Cuban music icon Pablito passed away at the age of 79 earlier today in Madrid.
Formally known as Pablo Milanes, the Grammy-winning singer and songwriter was officially announced dead on his Facebook account.
"With great pain and sadness, we regret to report that Maestro Pablo Milanés has passed away. We deeply appreciate all the shows of love and support, to all his family and friends, in this very difficult time. May he rest in the love and peace he always transcended. He will remain forever in our memory." the post said (originally in Spanish, Rolling Stone translated to English)
According to the Associated Press, Pablo Milanes was undergoing blood cancer treatment. In the past few months, Pablito has canceled numerous concerts as he was being hospitalized frequently.
Dubbed as one of the most prominent Cuban singers and songwriters, Pablo Milanes has pumped out a handful of albums and various hits like "Yo Me Quedo, "Amo Esta Isla," and even "Yolanda" in the course of his career that spanned more than fifty years.
One of the first few people who have poured out their condolences is Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz. Taking to Twitter, he posted a photo of the musician along with a heartfelt message.
"The culture in #Cuba is mourning the death of Pablo Milanés, renowned Cuban singer-songwriter, one of the founders of the Nueva Trova Movement. Please extend our deepest condolences to your family and friends," he said in a statement.
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Meanwhile, many fans have shared their recollection of Pablo's cultural impact in Cuba.
"The story through the new Cuban trova and the social song, gives an account of the possible worlds of my generation. Thank you Cuba, thank you Pablo for being a permanent reference for my generation," a fan tweeted.
"Bad news. Those of us who were born and grew up in that wonderful era of the "nueva trova" rejoiced in a healthy bohemia with these wonderful compositions with a high social and protest content. Great and irreplaceable loss. RIP dear Pablo...!!!" another posted.
As many have mentioned, Pablo Milanes was instrumental in the evolution of music in Cuba. Pablo Milanes, along with other trailblazers, was involved in the Nueva trova movement in Cuba around the late 1960s in the aftermath of the Cuban Revolution in 1959.
In a statement to New York Times in 1987, Milanes stayed true to his beliefs and principles, even after the movement, noting how his music reflects his activism at the same time.
" I am a worker who labors with songs, doing in my own way what I know best, like any other Cuban worker. I am faithful to my reality, to my revolution and the way in which I have been brought up," he said.
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