Pedro Suárez-Vértiz: The Life Story Behind the Peruvian Rock Star

Pedro Suárez-Vértiz was the rock star who gave Peru its most beloved songs. He began as a young man in a band called Arena Hash, and then, as a solo artist, he wrote Cuéntame, Globo de gas, Me elevé, Cuando pienses en volver, and Lo olvidé, songs that Peruvians know by heart, songs that are played at parties, in cars, in homes, and in the memories of a whole generation. His voice was warm, his melodies were unforgettable, and his words spoke directly to the hearts of his listeners.

He was born in Lima in 1969, and he grew up in a Peru that was full of music, of rock, of change. He became famous in the 1990s, when Peruvian rock was finding its voice, and he became one of its brightest stars. Then, in his later years, a condition slowly took his voice, and he could no longer sing. He did not give up. He became a writer, a columnist, a man who used words to keep speaking, even when his voice had left him. He died in 2023, and Peru mourned him as one of its great artists.

What makes his story special is its courage. He lost the thing that had made him famous, his voice, and he found another way to speak. His life is a story of talent, of fame, of loss, and of a man who refused to be silenced, even when silence was forced upon him.

A Young Rocker in Lima and Arena Hash

Pedro Suárez-Vértiz was born on 13 February 1969 in Lima, Peru. He grew up in the capital city, in a family where music was loved, and he learned to sing and to play guitar as a young man. Lima in the 1980s was a city of rock, of young people who listened to music from the United States and Britain, and who wanted to make their own rock, in Spanish, about their own lives. Suárez-Vértiz was one of those young people, and he had a talent that was clear from the start: a warm voice, a gift for melody, and a way with words.

As a teenager, he formed a band with his brother Patricio Suárez-Vértiz, and with two friends, Christian Meier and Arturo Pomar. The band was called Arena Hash, and it became one of the most popular rock bands in Peru in the late 1980s and early 1990s. They played melodic rock, with strong guitars, with catchy choruses, and with lyrics in Spanish that spoke to young Peruvians. Their songs were played on the radio, their concerts were attended by fans, and they became a name in Peruvian rock.

Arena Hash was a band of young men who were learning their craft together, who were writing songs, who were playing live, and who were building a following. Suárez-Vértiz was the voice of the band, and his singing was at its heart. He sang with feeling, with warmth, and with a natural ease that made audiences love him. The band’s success showed that Peruvian rock could be popular, that it could be melodic, and that it could speak to young people in their own language.

The band lasted for several years, and then, as bands often do, it came to an end. The members went their separate ways, and Suárez-Vértiz began a new chapter, as a solo artist. It was a brave move, because a solo career is a lonely one, without the support of a band, without the shared work, without the friendship. But Suárez-Vértiz was ready, and his solo career would become even greater than his time with Arena Hash.

Going Solo and the Songs Peru Loves

In 1993, Suárez-Vértiz released his first solo album, (No existen) Técnicas para olvidar. It was a debut that showed a songwriter who had grown, who could write songs that were personal, melodic, and unforgettable. The album included Cuéntame, a song that became one of his most beloved, a song about telling a story, about asking someone to tell you what happened, about the longing to know and to understand. It was played on the radio constantly, and it made Suárez-Vértiz a solo star.

He followed it with Póntelo en la lengua in 1996, an album that included Globo de gas, a playful, joyful song that became a hit, and Me elevé, a song about rising, about feeling lifted, about the joy of being alive. These songs showed his range: he could be playful, he could be romantic, he could be reflective, and he could do it all with melodies that stayed in the listener’s head. His albums were successes, and his concerts were full of fans who sang every word.

In 1999, he released Degeneración actual, an album that included songs that were more reflective, more mature, and that showed a songwriter who was growing up with his audience. His fans were growing up too, and his songs grew with them, from the playful energy of youth to the deeper feelings of adult life. He was not a singer who stayed the same. He changed, he learned, he wrote about new things, and his audience followed him.

