Twenty years can feel fleeting, yet forty years deserve a grand celebration. This is the belief shared by Lucía and Joaquín Galán, the duo known as Pimpinela, as they tour across the country to mark four decades of making music for Spanish audiences.
Throughout those years, milestones accumulated: more than twenty albums released, thirty million copies sold, countless gold, platinum, and diamond records, and a stream of concerts that drew millions of fans. The Pimpinela formula still resonates after all this time, proving its staying power across generations.
It was the voices that lent life to Work or La Chatunga, discovered by the Argentinian entertainer Luis Aguilé, who remains a key influence for the artists. The duo’s origin story traces back to adding music to the theater improvisations in which Lucía participated. Every attempt to imitate the act inevitably recalls Pimpinela, so the brothers chose to steer the project forward with confidence.
A special audience
The tour rolled through Marbella, Valladolid, and Albacete, then continued to Oviedo, Las Palmas, Tenerife, La Coruña, Barcelona, Valencia, and Murcia. In Madrid, the WiZink Center — a venue that had once been a sports palace — sold out, each seat snapped up in anticipation of the night’s celebration.
At precisely 9:00 p.m., the crowd’s applause grew into a chorus, welcoming the duo with fervor. A charity video opened the program, supporting the Pimpinela Children’s Home, a project the Galáns champion to improve the lives of children facing challenging family circumstances. A brief retrospective of Pimpinela’s hits followed, sung by a devoted audience spanning decades and recalling songs from the early days to more recent favorites.
Although Joaquín notes that the concert repertoire evolved over the forty years and some songs were swapped out and later revived, the reality remained: the brothers could perform every B-side and rarities from their catalog. The audience sang every line from start to finish, word-perfect.
With a solid band and a brass section backing them, Pimpinela launched into the era-spanning set for more than two hours. The emphasis was on choruses, letting the melodies carry the night while the performers shared stories between songs. The mood flowed between moments of humor and anecdotes, punctuated by warm wishes from invited personalities. Glowing messages appeared from artists such as Gloria and Emilio Estefan, Santiago Segura, Maluma, José Mercé, and José Mota. Unlike others, their greetings arrived as recorded tributes translated for the moment, underscoring the duo’s four-decade journey.
She looked dazzling
The stage was a dynamic tapestry of light and imagery, with projections that sometimes recreated live duets from the past. The visual design heightened the performance, providing a bridge between memory and present energy. A highlight of the night came when Lucía stepped forward in a flowing white ensemble to perform The Queen of the Night. The scene, drawn from a neighbor’s true story in Villa Urquiza and its jealous twist, delivered drama and intensity that brought the venue to its feet and left audiences spellbound.
Earlier moments included a nod to 2020 with a song reflecting the global pandemic, honoring those affected and praising healthcare workers on the front lines. The show also paid tribute to family, performing pieces in memory of loved ones who had passed, and closed a reflective sequence with a celebration of “La Familia,” a testament to the enduring, imperfect bonds that hold kin together.
As the ending approached, the night leaned into the duo’s iconic repertoire with a final flourish. The audience was invited to sing along to Olvídame y pega la vuelta, a staple from their live performances that has also intersected broader Latin music contexts. The closing moments extended beyond romance to explore themes of love in all its forms, including nontraditional expressions that have found a place in their evolving catalog.
Across forty years, Pimpinela’s sound has always embraced the complexities of relationships. The duo has continually expanded their storytelling—through heartbreak, resilience, and affection—without losing the intimate immediacy that first drew listeners in. The performances offered a candid look at love’s many faces, reminding audiences that the band’s signature harmony endures even as their stories shift with time.
Remarkably, the concert embodied a retrospective that still sounded remarkably current. It was more than a celebration of a band’s longevity; it was a reaffirmation that heartfelt songs can cross generations when delivered with sincerity, humor, and a sense of shared memory. The forty-year milestone became not just a milestone, but a living testament to the enduring power of two voices united by music.