VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: “Despacito” Singer Luis Fonsi Shares Why He Supports St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital
SEVILLE, SPAIN - NOVEMBER 15: Luis Fonsi performs onstage during The Latin Recording Academy's 2023 Person of the Year Gala Honoring Laura Pausini at FIBES Conference and Exhibition Centre on November 15, 2023 in Seville, Spain. (Photo by Aldara Zarraoa/Getty Images)
Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi sat down for a conversation with uInterview to discuss his journey working with St. Jude Children’s Hospital in his new uInterview.
Fonsi, a Latin Grammy-winning singer and songwriter, became a worldwide sensation in 2017 with his hit song “Despacito.”
St. Jude is a leading children’s hospital, founded in 1962, that treats childhood cancers and pediatric diseases.
Asked how he first got involved with the hospital, Fonsi told uInterview founder Erik Meers, “It was in the early 2000s, I think, if I’m not mistaken, my first collaboration if you will; it was a gala that I got invited to perform in. That’s when I started to understand what St Jude Children’s Hospital was about. Later I got to visit the hospital in Memphis – I think it was around 2006, 2007 – for a big conference and they gave me a tour, and that’s when I just became connected. I really just understood what their mission was, finding cures, saving lives.”
He remembered, “I told them right there, ‘What can I do? Can I use my voice, can I use my music, to just really be a part of this mission and use my platform to invite people to help.’”
Fonsi reflected on his time working with the hospital. “A lot of these kids I met when they were very, very young…all of a sudden I see them three, four, five, six years later, and they’re grown up, long hair, full of life, and you know, that’s the true example of what St Jude does, and it’s amazing to see how they stay involved with St Jude. A lot of the patients, you know, they go back, and they work for St. Jude, or they become involved in their different campaigns – and that just goes to show that while they were going through a tough time, they saw the magic – if you will – of this place that really saved their lives and is saving lives every day.”
Fonsi rallied watchers, “There are kids, there are families, who are going through it as we speak, and it’s got to be tough during the holiday season, so, you know, remind them to go out there and [donate to St. Jude].”