His most famous song, Cuando pienses en volver, became an anthem. It is a song about returning, about thinking of coming back, about the longing for home, for a person, for a place. Peruvians who live abroad, who have left their country, hear that song and feel it deeply, because it speaks to the experience of being far from home and dreaming of return. It is a song that has become part of Peruvian life, and it is the song that Suárez-Vértiz is most remembered for.

Play, Talk Show, and the Peak of Fame

In the 2000s, Suárez-Vértiz continued to release albums and to perform, and he became one of the most popular and respected rock artists in Peru. He released Play in 2004, an album that showed his continued creativity, and Talk Show in 2006, which included Lo olvidé, a song about forgetting, about the pain of trying to forget someone, and about the impossibility of doing so. His songs were still being played, still being sung, still being loved, and his concerts were still full.

He also released Amazonas in 2009, an album that showed his love for Peru, for its nature, for its people, and for its music. By now, he was not only a rock star. He was a figure in Peruvian culture, a man whose songs were part of the country’s life, a voice that Peruvians trusted. He was known for his warmth, for his humour, for his generosity, and for his love of his audience.

His fame was not the fame of a distant star. It was the fame of a man who was close to his people, who sang for them, who talked to them, who understood them. His concerts were celebrations, with fans singing every word, with the band playing with energy, and with Suárez-Vértiz at the centre, smiling, singing, and sharing his music. He was a rock star, but he was also a friend, a neighbour, a Peruvian who had made it and who had not forgotten where he came from.

During these years, he also became a public figure, speaking about issues that mattered to him, writing, and using his fame to draw attention to causes he believed in. He was not only a singer. He was a voice in Peruvian life, a person whose words carried weight, and whose opinions were listened to. That responsibility was one he took seriously, and it made his later life even more meaningful.

Losing His Voice and Finding Words

In his later years, Suárez-Vértiz faced a terrible challenge. He developed a condition that slowly affected his speech and his ability to sing, a condition that took away the voice that had made him famous. For a singer, there is no greater loss. The voice is not only an instrument. It is who you are, it is how you speak to the world, it is how you make your living, and it is how you express your soul. To lose it is to lose a part of yourself.

He could no longer perform as he had. He could no longer sing his songs on stage, could no longer record as he had, could no longer do the work that had defined his life. Many people would have given up, would have withdrawn, would have disappeared. Suárez-Vértiz did not. He found another way to speak. He became a writer.

He wrote books, he wrote columns in newspapers, he wrote about his life, about music, about Peru, and about what it means to lose your voice and to keep going. His writing was honest, warm, and funny, and it showed the same gift for words that his songs had shown. He could no longer sing, but he could still write, and he wrote with the same feeling, the same humour, and the same love for his audience. His readers loved his writing, and they followed it, because it was him, speaking in a new way.

His condition also made him a symbol of courage in Peru. People saw a man who had lost his voice and who had not lost himself, a man who had found a new way to communicate, and who had done it with dignity and with grace. He spoke about his condition openly, he did not hide it, and he showed others who were facing illness and loss that it is possible to keep going, to find a new path, and to keep speaking, even when the old way is gone.

Death in 2023 and a Country in Mourning

Pedro Suárez-Vértiz died on 28 December 2023 in Lima, at the age of fifty-four. His death was sudden, and it shocked Peru. Newspapers wrote about him, radio stations played his songs, television programmes remembered his life, and Peruvians mourned him as one of their great artists. He was young, he had more to give, and his death felt unfair, felt too soon, felt like a loss that Peru could not afford.

His funeral was attended by family, by friends, by musicians, and by fans, and his songs were sung in his memory. Cuando pienses en volver was played, and people cried, because the song about returning had become a song about a man who would not return, a voice that would not sing again. It was a moment of national grief, a moment when Peru remembered what Suárez-Vértiz had given it, and what it had lost.

