Lupe Victoria Yolí Raymond (23 December 1939 - 29 February 1992), better known as La Lupe, was a Cuban singer of boleros, guarachas and Latin Soul. In 1954 she participated on a radio program which invited fans to sing
imitations of their favorite stars. Lupe escaped from school to sing a
bolero of Olga Guillo called "Miénteme" and won the competition.
In 1960 she began to perform her own act at a small nightclub in Havana, La Red where she acquired a devoted following, which included Ernest Hemingway, Tennessee Williams, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and Marlon Brando. She recorded her first album, "Con el diablo en el cuerpo" in 1960 for Discuba, the Cuban subsidiary of RCA.
In 1962 she approached Celia Cruz who recommended her to Mongo Santamaría in New York. She relocated to the big apple where she performed at a cabaret named La Berraca and started a new career, making more than 10 records in five years. For a good part of the 1960s she was the most acclaimed Latin singer in New York City due to her partnership with Tito Puentes. She did a wide variety of covers in either Spanish or accented English, including "Yesterday",
"Twist & Shout", "Unchained Melody", "Fever" and "America" from West Side Story.
Although she may have been poorly managed by her label Fania Records, she managed and produced herself in mid-career, after she parted ways with Tito Puente. However, in the late 1960s her ephemeral career went downhill. The explosion of salsa and the arrival of Celia Cruz to New York were the determining factors that sent her into the background and her career declined thereafter.
She died in 1992 of a heart attack.
