Colombian folklore artist and queen of fandango, Etelvina Maldonado, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 75.
The singer, born in on the island of Santa Ana Bolivar, and one of the most important Caribbean folklore artists in Colombia, died in Cartagena where she lived.
“Before I liked to sing boleros, rancheros, and tangos, but when I got older I saw that my parents liked bullerengue and I said to myself ‘this is where I can shine.’ I was always the last. I was always the smallest, and I will be the last to die, because all the rest have already gone,” said the late singer in an interview with El Espectador.
Maldonado was considered to be one of the greatest voices in Colombian folklore, her talent comparable to Toto La Momposina and Petrona Martinez.