His death also reminded Peruvians of the fragility of life, of the fact that even a great voice, even a beloved star, can be taken too soon. But it also reminded them of what he had left behind: his songs, his writing, his example, and his courage. He had lived a full life, he had made music that would last, and he had faced his illness with dignity. That is a legacy that death cannot take away.

What Pedro Suárez-Vértiz Leaves Behind

Pedro Suárez-Vértiz leaves behind a body of song that is part of Peruvian life: Cuéntame, Globo de gas, Me elevé, Cuando pienses en volver, Lo olvidé, and many more, songs that are still played, still sung, and still loved. He leaves behind his work with Arena Hash, the band that began his career, and his solo albums, which made him a star. He leaves behind his writing, his books and columns, which showed that a voice can be lost and words can still speak. And he leaves behind an example: a man who lost his voice and found another way to speak, a man who faced illness with courage, and a man who loved his country and his audience until the end.

Cuando pienses en volver and the Song of Home

Cuando pienses en volver is Pedro Suárez-Vértiz’s most famous song, and it is worth understanding why it means so much to Peruvians. The song is about returning, about thinking of coming back, about the longing for home, for a person, for a place. It is sung with a warmth that makes the listener feel the longing, and it has become an anthem for Peruvians who live abroad, who have left their country, and who dream of returning. When they hear it, they do not only hear a song. They hear Peru. They hear home.

The song’s power comes from its simplicity. It does not use complicated words. It speaks directly, honestly, about a feeling that millions of people know: the feeling of being far from home, of missing the streets, the food, the people, the life you left behind, and of dreaming of the day you will return. Suárez-Vértiz sang it as if he had felt it himself, as if he knew what it was to be away, and that honesty is what makes it last. It is a song that has been played at airports, at farewells, at homecomings, and in the homes of Peruvians around the world, and it will be played for generations.

It is also a song that shows Suárez-Vértiz’s gift as a songwriter. He could take a simple feeling and turn it into a melody that stays in your head, into words that stay in your heart, and into a song that becomes part of a country’s life. Cuando pienses en volver is not only his most famous song. It is one of the most famous songs in Peruvian music, and it is the song he will be remembered for.

The Books, the Columns, and a New Voice in Words

After he could no longer sing, Suárez-Vértiz became a writer, and his writing deserves attention, because it shows the same gift that his songs showed, in a new form. He wrote books, in which he told stories about his life, about music, about Peru, and about what it means to lose your voice and to keep going. He wrote columns in newspapers, in which he shared his thoughts, his humour, and his observations about daily life. His writing was warm, funny, and honest, and it showed that his talent was not only in his voice. It was in his words, in his way of seeing the world, in his ability to tell a story.

His readers loved his writing, because it was him, speaking in a new way. They had loved his songs, and now they loved his words, because both came from the same place: a man who observed life carefully, who felt deeply, and who wanted to share what he saw and felt with others. His books and columns became a new chapter in his career, a chapter that proved that an artist is more than one talent, more than one voice, and that creativity can find a new form when the old form is taken away.

His writing also made him a symbol of courage in Peru. People saw a man who had lost his voice and who had not lost himself, a man who had found a new way to communicate, and who had done it with dignity and with grace. He spoke about his condition openly, he did not hide it, and he showed others who were facing illness and loss that it is possible to keep going, to find a new path, and to keep speaking, even when the old way is gone. That is a legacy that goes beyond music, and it is one that will last.

Arena Hash and the Band That Started It All

Arena Hash was the band that started Pedro Suárez-Vértiz’s career, and it deserves a closer look, because it was more than a first band. It was a group of young friends, Pedro, his brother Patricio, Christian Meier, and Arturo Pomar, who loved rock, who wanted to make their own music, and who believed that Peruvian rock could be popular, melodic, and honest. They played together, they wrote songs together, they learned their craft together, and they became one of the most popular rock bands in Peru in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

The band’s success showed that Peruvian rock had an audience, that young Peruvians wanted to hear rock in Spanish, about their own lives, and that a band from Lima could compete with the great bands of Latin America. Arena Hash played melodic rock, with strong guitars, with catchy choruses, and with lyrics that spoke directly to young listeners, and their concerts were full of fans who sang every word. They were a band of friends, and that friendship was part of their sound: they played together, they listened to each other, and they made music that felt like a shared joy.

