Juan Fernando Velasco unveils Julio Eterno, a monumental musical project that marks a turning point in the intersection of music, memory, and technology. Through a series of duets that recover the original voice of the legendary Julio Jaramillo, Velasco achieves both a poetic and technical feat: honoring tradition without freezing it in time, invoking it without replicating it.
Produced by Andrés Castro and mixed by Curt Schneider, the album features renewed renditions of foundational classics from the Latin American repertoire. The centerpiece of the release is “Cinco Centavitos,” a hauntingly honest bolero written by Héctor Ulloa that explores the emotional cost of happiness and love. “‘Cinco Centavitos’ is a Latin American classic that captures the pain and poetry embedded in the everyday language and customs that surround heartbreak,” says Velasco.
The seed for Julio Eterno was planted in June 2024 during a moment of clarity on the En Primer Plano tour, which reached more than 40 cities that year. With no access to multitrack recordings, the team turned to artificial intelligence to isolate Jaramillo’s voice and craft a moving sonic dialogue between two eras.
“This project carries immense responsibility for me, as Julio is the greatest musical icon of my country…” Velasco shares. The Jaramillo family’s authorization not only legitimized the project but opened the door to its visual and live expansion—music videos, holographic performances, and live tours.
The video for “Cinco Centavitos,” directed by Durán and filmed in Quito, Guayaquil, and Cuenca, imagines Julio Jaramillo and Juan Fernando walking side by side through the everyday streets of Ecuador, reconnecting new generations with the emotional legacy of Jaramillo’s music. The video premiered yesterday in Jaramillo’s hometown of Guayaquil at an intimate concert event for media and special guests.
The album includes five songs: “Cinco Centavitos,” “Ódiame,” “Rondando tu Esquina,” “Nuestro Juramento,” and “No me Toquen ese Vals.” Each song strikes a careful balance between the acoustic and the contemporary. “Andrés found the perfect balance between modernity and respect for the original versions,” says Velasco. World-class musicians like Aaron Sterling contribute a fresh perspective, while local talents like Navijio Cevallos ground the sound in Ecuadorian roots.
Julio Eterno is an emotional thesis on what it means to belong, to honor, and to move forward. An album that challenges the notion that the past must remain untouched to be revered. In Velasco’s own words: “Julio Eterno is a tribute to the greatest Ecuadorian artist—the interpreter whose velvety, unmistakable voice captured the hearts of Latin Americans across nationalities, who claimed him as their own, and who will forever be remembered as the Nightingale of the Americas.”
