden and Silver Gaviota awards during his performance, brought two additional surprises to Viña del Mar: He premiered a song that he will release on March 20 “about a redhead,” he said without revealing the title. And he had Lasso as a guest, with whom he sang a rock version of “Ojos Marrones.” He also performed “Ya No Tiene Novio” with digitized images of Mau y Ricky on the screen over orchestral arrangements that at moments made it feel like a James Bond theme.

To close the night, and the entire festival, Yatra sang “Sutra”, “2AM” and of course “Tacones Rojos,” which made the entire Quinta Vergara dance and jump to the beat.

With almost a dozen No. 1s on the Billboard Latin Airplay chart — including “Robarte Un Beso” with Carlos Vives, “Tacones Rojos” and “Un Año” with Reik, to name a few — Yatra had previously performed in Viña del Mar in 2019 with a full show, as well as the previous year during Vives’ concert, joining him on “Robarte un Beso” — something he did again on Wednesday during Vives’ performance.

The 64th edition of the Viña del Mar Festival kicked off Sunday (Feb. 23) with a riveting set by Marc Anthony. Since then, artists like Myriam Hernández, Ha*Ash, Carlos Vives, Carín León, Incubus, Duki, Eladio Carrión and Kid Voodoo performed at the Quinta Vergara. All nights were exclusively livestreamed in the U.S. at Billboard and Billboard Español.