Manic Street Preachers once performed for Fidel Castro
For as long as time, artists have accepted bookings from weird and wonderful people in far-flung places. In 2001, Manic Street Preachers were invited to perform in front of the controversial Cuban leader, Fidel Castro, who was in charge of the country for 49 years.
Through Castro’s reign, Cuba became a one-party communist state, and he nationalised everything. Therefore, in some people’s eyes, Castro is a hero, and others view the late leader as a villain. Castro was critical in overthrowing the state, which allowed him to assume power in 1959 and become the longest-serving non-royal head of state in the 20th and 21st centuries.
While some viewed him as a dictator who committed human rights abuses under the guise of communism, others consider him a saviour, a leader who brought justice to Cuba and rid them of the terrors of the United States regime. Although he was interested in art and photography, Castro reportedly didn’t care for music or dancing. In 1964, he famously banned The Beatles from the island, and it is only recently that live music has become common in Cuba.
Meanwhile, the Manics have always been a politically-motivated band who are unafraid to say exactly what they think. While it can be easier for groups to stay silent on the big issues as it risks alienating fans, that has never been a consideration for them. In their eyes, Castro deserved to be lauded for his actions, and the band were thrilled to perform live for him. Tickets for the show cost the equivalent of 17p, and 5,000 people turned up to watch the first concert by a western band in Cuba for over 20 years.
Before the show, Castro visited the band, and they had a conversation in their dressing room, leaving Nicky Wire transfixed. The Manics founder later told NME: “He was just like the greatest popstar I’ve ever met! There’s only two people I’ve ever come across who really have that special aura. One was Muhammad Ali and the other was Fidel Castro. I never want to meet anybody I admire because they let you down. I’m sure I’ve let people down, but meeting him, he didn’t let me down at all.”
Wire continued: “He actually talked about how he makes his speeches, still to this day. He just rants to somebody for an hour, they take it down and then he alters it and then he speaks again. That was really interesting – to show that his brain is still so active at his age I thought was great.”
The bassist continued: “I think the best thing was that he talked about ‘Baby Elian’, the track on the album, and he actually just said to me, ‘You must know a lot about Cuba to write those words.’ That made me feel really relieved, because you’re always worried about using situations as a lyricist, and I did really try to research the situation. I’m fucking glad I did, because I wouldn’t have liked to be in a bullshit situation there! With Fidel, as I call him now.”
The importance of the concert can’t be understated. It helped to usher the island into the modern world and helped establish live contemporary music become part of Cuban culture. Watch footage exists of Manic Street Preachers’ performance in Havana below.