The band eventually came to an end, as bands often do, and its members went their separate ways. Christian Meier became an actor, Patricio continued in music, and Pedro went solo, and his solo career became even greater than his time with the band. But Arena Hash remained a part of his story, the place where he learned to sing, to write, to perform, and to be a rock star. It was the foundation, and everything he built afterwards rested on it.

Lo olvidé, Play, and the Songs of the 2000s

In the 2000s, Pedro Suárez-Vértiz continued to write songs that Peruvians loved, and among them was Lo olvidé, from the album Talk Show, a song about forgetting, about the pain of trying to forget someone, and about the impossibility of doing so. It is a song that speaks to anyone who has tried to forget a love and found that they could not, and it is sung with an honesty that makes the listener feel understood. His albums from this period, Play and Talk Show, showed a songwriter who was still creative, still melodic, still honest, and still loved by his audience. They were records of a man who had grown up, who had lived, and who was writing about adult life with the same warmth he had brought to his early songs.

Me elevé and the Joy of Being Alive

Me elevé, from the album Póntelo en la lengua, is a song about rising, about feeling lifted, about the joy of being alive, and it is one of Pedro Suárez-Vértiz’s most loved songs. It is sung with a warmth and an energy that make the listener feel lifted too, as if the music itself were carrying them up. It is a song about joy, about the simple pleasure of being alive, of feeling the sun, of loving, of singing, and it reminds audiences that life, even when it is hard, has moments of lift, moments when you feel as if you could fly. That joy is part of why Peruvians love his music: it does not only speak of sadness. It speaks of joy, too.

My Take:

I want to begin with something that has stayed with me about Pedro Suárez-Vértiz: he lost his voice, and he did not stop speaking. He was a singer, and his voice was his life, his work, his gift, and his identity. And then, slowly, a condition took that voice away. He could no longer sing. He could no longer perform as he had. And instead of giving up, instead of disappearing, he became a writer. He wrote books, he wrote columns, he used words to keep speaking, even when his voice had left him. That is one of the bravest things I have ever heard about an artist, and it moves me deeply. It tells me that who you are is not only what you can do. It is what you do when what you can do is taken away.

What I love most about his music is its warmth. Cuando pienses en volver is a song about returning, about thinking of coming back, about longing for home, and it is sung with a warmth that makes you feel the longing yourself. Cuéntame is a song about telling a story, about asking someone to tell you what happened, and it is sung with a curiosity, a tenderness, that makes you want to listen. Globo de gas is playful, joyful, a song that makes you smile. Me elevé is a song about rising, about feeling lifted, about joy. These songs are not complicated. They are simple, human, and warm, and that is why Peruvians love them. They are songs that feel like a friend talking to you, like someone you know, like a voice you trust. Suárez-Vértiz had that gift, the gift of making a song feel personal, and I admire it deeply.

I think about his early years with Arena Hash, because they tell me something about starting small and growing. He was a young man in Lima, in a band with his brother and his friends, playing rock, writing songs, learning his craft. He did not become a star overnight. He played, he rehearsed, he recorded, he built a following, and then he went solo, and he built it again, bigger, better, with songs that became classics. That patience, that willingness to work, to learn, to grow, is something I respect. It tells me that a career is not a single moment. It is many moments, many songs, many concerts, many years of work, and the work adds up, until one day you look back and you have made something that matters.

