Three years after the death of Pastor López, this is how the artist's legacy is maintained beyond December

Both Colombian and Venezuelan, that's how José Pastor Pineda López — better known simply by his middle and last name — felt during his 40-year musical career. Since he was a child, he ventured into music, stating as an adult that he had developed this gift thanks to his mother who made musical instruments, and his father, an 'Indian' who, despite claiming that he never wanted to give him his surname, took him to popular music concerts.

This is how he received nicknames such as El indio Pastor - in addition to being called that because of his mulatto features - and The Lord of the Rings for having his fingers adorned with large golden rings that he wore to the vast majority of his presentations, those he made, mostly, between Colombia and Venezuela.

This is where the rise of the artist in this country was born, who, throughout his life, knew how to turn it into his second home. Even that affection for Colombia led many to believe that he, in fact, was born on this side of the border. In addition to that, he was able to combine two rhythms typical of Colombian folklore: cumbia and porro, the one that enhanced the legacy of Aniceto Díaz, who was also a benchmark of the guaracha, the same one that was known worldwide by Aníbal Velásquez.

And yes, three years after his death, those rhythms of drums and trumpets resound not only on popular stations, but at hundreds of parties throughout the country, but especially in Cúcuta, a city that hosted him until the last breath of his life. At Christmas, not to mention: it becomes an indispensable since November, where radios and sound equipment rumble with their music announcing that another Christmas is coming, set with 'The Absent Son', 'You Have to Return' and 'Treacherous' among others

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Three years later, the 'Indian Shepherd' is still in force in the country

“And when midnight arrives, when laughter and crying get confused in people; send me a big hug, and ask everyone present: let's drink to the absentee, that next year this present” are lyrics by that son who hasn't been absent despite his death on April 5, 2019. He often sang this song in Colombia and in other parts of the world, such as in Mallorca, where one of the most emotional anecdotes that marked his life occurred.

It was a Christmas in the last century, and as expected, Pastor López's concerts were priced higher. On December 24, she had to sing on that Spanish island, while on the other side of the world, in Venezuela, her mother was in a hospital fighting for her life. He burst into tears in the midst of shock and helplessness, but it was not the only time he went through those moments where he cried with his own lyrics.

And so, amid busy schedules and thousands of people acclaiming their songs, several of her relatives died, as happened with one of her sisters, where she had barely 24 hours to say goodbye to her as a stage was waiting for him. The same thing happened with his parents.

Beyond what he himself called El Tiempo as “the ingratitude of music”, his hits will continue to play in Colombia, where he has been more recognized than in Venezuela itself. Whether it rains, it shines or whatever the pandemic, in at least one home will sound, in every December, the melodies that predict a new month of joy and union.

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