It seems like we were supposed to take “Viva usted su vida, que yo vivo la mía” literally. “Pepas” singer Farruko has announced his retirement during the Miami stop of his Las 167 Tour, turning the FTX Arena into a house of worship.
Farruko opened the show by beginning to preach sermons. Billboard quotes him as saying “God loves you just the way you are. We’re all sinners, none of us are perfect.” He went on to have a heart to heart with the crowd about how his spiritual emptiness led to problems in his personal life, saying: “Me, being number one, having the best cars, having it all, I couldn’t see my children, I destroyed my first family. I hurt a woman who loved me just the way I was.”
At the event, he did not perform his hit song “Pepas”, but he did play the track during his set and instead apologized for its lyrical content.
A video posted by a Twitter user gives us an inside look at Farruko addressing the crowd.
After the concert, Farruko seemed to make an official statement on his retirement, responding to a fan’s complaint of not being able to enjoy his concerts after his unexpected worship. Farruko’s response reads: “Well, I’m sorry to tell you brother that Farru is retired and Carlos is here now. Send me your information and we’ll refund your money with blessings of love, do you take paypal, crypto, or seller, and if you accept Christ, you’ll get everything in return with blessings and love. I love you.”
With his retirement, Farruko joins a group of several musicians in el movimiento who have left the music industry to focus on their religious development. Most famously, El General had a seventeen-year-long musical career before he retired in 2004 to become a Jehovah’s Witness. He later went on to claim that the devil was behind his musical success. Reggaeton singers Julio Voltio, Hector El Father, and hip-hop singer Vico C are among others to retire from music to pursue their religious lives.
His retirement announcement comes after one of the most successful years in Farruko’s career. His latest release (and perhaps last?) was the album La 167, whose tracklist included the smash-hit “Pepas.” The track has had viral success, racking in 556.5 million Spotify streams, 261 million music video views, and 2.5 million uses on TikTok.
Whatever this decision means for Farruko’s music career, we hope that he finds peace in his journey through life.