BROTHERHOOD OF MAN: Willy Chavarria’s following often feels like one big family, and some of the guests at his Paris show Friday afternoon were certainly traveling en famille.
Superstar DJs the Martinez Brothers, for instance — who to be fair are rarely spotted apart — were among the front-row attendees at the event in the domed basement of the French Communist party headquarters, joining guests including Maluma and Lunay.
“We’ve been rocking with Willy for two or three years now, to be here is just a blessing,” said elder brother Steven Martinez. “We were thinking yesterday, we should have done the music for the show today, maybe next time. We’ve got to talk to him about that.”
Mexican trio Latin Mafia, made up of brothers Milton, Emilio and Mike de la Rosa, were checking out the show from the front row this season after having participated in the January edition, a bonanza involving 2,000 guests and performances from artists including Latin boy band Santos Bravos, Colombian star Feid, entertainer Lunay, who hails from Puerto Rico, and singer Mon Laferte.
“We were super-nervous, we’re totally used to doing live shows and stuff, but this was completely different,” said Milton de la Rosa.
This season’s event, by comparison, was more low-key, with a string quartet playing in the round as models paraded past.
“Now I’m not getting worried about how I might look or do, I’m just enjoying now, and that’s a big difference,” said Emilio de La Rosa.
Like a number of guests, the trio had chosen lightweight cotton shorts from the collection to wear to the show in the ongoing heatwave.
“When I went to the fitting, these were the shorts he was wearing that day,” Maluma confided. “I said ‘bro, I love your shorts,’ and he said, ‘do you want to wear them?’ Absolutely yes! I feel very honored.”
