Kiruba is an Ecuadorian pop group that originated from the 2002 Ecuadorian season of the reality television show Popstars. The original members of the group were Maria Jose Blum, Diana Rueda, Mariela Nazareno, Gabriela Villalba, and Cecilia Calle.
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The group's history can be divided into three phases. The first phase took place from 2003 to 2004, immediately after winning Popstars. The second phase occurred from 2008 to 2009 under the name "Hada 4" after Gabriela Villalba left to join the Chilean band Kudai. The final phase was from 2017 to 2018, during which the group reunited under their original name.
On October 23, 2018, Kiruba confirmed through social media that Cecilia Calle had departed from the group, citing her desire to focus on her family.
The band emerged from the first season of the Ecuadorian version of the reality show Popstars, which aired on the Teleamazonas Channel in 2003. After three months of competition, a panel of judges selected the final five members: María José Blum (Guayaquil), Diana Rueda (Quito), Mariela Nazareno (Esmeraldas), Gabriela Villalba (Quito) and Cecilia Calle (Guayaquil).
During the show, the name Kiruba was chosen, based on a suggestion by Diana Rueda, which referenced Quiruba, a leader of the Amazonian Shuar Tribe, known for bravely fighting the Spanish Conquerors near Macas.[1]
Launch
The group released their debut album titled "Kiruba" immediately after winning the competition, and it quickly sold 5,000 copies within a few days of its release.[2] Kiruba became a national phenomenon and received numerous accolades, including a triple-platinum certification. Their first single, "Quisiera," topped the charts in Ecuador for several weeks and reached fifteenth place in Latin America on the HTV chart.
Although their subsequent singles, "Camina," ("Walk") "Me Pierdo," ("I get lost") and "Como Extraño Tu Luz," ("How I miss your light") were less successful, but they managed to achieve top positions on radio stations in Ecuador.
Second Disc and Separation
In 2004, the group released their second and final album as a quintet, titled "Baila La Luna" ("The Moon Dances"), which featured the single "Me Quedo Contigo" ("I Stay With You") reaching the third position on the Ecuadorian charts. However, the band disbanded that same year due to internal disagreements among the members.[3]
After the breakup, Mariela Nazareno led a local rock band called Tinticos, Diana Rueda worked on several painting exhibitions, Cecilia Calle founded a dance company and pursued a career as a television host, María José Blum participated in the soap opera "El Cholito," and Gabriela Villalba joined the Chilean rock band Kudai in 2006.
Hada 4
In 2008, four of the five former members of Kiruba reunited. These included Blum, Rueda, Nazareno, and Calle. The new project was named Hada 4.
In June 2008, Kiruba announced during a press conference about their comeback to the music scene. They revealed that their first single from the new album, titled "Volviéndome Loca" ("Going Crazy"), would be released on July 15. However, on the night of November 9, during their first official appearance on the program "Bailando Por Un Sueño Edición Especial" (Dancing With The Stars Special Edition), it was revealed that Diana Rueda had left the group, resulting in Kiruba becoming a trio consisting of María José, Mariela, and Cecilia.[4]
Return in 2017
In 2017, Kiruba announced their return to the stage, with the 5 original members on a cover for "Hola!" magazine. Kiruba was national trending on Twitter for 4 days. On January 30, 2018, Kiruba premiered his new song "Se Me Fue", a song that has the collaboration of Magic Juan, a former member of Proyecto Uno. The musical theme mixes pop with urban and Latin. The essence of the quintet is still perceived in their music.[citation needed]
The song was composed by Andrés Torres, producer of the hit song "Despacito", Santiago Hernández, ex-member of Sin Ánimo de Lucro and Gabriela Villalba. Sebastián Jácome, an Ecuadorian based in Los Angeles, was in charge of the production of the song.
"Se Me Fue", reached the 2nd place in the Ecuadorian chart (25 Nacionales) in the first week of release and stayed 13 weeks in the top 10 of the list.
On June 17, 2018, Kiruba premiered on his YouTube channel and Facebook "#LaRevuelta" a miniseries where the members tell anecdotes of the past with the band as well as the advances in their current musical project. In episode number four of the miniseries released on July 8, 2018 details of the band are revealed recording a new single, which is composed by Diana Rueda and produced by Cesar Galarza.
