Luis Alberto Cuevas Olmedo (born September 12, 1967), better known as Beto Cuevas (), is a Chilean-Canadian singer, songwriter, plastic artist, painter, and actor. He is the lead singer for the Chilean band
La Ley. In 2008 he launched his solo career with the release of his album, ''Miedo Escénico''. In 2012 he released his second album, ''Transformación''.
Music career
1988–2004: La Ley
In 1988, during a trip to
Concón, Chile, Cuevas met Mauricio Clavería, drummer for
La Ley. Clavería invited Cuevas to join the band, which had just lost two founding members, Iván Delgado and Shía Arbulú. Beto made his debut as La Ley's singer on their first album, ''Desiertos'', quickly becoming the voice of the band.
During the early years of the band, Cuevas wrote the lyrics, and the music writing was done by the band's founder and leader Andrés Bobe. During this time, La Ley became one of the most successful groups in the country. In 1994 Bobe died in a motorcycle accident after a benefit show, and Cuevas became the leader of the group. He went from being the visible face of the group to becoming the main creative force behind it with the help of his bandmates.
La Ley's story is divided in two: before and after Andrés Bobe. Under Cuevas' influence after the passing of Andres, the band evolved musically and gained success across Latin America.
During the shoots for the music videos of the
''Invisible'' (1995) album, Cuevas began to co-direct the pieces.
On February 21, 2001, a day before the
Viña del Mar Festival, the band was on the
Channel 13 show, ''
La Movida del Festival''. During a live interview, a member of the audience announced that the group just won a
Grammy
The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...
as best alternative rock group. This moment, and the show at the
Quinta Vergara
Quinta Vergara is a park located in Viña del Mar, Chile. The park features three major landmarks: the Palacio Vergara, the Quinta Vergara Amphitheater and a garden. Every year the park is home to the Viña del Mar International Song Festival.
Pa ...
on the next day, marked a turning point. In mid-2001, the group appeared on
MTV Unplugged
''MTV Unplugged'' is an American television series on MTV. It showcases recorded live performances of popular music artists playing acoustic instrument, acoustic or "unplugged" variations of songs. The show aired regularly from 1989 to 1999. F ...
. The recording of this soundtrack was a huge success across Latin America, and cemented the reputation of La Ley as one of the most important Chilean bands of all time.
2005–2009: Solo work
In 2005, Beto Cuevas, Pedro Frugone and Mauricio Clavería took a break from La Ley.
Cuevas worked on small projects, including the song "Loud", in collaboration with Masters at Work ("Little Louie" Vega & Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez"). He revisited the song "Mentira", originally released on ''
La Ley MTV Unplugged'', and was a part of the soundtrack for the film, ''
La mujer de mi hermano
''My Brother's Wife'' () is a 2005 Mexican film directed by Ricardo de Montreuil, based on the novel of the same name by the Peruvian writer, journalist and TV host Jaime Bayly. It starred Bárbara Mori, Manolo Cardona, Christian Meier, and ...
''. Other projects included a collaboration with Chilean band
Los Prisioneros
Los Prisioneros ("The Prisoners") was a Chilean rock band formed in San Miguel, Chile, San Miguel, Santiago Province, Chile, Santiago, in 1982. Considered one of the most influential Latin-American bands of all time, they've been evaluated as pio ...
, on their album ''Manzana''. Here, Cuevas played synthesizers, guitars, and vocals in the song "Insatisfacción", a rendition of the
Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
classic "
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", and in "Eres Mi Hogar".
In 2007, he shot an episode of the
Canal Fox Latinoamérica series ''
Tiempo Final'', titled "The Autograph", where he plays a character called Beto. In September 2008, Beto interviewed
Morrissey
Steven Patrick Morrissey ( ; born 22 May 1959), known :wikt:mononym, mononymously as Morrissey, is an English singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the frontman and lyricist of rock band the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 198 ...
for a Los Angeles channel,
LATV
LATV (; originally pronounced on-air as from 2007 to 2014 and, since 2014, serving as a backronym for its on-air slogan, "Latino Alternative Television") is an American bilingual broadcast television network, digital publisher and media company ...
.
In March 2008 Cuevas pre-launched his solo debut, over two years since he had last performed with La Ley. Prior to the release of his first solo album he did an intimate tour through the US. His debut solo album, ''Miedo Escénico'' was released on September 23, 2008, and spun 3 hit singles: "Vuelvo", "Háblame", and "Un Minuto de Silencio". A year later, in September 2009 he recorded a version of the
George Michael
George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer-songwriter and record producer. Regarded as a pop culture icon, he is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling rec ...
classic "Faith", on the Buenos Aires soundstage of La 100 (99.9 fm). The song is featured on the album, ''La 100 en Vivo''.
2010– Present
On February 26, 2010, Cuevas shared the stage with
Raphael
Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), now generally known in English as Raphael ( , ), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of paintings by Raphael, His work is admired for its cl ...
at the Viña del Mar Festival,. He was due to perform solo the next day, but next day a
great earthquake hit southern Chile, and the Festival was cancelled. In May 2010, Beto released a version of the
Violeta Parra
Violeta del Carmen Parra Sandoval (; 4 October 1917 – 5 February 1967) was a Chilean composer, singer-songwriter, folklorist, ethnomusicologist and visual artist. She pioneered the Nueva Canción Chilena (The Chilean New Song), a renewal and a ...
classic, "Gracias a la Vida", produced by Humberto Gatica, and featuring stars including
Miguel Bosé
Miguel Bosé (born Luis Miguel Dominguín Bosé; 3 April 1956) is a Spanish-Italian Pop music, pop singer and actor.
