José Álvaro Osorio Balvin, better known internationally as J Balvin, is one of the most successful urban artists throughout his career.also has various collaborations with brands of clothing, accessories and even video games.
Recently, the Colombian received an important recognition at the UN headquarters in New York. The singer has become a standard-bearer for mental health, after the famous revealed to his fans that he was diagnosed with depression and had difficult times because of this condition.
Since then, the interpreter of ‘Agua’ embarked on a path in which he used his voice to normalize asking for help and going to therapy, so he has shown his process to the world. On September 22, the artist presented ‘OYE’ to the world, an app co-created by Balvin that aims to help users find mental well-being through different practices aimed at identifying emotions
Due to this situation, the United Nations decided to give the Colombian the Latino Impact Award for his contribution to mental health. The ceremony took place on the afternoon of Thursday, November 3, at the UN headquarters in New York, for which the artist appeared dressed in a suit and tie to receive his award and once again send a message to the world about the importance of mental health.
J Balvin took the stage at the ‘Latino Impact Summit’ forum and received the award for his contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. In the place, the singer addressed a few words to the attendees: “It is the first time that reggaeton steps on the UN, right?” He said with a laugh.
“It is an honor to be here. Throughout my life I have seen my city go from fear to creativity, I come from Medellin where everything was quite past, and thanks to the music, sports and art of a dark time now we have a lot of light to give the world,” he said.
The Colombian pointed out that as an artist he has traveled through darkness and, currently, through the light that he plans to share with others: “The pandemic, climate change, inequality, the financial crisis, all these situations have led us to states of fear, sadness and apathy that can ultimately lead to depression or worse.”
“I am medicated, I have anxiety and depression, but I have it controlled with medication. This award is a recognition of my purpose of helping people feel better, but also of the culture and communities that made me the person I am, especially Medellin, Colombia and Latin America,” she added.
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