I am moved by the fact that his songs are part of Peruvian life in a way that few artists achieve. Cuando pienses en volver is sung by Peruvians who live abroad, who have left their country, who dream of returning. It is a song about home, and it carries the feeling of home in its melody. That is a rare achievement. It means that Suárez-Vértiz did not only write songs. He wrote the feelings of his people, the longing, the love, the hope, and he gave those feelings a voice. When a Peruvian far from home hears that song, they do not only hear music. They hear Peru. They hear home. That is a gift, and I am grateful to him for it.

I think about his illness, because it is the hardest part of his story, and the most important. He lost his voice, slowly, and he knew it was happening, and he had to watch it go, day by day, song by song, until he could no longer sing. I cannot imagine how painful that must have been. For a singer, the voice is everything. It is how you work, how you express yourself, how you connect with people. To lose it is to lose a part of yourself. And yet, he did not lose himself. He found another way. He wrote. He wrote books, he wrote columns, he used words to speak, and his writing was as warm, as funny, as honest as his songs. That tells me something I need to hear: when one door closes, another may open, if you are willing to look for it, if you are willing to try, if you are willing to be brave enough to start again, in a new way, with new tools. Suárez-Vértiz was brave enough, and I admire him for it.

I am also struck by his death, at fifty-four, too young, too soon, on 28 December 2023. Peru mourned him, and I understand why. He was a voice of a generation, a man whose songs were part of people’s lives, and his death felt like a loss that could not be replaced. But I also think about what he left behind, and I find comfort in it. His songs are still played. His writing is still read. His example is still there, a man who lost his voice and kept speaking, a man who faced illness with dignity, a man who loved his country and his audience until the end. Death can take a person, but it cannot take what they made, what they gave, what they taught. Suárez-Vértiz gave Peru his songs, and Peru will keep them.

What I take from his story, for my own life, is this: use your voice while you have it, and when you lose it, find another way to speak. Do not give up when the thing you love is taken away. Look for a new way, a new tool, a new voice, and keep going. Write, if you cannot sing. Speak, if you cannot write. Find a way, because your story matters, and the world needs to hear it. And love the place you come from, sing about it, write about it, carry it with you, because home is not only a place. It is a feeling, a song, a voice, and it lives in you, even when you are far away. Pedro Suárez-Vértiz’s life teaches me all of that, and I am grateful to him for it.

In the end, I think Pedro Suárez-Vértiz was one of the great artists of Peru, not because he was famous, but because he was true. He was true to his music, to his audience, to his country, and to himself, even when his voice left him. He sang, he wrote, he kept speaking, and he never gave up. I will keep listening to his songs, and I will keep learning from his life, because they remind me that a voice can be lost and words can still speak, and that a song, sung honestly, can carry a whole people home.

I want to add something about Cuando pienses en volver, because it is a song that has stayed with me, and it tells me something important about Suárez-Vértiz. It is a song about returning, about longing for home, and it is sung with a warmth that makes you feel the longing yourself. I think about Peruvians who live abroad, who have left their country, who hear that song and feel it deeply, because it speaks to their own experience: being far from home, missing the streets, the food, the people, dreaming of the day they will return. That is a rare achievement for a songwriter: to write a song that becomes the voice of a whole people’s longing. Suárez-Vértiz did that, and he did it with simple words, with an honest melody, and with a feeling that was true. I learn from him that a song does not need to be complicated to be great. It needs to be true, and to speak to a feeling that many people share.

I also think about his writing, because it is the part of his story that moves me most. He lost his voice, and he became a writer. He wrote books, he wrote columns, he used words to keep speaking, and his writing was as warm, as funny, as honest as his songs. That tells me something I need to hear: when one door closes, another may open, if you are willing to look for it, if you are willing to try, if you are willing to be brave enough to start again, in a new way, with new tools. Suárez-Vértiz was brave enough, and I admire him for it. In my own life, I have faced losses, and I have wondered if I could keep going. His example tells me that I can, that there is always another way to speak, another way to create, another way to be yourself, even when the old way is gone.

