The death of Mexican ballad singer Julián Figueroa from a heart ailment at 27 has left his family and fans reeling.
Figueroa, whose hits included “Yo sería,” “Ay amor” and “Volaré,” was known for his ballads sung with a traditional band, similar to his late father, the acclaimed singer Joan Sebastian, who died in 2015.
“I gave her the news — and truthfully she’s not well, she’s very bad, she’s destroyed,” said Marco Chacón, the husband of Figueroa’s mother, the well-known actor Maribel Guardia. Chacón raised Figueroa since he was a young boy.
Guardia wrote on Instagram that her son died over the weekend “of an acute heart attack.”
“They found him unconscious in his room last night,” she wrote Monday. “When the ambulance arrived and the police found him dead, there was no sign of violence.”
“I wish I could talk to everyone who’s trying to communicate with me,” she wrote in Spanish, “but in truth I’m not strong enough to do that yet.”
Dr. Omar Mejía Rivera, a cardiologist, told Noticias Telemundo that “sadly, we’ve seen that the degenerative illness because of blocked arteries” is now more prevalent in young patients.
The Mexican singer Lucero said on Twitter: "The sad news of the passing of Julián Figueroa seems impossible to believe. Rest in peace, Mexico is in mourning."
The Puerto Rican singer Olga Tañón tweeted that she was praying that God "embraces our adored friend" Maribel Guardia "in this moment when she most needs you!"
Figueroa died in El Pedregal, where he lived most of his life. He is survived by his wife, the singer and actor Imelda Tuñón, and their son. Funeral plans were not immediately announced.