Esteban Mateus Williamson (born May 4, 1984), known professionally as Esteman, is a Colombian singer and songwriter from

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...

, Colombia.

Music career

Esteman first rose to popularity with his music video "No te metas a mi facebook" ("Stay Off My Facebook"), which went viral on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

, garnering nearly 2.6 million views. His debut album, ''1er Acto'', was released on April 28, 2012. It featured a collaboration with Colombian singer/songwriter

Andrea Echeverri Andrea Echeverri Arias (born September 13, 1965) is a Colombian rock/ pop singer and guitarist. She holds a degree in Fine Arts from University of Los Andes and was a ceramist before becoming a musician. She is the lead singer in Aterciopelados ...

in "Aquí Estoy Yo" and also featured

Monsieur Periné Monsieur Periné is a Bogotá-based musical ensemble from Colombia with an Afro-Colombian sound that mixes Latin and European flavors. Lead singer Catalina García sings in a mixture of Spanish, French, English, and Portuguese. Other members i ...

and Juan Pablo Vega ( es). His second full album ''Caótica Belleza'' was released on August 28, 2015 and features

Natalia LaFourcade María Natalia Lafourcade Silva (; born 26 February 1984) is a Mexican pop-rock and folk singer and songwriter who, since her debut in 2002, has been one of the most successful singers in Latin America. Lafourcade's voice has been categorized a ...

, Li Saumet (lead singer of

Bomba Estéreo Bomba Estéreo is a Colombian band founded in Bogotá in 2005 by Simón Mejía. Their music has been described as "electro tropical" or "psychedelic cumbia". History 2005–2008: Career beginning and ''Vol. 1'' The origins of the group go back t ...

Carla Morrison Carla Patricia Morrison Flores (born 19 July 1986), known professionally as Carla Morrison, is a Mexican indie-pop guitarist and singer. She has released three studio albums and has received various awards and nominations including two Grammy Aw ...

, and Juan Jose Quiñónez.
Esteman lanza su nuevo álbum ‘Caótica belleza’
'. ''Los40''. August 28, 2015. Retrieved April 4, 2017. In 2016, Esteman was one of the artists scheduled to feature in the first

Lollapalooza Lollapalooza (Lolla) is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991 but several years later made Chicago the permanent location for the annual music festival. Musi ...

Colombia music festival before it was cancelled due to concerns caused by the

Zika Zika fever, also known as Zika virus disease or simply Zika, is an infectious disease caused by the Zika virus. Most cases have no symptoms, but when present they are usually mild and can resemble dengue fever. Symptoms may include fever, red ...

outbreak. At the 2016

Latin Grammy Awards The Latin Grammy Awards are an award by The Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from anywhere around the world that has been r ...

, Esteman was nominated for the category of

Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967. The official guidelines are as ...

, but lost to Colombian singer

Manuel Medrano Manuel Alejandro Medrano López (October 29, 1987, Cartagena, Colombia), known as Manuel Medrano, is a Colombian pop singer and a winner of two Latin Grammy Awards. Start His singing and songwriting are a way of saying thanks for supporting h ...

. His album ''Caótica Belleza'' was one of five albums nominated for the category

Best Alternative Music Album The Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums in the alternative genre at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Ho ...

, but lost to ''L.H.O.N'' by

Illya Kuryaki and the Valderramas Illya Kuryaki and the Valderramas (IKV) is a musical duo formed in 1991 consisting of Dante Spinetta and Emmanuel Horvilleur, from Buenos Aires, Argentina. The duo split in 2001 to follow solo careers, but later performed together several times, ...

. Esteman calls his band "La Esteband" and has toured with it in

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. His third album, ''Amor libre'', was released in early 2019. Esteman, who is openly gay, described the album as a more personal and honest endeavor, opening himself up to his audience in an attempt to normalize and naturalize his sexual orientation so that people no longer view it as taboo. He released his fourth album, ''Si volviera a nacer'', in May 2021. The album featured appearances from

Miranda! Miranda! is an Argentine electropop band formed in 2001. Original band members include Alejandro Sergi (vocals), Juliana Gattas (vocals), Lolo Fuentes (guitar), Bruno de Vincenti (programming), and since 2003, Nicolás Grimaldi (bass). It is c ...

Rozalén María de los Ángeles Rozalén Ortuño (born 12 June 1986 in Albacete, Spain) known professionally as Rozalén is a Spanish singer and songwriter. Life She grew up in Letur. She studied psychology at the University of Murcia with a master in ...

, and

Lila Downs Ana Lila Downs Sánchez (born 9 September 1968 * *) is a Mexican singer-songwriter. She performs her own compositions and the works of others in multiple genres, as well as tapping into Mexican traditional and popular music. She also incorporat ...

Style and genre

Esteman studied art at Universidad de los Andes, which has influenced his music videos and performances, known for their strong theatrical aspect. His videos include choreography and often depict Esteman wearing vintage clothing, with skinny pants and colorful shirts. He began his singing career by mocking pop idols and, as he puts it "breaking the macho stereotype" and this is evident in the critically humorous and sarcastic nature of songs like "No te metas a mi Facebook". His style has always been a mixture of genres, and his album ''Caótica Belleza'' includes traditional, reggae, and 80s disco tones. His stage performances have been noted for their theatrics, with radio network

Los 40 Los 40 (The 40, stylized as LOS40 and formerly ''Los 40 Principales'', es, Los Cuarenta) is a Top 40 music radio network and radio station brand in many Spanish-speaking countries from PRISA Radio. The station has its origins as a music show ...

calling him "from another world". Esteman also says that he is a

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

, and that the alternative take on popular music to which he and the artists he has worked with subscribe is important to the Colombian music scene, which has for a long time been dominated by

reggaetón Reggaeton (, ), also known as reggaetón and reguetón (), is a music style that originated in Panama during the late 1980s. It was later popularized in Puerto Rico. It has evolved from dancehall and has been influenced by American hip hop, ...

.
Esteman Talks Changing Colombia's Music Scene & Being a Feminist: 'There Is So Much Machismo Still in the Industry'
'. ''Billboard''. August 1, 2016. Retrieved March 16, 2017.

Discography

*''1er Acto'' (2012) *''Caótica Belleza'' (2015) *''Amor Libre'' (2019) *''Si Volviera a Nacer'' (2021)

References

External links

Official website
* * {{authority control 1984 births Living people Musicians from Bogotá Gay singers Gay songwriters Colombian LGBT singers Colombian LGBT songwriters Feminist musicians 20th-century Colombian LGBT people 21st-century Colombian LGBT people LGBT people in Latin music