Photo courtesy of Hispanicize

We have all heard about Gustavo Cerati, the legendary Argentinean singer and frontman of the band Soda Stereo that marked the history of Rock in Latin America, but did you know the story of his son Benito Cerati?

Born in 1993 in Santiago de Chile, Chile, Benito Cerati Amenábar is the son of Gustavo Cerati and former Chilean model Cecilia Amenábar. From an early age, he was passionate about music and film, composing his first homemade album at the age of five, which would only be for the enjoyment of his family.

Benito’s talent was evident, and he collaborated on several of his father’s compositions, including ‘Adiós‘ (from the album ‘Ahí Vamos’) and ‘Fuerza Natural,’ ‘Sal,’ ‘Desastre‘ and ‘Rapto‘ (from the album ‘Fuerza Natural’). At the age of 15, he formed his first band, which he called ‘Entre-Paréntesis,’ and debuted in a local barbershop in a neighborhood of Buenos Aires. 

In 2012 Benito Cerati launched another musical project called Blank Tiger. They changed the name to Zero Kill a year later, becoming an opening act for Babasónicos, recording three albums, and singing on multiple stages throughout Latin America.

Cerati’s pride in being a feminist and part of the LGBTQ+ community

On January 31, 2018, Cerati, who always kept a low profile and did not talk about his personal life, made public his homosexuality through a series of publications, now deleted, on his Twitter account in which he declared that he was in favor of feminism and fought for gender equality.

“Hola. Soy Benito Cerati. Músico. Creador del proyecto Zero Kill, dos discos y un tercero en el camino. Soy feminista y lucho x la igualdad de género e inclusión de minorías. Soy gay y soy feliz.” (Hi. I’m Benito Cerati. Musician. Creator of the Zero Kill project, two albums, and a third on the way. I’m a feminist, and I fight for gender equality and the inclusion of minorities. I’m gay, and I’m happy.)

– Benito Cerati 

The singer’s words surprised both his fans and his father’s followers, who knew little about the personal life of the rock legend’s son. Although Benito often said he was not making any kind of confession, he was only making public a side of him that was always present for those close people with whom he shared his day-to-day life.

Since then, Benito Cerati has used social media to express his art through images while showing his experience with gender fluidity and as a platform to advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, gender equality, and other important issues.