Finally, I think about his death, at fifty-four, and about what he left behind. He left songs, he left writing, he left an example, and he left a country that loved him. Death can take a person, but it cannot take what they made, what they gave, what they taught. Suárez-Vértiz gave Peru his songs, and Peru will keep them. He gave Peru his words, and Peru will keep them. And he gave Peru his courage, and that, too, will remain, in the people who saw him lose his voice and keep speaking, and who learned from him that it is possible to keep going, even when everything seems lost.

I want to add something about Arena Hash, because it is the foundation of Pedro Suárez-Vértiz’s career, and it tells me something important about starting small. He was a young man in Lima, in a band with his brother and his friends, playing rock, writing songs, learning his craft, and building a following one concert at a time. He did not become a star overnight. He played, he rehearsed, he recorded, he learned, and then he went solo, and he built it again, bigger, better, with songs that became classics. That patience, that willingness to work, to learn, to grow, is something I respect deeply. It tells me that a career is not a single moment. It is many moments, many songs, many concerts, many years of work, and the work adds up, until one day you look back and you have made something that matters. Pedro did that, and his songs are proof of it.

I want to end with something about Lo olvidé, because it is a song that speaks to anyone who has tried to forget and found they could not. It is a song about the pain of trying, about the impossibility of forgetting someone you loved, and it is sung with an honesty that makes you feel understood. I have tried to forget people in my own life, and I have learned, as Suárez-Vértiz sang, that forgetting is not something you can force. It comes in its own time, or it does not come at all, and the best you can do is to live with the memory, to carry it, and to keep going. His song tells me that, and it comforts me. I will keep listening to his songs, and I will keep learning from his life, because they remind me that a voice can be lost and words can still speak, and that a song, sung honestly, can carry a whole people home.

One more thing stays with me about Suárez-Vértiz, and it is Me elevé, a song about rising, about feeling lifted, about the joy of being alive. It is sung with a warmth that makes you feel lifted too, as if the music were carrying you up. That joy is important, because life is hard, and people need songs that lift them, that remind them that being alive is a gift, that there are moments when you feel as if you could fly. Suárez-Vértiz gave Peruvians that feeling, and he gave it with a melody that stays in your head and words that stay in your heart. I will keep listening to his songs, because they remind me that joy is real, that it matters, and that a song can carry you up, even when life is trying to hold you down.

Frequently Asked Questions

What band did Pedro Suárez-Vértiz start in? Pedro Suárez-Vértiz started in the Peruvian rock band Arena Hash, which he formed with his brother Patricio Suárez-Vértiz, Christian Meier, and Arturo Pomar. The band was popular in Peru in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

What are Pedro Suárez-Vértiz’s most famous songs? Pedro Suárez-Vértiz’s most famous songs include Cuéntame, Globo de gas, Me elevé, Cuando pienses en volver, and Lo olvidé. Cuando pienses en volver, about longing for home, is his most beloved song.

When did Pedro Suárez-Vértiz go solo? Pedro Suárez-Vértiz began his solo career in 1993 with the album (No existen) Técnicas para olvidar. He went on to release Póntelo en la lengua, Degeneración actual, Play, Talk Show, and Amazonas.

What happened to Pedro Suárez-Vértiz’s voice? In his later years, Pedro Suárez-Vértiz developed a condition that slowly affected his speech and his ability to sing. He could no longer perform as before, so he became a writer, publishing books and newspaper columns.

When did Pedro Suárez-Vértiz die? Pedro Suárez-Vértiz died on 28 December 2023 in Lima, at the age of fifty-four. Peru mourned him as one of its great rock artists, and his songs were played across the country in his memory.

What is Cuando pienses en volver about? Cuando pienses en volver is a song about returning, about thinking of coming back home, and about longing for a person or a place. It is especially loved by Peruvians living abroad who dream of returning to Peru.