“I was disappointed,” Croft said. “People paid to hear his music, not a sermon or him preaching. He wants to be a man of God? That’s fine, but that’s not how he advertised his concert.”
Croft said she now wonders if the Reggaeton singer had planned this before the tour, but wasn’t upfront about it for fear of influencing ticket sales. Farruko has told fans they can get a refund if they want, but Croft said she hasn’t heard about how to request one.
Farruko’s publicist said he was not granting interviews at the moment.
Katelina Eccleston is a music historian who writes about the genre on her internet platform Reggaeton con la Gata. She said “Pepas” exploded in popularity not because it’s about drugs but because it has a unique sound blending electronic dance music with guaracha, a popular Cuban music style. It came out just when people were tired of lockdowns, event cancelations and travel restrictions.
“It is just so full of energy, and it came at the right time,” she said.
Eccleston said Farruko is preceded by other Reggaeton artists who left their careers for religion, such as El General, a Panamanian artist who is considered the pioneer of the genre, and Hector El Father, a Puerto Rican singer who is credited for paving the way for artists such as Daddy Yankee and Don Omar. Those two artists, however, ended their music careers.
“If he wants to continue on tour, sing the music and hopefully take moments to speak, that is OK. But maybe not too long,” Eccleston said. “There’s an intelligent way to go about this.”
This article originally appeared on APNews.com.
