Bakuleyé, a Cuban popular music orchestra founded on December 4, 1996, by Pedro Pablo Pérez Vargas, who has served as its director ever since. Bakuleyé is a word derived from Yoruba culture. It uses the image of a cane that conjures up the awakening of new ideas.

The group’s work soon became known, and as a result of their high-quality performance on stage, they began to win awards. In 1997, they were awarded the First Prize for Popular Music at the Lucas Awards. They were also named Cuba’s Most Popular New Orchestra that same year.

Around that time, their first album, La Fiebre del Ula Ula, was released. The song Ula Ula reached the top of the charts in several countries, including the United States, specifically in Miami.

The following year, 1998, Bakuleyé represented Cuba at the World Festival of Youth and Students held in Portugal. In 2000, they participated in the Bogotá Record Fair as guests.

In 2001, they embarked on a tour of Mexico that lasted until 2006. There, they performed at the best nightclubs, including Azúcar in Cancún, Yuca disco at the Princess Hotel, and Mambos Cafés in Mexico City, Cuernavaca, and Querétaro.

Bakuleyé’s recording production is made up of titles such as La Fiebre del ula ula, Timbanton, and Desafiando.

Discography: Hula-Hula Fever (1997); Timbanton (2001); Defying (2009).