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Northern B.C. Grammy winner Alex Cuba gets mural painted in his honour

The mural in Smithers B.C. is a tribute to the local Latin pop singer’s lifetime of achievements

Northern B.C. musician and Grammy winner Alex Cuba now has a mural painted in his honour in downtown Smithers.

The mural is a tribute to his lifetime achievements in the music industry winning multiple awards including the 2022 Grammy Award for best Latin pop album.

The mural is located at 1235 Main Street at the Carlyle Sheperd and Associates building and was painted by artists Facundo Gastiazoro.

“I feel incredibly honored and supported by our beautiful community of Smithers, it has been a very exciting few days seeing the super talented and fellow Smithereen Facundo Gastiazoro painting the wonderful mural with my image in downtown, ufff, words are not enough to express the immense gratitude that I feel, and I would like to take this opportunity to say this: the decision to paint this mural wasn’t only a celebration of my Grammy win, but also art in general-and that can only form an even better community,” said Cuba in a statement posted on social media.

“I hope this inspires the many wonderful musicians of this town and beyond to keep creating, to keep chasing their dreams and never give up.”

The mural was made possible by the Smithers Chamber of Commerce, town council, and Tourism Smithers.

“It’s been a real treat to honour Alex Cuba with this mural, as a tribute to his lifetime achievements in the music industry, winning multiple international awards and most recently a Grammy, not only as an artist and musician but also as a producer who created his most recent album, Mendo, right here in Smithers, BC during the pandemic,” said Tourism Smithers.

“To recognize his huge influence on musicians and the music industry in Canada, B.C. and of course right here in the Bulkley Valley where he’s included many talented locals in his music and video productions, has contributed his insights to local high school band excursions to Cuba, and continues to be a fantastic role model and inspiration to so many in our arts and culture community.”

Cuba’s Grammy winning album Mendó, which he said loosely translates to the "substance of the soul," was recorded in his living room in Smithers during the COVID-19 pandemic with the assistance of engineer John (Beetle) Bailey. It was the fourth time Cuba was competing in the best Latin pop album category. He had been previously been nominated in 2011, 2016 and 2018.

The Grammy joins the two Juno Awards and two Latin Grammy Awards on Cuba's mantle.

- with files from the Canadian Press