Las Tunas intellectual Carlos Tamayo was born on July 1, the same day as El Cucalambé.

"The quality of Juan Cristóbal Nápoles Fajardo (El Cucalambé) as a poet, decimist, improviser, as well as his condition as a peasant, is beyond any doubt," said Carlos Tamayo Rodríguez when giving a lecture on one of the most important figures of the Cuban literature in the 19th century, within the framework of the 2024 Cucalambeana Fiesta.

Las Tunas, Cuba.- In a few minutes, the author of several books on the life of El Cucalambé took those present in the Provincial Museum theater through several passages of the poet's biography, both details of his family and the main characteristics of his literary work.

His life, he explained, is linked to many "it is said," because "some facts subject to contradiction and controversy.” This is what happens, he exemplified, with his probable participation in the conspiracy and subsequent uprising of Joaquín de Agüero, in 1851. However, his verses, framed within the Siboneyista and Creole movements, are clear antecedents of the Cuban independence struggles.

Tamayo Rodríguez celebrates his birthday with pleasure, not only for obvious reasons but because it coincides with each new birth anniversary of the bard from Las Tunas. 2024 was no exception, as the writer also blew out his 70 candles to celebrate the 195th anniversary of the birth of El Cucalambé.