Colombiana says it’s time for her country to change

By Rocio Arango Giraldo

LatinaLista

There’s a proverb that says “nobody is a prophet in their own land,” but this expression doesn’t relate to Juanes, the Colombian Grammy-award winning singer. More than 140,000 people sang his songs on December 19, 2008 in his birthplace of Medellin when Juanes staged a free concert as his Christmas gift to the city. It was the second time he has done it.

Juanes performs at free Christmas concert in his native Medellin, Colombia.
(Source: David Sànchez Mejìa)
The concert was organized in collaboration with the Municipal Government of the City and some other organizations. It took place on River’s Avenue of the Medellin, in the middle of the Christmas lights.
Everyone behaved themselves and Juanes captivated the audience by capturing the spirit of the people in his songs. The Paisa (the name for Medellin natives) Singer strengthened his role as a social and political leader of people of every race, age and viewpoint.
During the concert, the singer invited people who had worked for peace and Medellin’s development to bring the city to where we are now as a great place to live, do business and travel — 20 years after the height of the narco violence and the time of Pablo Escobar.
Yet the concert was more than just listening to Juanes’ music, it made me think about strategic leadership and ask, “What social action is important at this moment?”
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