Early life
Bosé was born in San Fernando Hospital in Panama City, Panama, the son of Italian actress Lucia Bosè (1931–202 ...
,
Michael Bublé
Michael Steven Bublé ( ; born September 9, 1975) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Regarded as a pop icon, he is often credited for helping to renew public interest and appreciation for traditional pop standards and the Great American ...
,
Fher Olvera,
Juan Luis Guerra
Juan Luis Guerra Seijas (born 7 June 1957) is a People of the Dominican Republic, Dominican musician, singer, composer, and record producer. Throughout his career, he has won numerous awards including 28 Latin Grammy Awards, three
Grammy Awards, ...
,
Shakira
Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977) is a Colombian singer-songwriter. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Latin Music", she has had a Cultural impact of Shakira, significant impact on the ...
,
Laura Pausini
Laura Pausini (; born 16 May 1974) is an Italian Pop music, pop singer. She rose to fame in 1993, winning the newcomer artists' section of the Sanremo Music Festival 1993, 43rd Sanremo Music Festival with the song "La solitudine", which becam ...
and
Alejandro Sanz
Alejandro Sánchez Pizarro, better known as Alejandro Sanz (; born 18 December 1968), is a Spanish musician, singer and composer. He has won 22 Latin Grammy Awards and four Grammy Awards. He has received the Latin Grammy for Latin Grammy Award ...
. 100% of the profits of the single went to helping the recovery and supporting Chileans affected by the earthquake.
Cuevas released his second solo album ''Transformación'' on September 25, 2012. It featured 12 songs, and a collaboration with
Leire Martínez
Leire Martínez Ochoa (born 22 June 1979 in Errenteria, Gipuzkoa), is a Spanish singer, songwriter and the lead vocalist of the band La Oreja de Van Gogh from 2008 to 2024.
She participated in the television show Factor X in 2007 performing c ...
in "Goodbye". The album was recorded entirely in the US and charted in Billboard right away. Beto was chosen as one of the coaches in the second season of talent show ''La Voz... México'', along with
Paulina Rubio
Paulina Susana Rubio Dosamantes (; born 17 June 1971) is a Mexican singer, songwriter and television personality. Referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, The Golden Girl", she first achieved recognition as a member of the successf ...
,
Jenni Rivera
Dolores Janney "Jenni" Rivera (July 2, 1969 – December 9, 2012) was an American singer, songwriter, actress, businesswoman, and producer known for her work within the regional Mexican music genre, specifically in the styles of Banda (music), ...
and Miguel Bosé.
In 2014,
La Ley reunited after nine years of separation, and embarked on a new tour. The band announced in 2016 that they were splitting up, again.
Cuevas played the role of
Jesus Christ
Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
in the 2019 all-star Mexican production of ''
Jesus Christ Superstar
''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Life of Jesus in the New Testament, Gospels' accounts of Passion of Jesus, the Passion, the work interprets ...
''.
In 2022 and 2023, Cuevas appeared as one of the coaches on
The Voice Chile.
Personal life
Cuevas was raised in
Caracas
Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...
, Venezuela and grew up in
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, Quebec. He is fluent in French, English and Spanish.
His family moved to
Montreal, Quebec
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, Canada to escape
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean military officer and politician who was the dictator of Military dictatorship of Chile, Chile from 1973 to 1990. From 1973 to 1981, he was the leader ...
's dictatorship, so he also holds a Canadian passport. In 2002, he married model Estela Mora; they separated in 2007, but she remains his manager.
He has two children: Martina (born 1988) (from Estela's first marriage in Argentina) and Diego (born 1992). He was in a romantic relationship with actress
Bárbara Mori from 2010-2011.
Discography
Solo albums
Albums with La Ley
* 1990: ''
Desiertos''
* 1991: ''
Doble Opuesto''
* 1993: ''
La Ley''
* 1994: ''
Cara de Dios''
* 1995: ''
Invisible
Invisibility is the state of an object that cannot be seen. An object in this state is said to be ''invisible'' (literally, "not visible"). The phenomenon is studied by physics and perceptual psychology.
Since objects can be seen by light fr ...
''
* 1998: ''
Vértigo''
* 2000: ''
Uno''
* 2001: ''
La Ley MTV Unplugged''
* 2003: ''
Libertad''
* 2004: ''
Historias e Histeria''
* 2014: ''
Retour''
* 2016: ''
Adaptación''
Film career
Cuevas portrayed the character Padre Santiago in the 2005 Mexican film ''
La mujer de mi hermano
''My Brother's Wife'' () is a 2005 Mexican film directed by Ricardo de Montreuil, based on the novel of the same name by the Peruvian writer, journalist and TV host Jaime Bayly. It starred Bárbara Mori, Manolo Cardona, Christian Meier, and ...
'' (English: ''My brother's wife''). He played a bigger role as the character Santillan in the 2007 American film ''
Borderland''.
References
External links
The Official Beto Cuevas Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cuevas, Beto
1967 births
Chilean rock singers
20th-century Chilean male singers
Chilean male singer-songwriters
Chilean singer-songwriters
Living people
Rock en español musicians
Spanish-language singers of Canada
Warner Music Latina artists
Latin music songwriters
Rock songwriters
21st-century Chilean male singers
Chilean expatriates in Venezuela
Chilean emigrants to Canada
20th-century Chilean male artists