(Tucuarembó, 1974).

Daniel Umpiérrez, which is his full name, has proven to be one of the most different and courageous artists of his generation, always at the forefront of art in Latin America. A faithful follower of North American culture but also a modernizer of the culture of his own country, his art has focused on novels, songs and visual works, which have led him to be highly recognized in the Spanish-speaking world, especially within those sectors where the more rogue and kitsch postmodernism is a reference. Dani Umpi has a really exciting biography, especially in its cultural aspect, and here we are going to tell you about it so that you know everything about him.

The Buenos Aires underground, the movement in which Dani Umpi emerged

The underground could be classified as all that culture that departs from the traditional or mainstream canons, the action of people who, without a budget and without support of any kind, continue to make art on the street, with the means they have . Normally, underground culture has always been contentious and rebellious by nature. Avant-garde cinema and independent cinema, as well as the beat novel or punk music, are examples of cultures that were born in the bosom of the underground, and that little by little were conquering more and more public, ultimately distorting their main start engine

Underground culture had been very important in both Buenos Aires and Montevideo in the 60s and 70s, a time of pure experimentation in the art of both capitals, separated only by the Río de la Plata, and with a lot of cultural exchange between the two. That is the germ in which the talent of Dani Umpi would be born shortly after, who would already grow within that last wave and who would carry out his works from the mid-2000s, although previously he would already be recognized for his shows, with the that he would make a name for himself precisely in that underground, using many of his own resources of the absurd, parody and ridicule, which he would later also reflect in his novels, short stories and records.

Beginnings of Dani Umpi

After moving to Montevideo from Tucuarembo, his hometown, in 1993, the young Daniel Umpiérrez began studying Communication Sciences at the University of the Republic. While doing these studies, he also began to try his luck in some competitions as an artist and showman. That was how he started both in music and in poetry. His facet as a showman led him to have his first successes, at the end of the 90s, when he won the Poesía Viva award for the Pîjama Party action, together with Samantha Navarro, a talented singer-songwriter of the same generation. In 1999, a year later, he would get the Dj Midi award in collaboration with Andrea Vaghi.

It was the beginning of a career that was beginning to take off and that would lead him to draw the attention of the media, appearing in the newspaper El País or the magazines Sabado Show and Bla, very popular in his country. In the same way, the artist won the Montevideo Outstanding Young Award in 2002, one before his first novel appeared, although it was published in Argentina. Little by little, Umpi’s interest expands not only to the written texts, but also to the songs, creating the themes for his first album, Perfecto, in which he combined pop, electronics and a punk and anti-establishment attitude. In fact, many pointed out that Umpi could have been related to the Straight Edge side of punk, in which its members promised not to drink alcohol, tobacco or recreational drugs.

Explosion as an artist and awards

Umpi’s first album appeared in 2005 under the title of Perfecto and brought great recognition to the young man on a national level. Now everyone wondered where that boy had come from who seemed not to take anything seriously in his shows, always leading them to parody and ridicule, who drank from the most varied references, and who now insisted on making songs. His first album was nominated for several Grafitti awards, the most important in Uruguayan music, obtaining the awards for Best Cover and Best Producer, but also being nominated for Best Solo and Best New Artist

The following year, the recognition would come from the MTV Latin America network, which would choose him as a nominee in the Best Independent Artist category at the continent's awards in 2006. His following albums have been very well received by his fans, as well as his books and novels, although it is true that the impact that Perfecto had has not been repeated. Umpi has not stopped working since then, also contributing his vision to Montevideo within visual art with exhibitions and collaborations in numerous events and commitments. If there is a total artist in Uruguay today, he surely looks a lot like Dani Umpi