On Tuesday, April 8, a roof collapsed at the Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and killed approximately 120 people, according to the Associated Press. The lives taken in the tragedy include nightclub patrons, a former baseball pitcher, Octavio Dotel, and Dominican singer, Rubby Pérez. According to Billboard, it was confirmed that Pérez died “after being trapped in the rubble.”
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Following the incident on April 8, Rubby Pérez’s team released an official statement on Instagram regarding the matter. The post stated, “It is with deep sorrow that we inform you of the passing of our beloved Rubby Pérez. We sincerely appreciate all the love, support and solidarity we have received at this difficult time for his family, friends and fans. His musical and human legacy will live forever in our hearts.”
Given Pérez’s death, several Latin singers have taken to social media to pay homage to the late great singer. Pérez launched his career in the ’80s with his classic songs “Volveré” and “Enamorado de Ella.” The loss of Rubby Pérez is a grave loss to the Latin music scene, and he will be gravely missed.
The Resounding Tributes for Rubby Pérez
One individual to pay tribute to her fellow Latin music contemporary was merengue star Olga Tañón. Tañón also took to Instagram to share her comments, in which she wrote, “My God, maestro you leave us in great pain. One of my greatest idols of all my life!”
Another fellow Latin musician to shed light on Pérez’s death was Venezuelan salsa singer Oscar D’León. D’León wrote in his post, “My heart goes out to all Dominicans after such a terrible tragedy, the loss of a great musician, a great brother, who with his music transcended generations as was the great Rubby Pérez, and for all those who died and were affected under the same circumstances.”
Additionally, Wilfrido Vargas, a key player in Pérez’s career, wrote, “I am devastated. The best singer the genre has ever produced, the highest voice of merengue. The friend and idol of our genre, has just left us. I have no more words. This is very deep, deeper than what you can feel even in the most terrible of dreams. Farewell Rubby Pérez.”
These three Latin artists were far from the only ones who paid homage to Rubby Pérez. Other artists to share similar sentiments include Marc Anthony, Ricky Martin, Chichi Peralta, Sergio Vargas, Yordano, Toño Rosario, and Sergio Vargas.
Photo by Goedefroit Music/Getty Images
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