The vallenato cries the departure of one of his most endearing exponents: Leonidas Enrique Moya Fula, artistically known as “Leo” Moya, who died in the city of Valledupar at age 60, leaving a legacy in the heart of Colombian folklore.
Born on August 3, 1964, Leo Moya was a direct heir of a musical lineage that marked the history of vallenato. Son of the renowned composer Sergio Enrique Moya Molina and the emblematic Juana Dolores Fula Núñez, known as “La Celosa”, grew surrounded by verses, guitars and accordions. From his childhood he showed a special sensitivity for music, which led him to make his first appearances in recording studios at the early age of 12, accompanying the then child prodigy Javier Gámez as a chorister.
Moya Fula, had been fighting cerebral cancer, so she presented a relapse a few months ago and failed to overcome complications, her father Sergio Enrique Moya Molina said in tears, who reiterated that half of her life has gone. “It is a very big pain to lose a child, a special being who lived to love vallenato folklore. I ask God to give us strength to overcome this difficult time,” he said.
Second voice that became first
Although he was never in the center of the stage as a leading voice, Leo Moya became the cornerstone of multiple productions thanks to his talent as a second voice. His ability to harmonize, his privileged ear and his artistic sensibility made him one of the choristers most requested by the great figures of the vallenato. It was an essential part of the productions of artists such as Farid Ortiz, Iván Villazón, Jorge Oñate, Poncho Zuleta, Peter Manjarrés, and, especially, Diomedes Díaz.
In 1990, his participation in the “The strongest” album by Jorge Oñate scored a before and after in his career. From then on, his name began to resonate more strongly among the musical circles of the country, consolidating himself as a figure respected by musicians, producers and followers of the genre.
His passage through the group of Diomedes
One of the most memorable moments of his career was his integration into the group of the legendary Diomedes Díaz, with whom he worked for several stages, especially during the union with the accordionist Juancho Rois. Leo Moya’s voice became a fundamental component in productions such as “May 26”, “I provide with the soul” and “a heavenly song”, the latter being the first album that Diomedes recorded with Iván Zuleta after the tragic death of Rois.
His participation in these projects not only enriched the sound of the songs, but also left a mark on the musical aesthetics of a golden age of the vallenato. Leo not only harmonized: he transmitted emotion, reinforced the stories and raised each interpretation to another level.
Those who knew him remember him as a simple human being, with a friendly word and noble soul. Beyond talent, what stood out in Leo Moya was his professional ethics, his punctuality, his respect for music and his devotion to vallenato art. Despite having worked with the greatest of the genre, he never lost the humility that characterized him.
Throughout more than four decades of experience, he participated in more than a hundred recordings, many of them today considered classics of the modern vallenato. His legacy is not only measured on albums, but in the generations of musicians who admired him and in the way his voice accompanied the happiest and nostalgic moments of thousands of listeners.
Farewell to an eternal voice
Today, the vallenato loses one of its silent pillars, an artist who was not always in the reflectors, but whose voice was present on the stages, radios and hearts of Colombia. The Moya Fula family has confirmed that the funeral will be held in Valledupar, where he will be fired with music, the same one that was his life, his passion and his legacy.
His remains will be taken this Thursday until his last abode at Ecce Homo Jardines, as far as followers, friends, artists and all who accompanied him in his musical career will attend.
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