Yoandri Opens for Laura Pausini at Coliseo de Puerto Rico

Yoandri first impressed La Banda coaches Alejandro Sanz, Ricky Martin, and Laura Pausini with his unmistakable soulful voice during his audition when he sang Bruno Mars's "When I Was Your Man." The now 17-year-old Cuban-American singer/songwriter is beginning a solo career fueled by live shows, a huge fan base (a combined 300+k followers on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter), and a beautiful original single.

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A photo posted by Yoandri (@xyoandrix) on Jan 27, 2016 at 5:01pm PST

Recognized for his humility, former coach Laura Pausini was a Yoandri fan from the beginning, saying during his La Banda audition that his performance gave her goosebumps. The best advice she gave him while on the show: "to be myself always and to believe in myself," he said. Excellent advice, Laura!

Pausini recently invited Yoandri to open for her concert at San Juan's Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot as part of her Similares tour.

Llego el día que esperábamos queridos #boricuas esta noche sábado 17 estaré cerrando mi gira americana en el @coliseopr #similarestour #laurapausini #puertorico

A photo posted by Laura Pausini Official (@laurapausini) on Sep 16, 2016 at 9:25pm PDT

Emocionado no es suficiente de palabra para explicar lo que siento, bendecido de poder estar abriendo el concierto de mi Laura bella! 💙

A photo posted by Yoandri (@xyoandrix) on Sep 14, 2016 at 10:24am PDT

About the experience, he told MNGBlog: "I wasn't able to sing with Laura, but I did enjoy it very much. The audience was amazing and very supportive." It was his first time performing at the legendary venue, and as one could imagine, he said "it was very emotional."

Did you know that Yoandri's single "Niña Escondida" hit No. 1 on iTunes Latin chart? Released in June, the music video has accumulated more than 200,000 views in the past four months. He talks more about the song here (en español).

And to his amazing fan base he sends out this message: "I love all my fans and am more than grateful for every single one of them, and thank you to everyone who reads this interview!"

Yoandri will be performing in Atlanta on October 16. Watch out for his upcoming EP, which is scheduled for release at the end of the year. Can't wait!

Facebook: Yoandri Cabrera

Twitter: @YOANDRI

Instagram: @xyoandrix