The day Soda Stereo opened for Rikarena in Barranquilla

Colombia.– On October 14, 1995, the capital of Atlántico was the scene of one of the most unusual episodes in the musical history of Latin America: Soda Stereo, the most emblematic Argentine trio of rock in Spanish, was the opening act for the merengue group Rikarena in a concert held in the parking lot of the Romelio Martínez stadium. That event, which over time became a legendary anecdote, mixed the rise of tropical merengue with the artistic maturity of the band of Gustavo Cerati, Zeta Bosio and Charly Alberti, who at that time were presenting their successful album Sueño Stereo. In 1995, Rikarena dominated Latin radio stations with their album ¡Sacúdelo que tiene arena! (Shake it, it has sand!), while Soda Stereo toured the continent with a repertoire that included classics like Zoom and Ella usó mi cabeza como un revólver (She used my head like a revolver). However, in a Barranquilla where merengue was more popular than rock, the organizers decided that Rikarena would close the show and that Soda Stereo would perform as the opening act, a decision that surprised both fans and the press. The concert faced multiple setbacks. The Mayor’s Office of Barranquilla denied the permits for the use of the Romelio Martínez stadium, which forced the event to be moved to the parking lot of the sports venue just two days before.

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In addition, the bands that were supposed to open —Non Sancta and Poligamia (a group then led by a young Andrés Cepeda)— could not perform due to logistical problems, which delayed Soda’s performance until after midnight. The audience, which mostly expected Rikarena, impatiently received Soda Stereo, throwing objects and booing when the group took the stage. According to Iván Rosero, one of the attendees who recorded part of the concert, “it was a symbolic battle between rockers and merengue fans”. Among the VIP attendees were the members of Poligamia and a young Shakira, who was then beginning to succeed with Estoy Aquí. After the show, the artists met at a party in the Kilymandiaro nightclub in Puerto Colombia, where the first encounter between Cerati and Shakira took place, marking the beginning of a mutual admiration that years later would lead to collaborations and a lasting friendship. During the celebration, the DJ played music by Soda Stereo, but Cerati requested that Colombian songs be played. That night, amidst laughter and drinks of white rum, Cerati and several musicians sang “Disco Eterno” on the beach, accompanied by an acoustic guitar. A Barranquilla dawn According to witnesses, dawn found Cerati and Zeta Bosio walking through the streets of Barranquilla, eating fried food at a street stall and stopping on the road to relieve themselves, before being scared away by stray dogs. Shortly after, they returned to the hotel where they were staying, closing a night that would remain in the memory of those who lived it. That day left a unique record: an audio fragment of the concert, recorded by Iván Rosero, which circulates among collectors and is considered one of the few testimonies of Soda Stereo’s visit to Barranquilla. Today, three decades later, that night is still remembered as one of the most extravagant and magical stories of Latin American rock: when the power of merengue and the poetics of rock crossed paths under the hot sky of “La Arenosa”.