Sense of Place: How Madrid helped Jorge Drexler fully embrace the music

In this session, we sit down with Academy Award-winning musician and longtime Madrid resident Jorge Drexler. Like many creative people who flock to the Spanish capital, Drexler was drawn here by Madrid’s rich cultural scene.

Jorge Drexler performing in front of a live audience at Metropol Studios in Madrid.
Kimberly Junod/WXPN

Drexler is originally from Uruguay, and he was invited to Madrid by a fellow musician in 1995. A decade and several albums later, Drexler won an Oscar for his song “Al Otro Lado del Rio” which appeared in the film The Motorcycle Diaries. His latest album, Tinta y Tiempo, has also racked up awards. The album, which he struggled to write during the pandemic, won six trophies at the 2022 Latin Grammy awards, including song of the year and record of the year.

You’ll hear him perform that song of the year winner during this session that we recorded in front of a live audience at Metropol Studios in Madrid in April as we kick off our new Sense of Place: Madrid series.

World Cafe producer Miguel Perez contributed to this post.