Juan Ignacio “Iñaki” Antonio
had an excellent career as a professional soccer player.
He played for River, in youth teams and even took his talent to Italian football, defending the colors of Brescia and Sampdoria.
"El Flaco", as they call him, was a forward and was a teammate of Aguero, Iccardi, Chiquito Romero, Gallardo, Ortega, he replaced Roberto Baggio and
shared training with a certain Lionel Andrés Messi
.
Juan Ignacio Antonio in 2007, in a River vs Vélez match.
Photo: Jorge Sánchez
When he was only 27 years old, he felt that that life was no longer for him and
decided to dedicate himself to music
: together with his brother Danilo (who left his profession as a lawyer) they formed the band: Francia 98.
A new stage
To understand the decisions of a person who seems to have an ideal life that he gives up to start from scratch, we must observe that there are as many paradises as souls, as many destinations as paths, as many routines as sunrises and as many dreams as there are people who lull us to sleep.
The band Francia 98 in full.
Photo: Fernando de la Orden
Today, at
35 years old
, El Flaco can attest that what was once a dream can become a routine so difficult to carry out that it forces you to “jump into an abyss” in search of new longings.
“I believe that each stage has its expiration date.
Life goes by so fast, it seems to me that sometimes if we don't make decisions at the time, you can find yourself at the wrong time," says the current vocalist and yesterday forward, in a chat with
Clarín
while putting together a new mate.
His group
Francia 98
has been around for four years now and is about to release its second album
Buenas decisions
(the first was called
Fábrica de songs
), which features the production and participation of Walter “Willy” Piancioli from Los Tipitos and the mix of Tomas Vigo.
They rehearse one block from the Obelisk.
The completely dark room/locker room intersperses instruments with neighborhood soccer trophies.
On the side is an image of the band as if it were the cover of the Graphic from two decades ago, portraying two universes that coexist and meet in their differences: football and rock.
“After a long process with football, which had very good and very bad moments,
I decided to return to a dream that I had left behind
, which was to make music and have my band,” he remembers.
family passion
Born in Chubut, the Antonio brothers (Danilo is the bassist), always had a relationship of confidants, so it was not surprising when Juan acknowledged that something was wrong in the alleged “dream life.”
In that talk, Juan tells him that he had a thorn in his side without being able to dribble:
to rock together
.
Francia 98 is made up of brothers Juan Ignacio (vocals) and Danilo (bass), Antonio, Joaquín Bonazzola (drums), Marcos Cabeza (keyboards), Nico Monti (ukulele) and Agustín “Coco” Nieto (guitar).
Photo: Fernando de la Orden
Danilo says that at first he asked him if “he didn't want to play a little more.”
And he recalls: “I used to get up on Saturday mornings to see my brother play in Europe and it was a huge source of pride,” although he immediately added: “I told him if that didn't make him happy he had to leave and that I was with him.” he"
To which the singer adds: “We grow up in a system in which we have to fulfill a profession and if you are also good with the ball, a whole apparatus appears that feeds and forms a character like an Avatar, and one "You end up identifying with what others say you are."
Both explain that
transforming is never easy
.
“For Danilo, leaving my parents' profession was not easy either,” adds Iñaki.
In the house of lawyer parents, music was always a constant.
Charly García, Sui Generis and Serú Girán appeared when they were not on the little dirt field that “El Flaco” abandoned at the age of 17 to come play for River, a previous step for the Under 17 National Team.
Find more goals than choruses
“I was in the Primera team and in youth teams.
Then I arrived in Italy where I was lucky enough to score goals and fulfill a dream, although
I always saw football as a safer job option
,” he clarifies, as if he were talking about an English course, but he is referring to being a striker in European football. .
Juan Antonio live a couple of months ago at the Lirondo piano bar, with his band Francia 98. Photo: IG
He shared youth teams with Agüero and Sergio Romero.
But he also served as a sparring partner for Pekerman's team that played in the 2006 World Cup, where he played against Messi.
“You already realized that he was different from the rest, what he did was not normal,” he says.
Despite living the life that almost the entire country dreams of, “Iñaki” or “Flaco” recognizes that at one point he was no longer happy and that he felt that he was “training to fulfill.”
“He began a path of personal transformation that was not easy at all, because you
chip
yourself to follow a course.
Many told me that I was making a mistake and it was a discussion of what will people say.
If I hadn't had the support of my loved ones and my family, I don't know if I would have made it."
The shaman who was a song
During those times, a character appears that for the two brothers was crucial in this story: a shaman.
A character who, according to Juan, “helped see life from another perspective.” They even dedicate a song to him, a first album that says “Man of the mountain, with firm steps and wise words. Firm and stripped of the attire of the past.” "If the dark night comes and you lose your sanity, talk to the shaman."
France 98. Photo: Fernando de la Orden
The transition from one job to another was not easy.
“Suddenly the phones stopped ringing and I had to go out and knock on doors, which was something new for me,” says the man who shared a team with world champions like Papu Gomez and Fideo Di Maria.
“Even biologically,” he comments, “we are made not to transform.
It costs us.
It wasn't easy to change your life, to leave football, to stay away from training, airports, hotels.
Even when it wasn't good.
Guilt, habits, fears appear.
But
there is a moment where desire begins to win the battles
and there is no going back.”
France 98 and rescue treasures from the past
The name of the band is not only a football reference, but also nostalgia for the members' childhood and adolescence.
“Even musically there is something about rescuing sounds and emblems from the past.
Our references are the most classic national rock: Fito Páez, Charly García and Calamaro.
Bringing back the memories of France 98 is bringing back to a world that seems to no longer exist but that still has a lot to tell,” he says.
Francia 98 in full recording with Willy Piancioli, from Los Tipitos.
In this musical search, the impact of Willy Piancioli from Los Tipitos
on the ten songs on the album as producer
is very clear .
The creator of hits like
Bells in the Night
helped strengthen that sound that mixes the beginning of the 2000s with the present.
“For us it is an emblem.
We grew up listening to his songs and for him to be here is a dream come true,” he explains.
Regarding what would be the France 98 of the band, that is, what would be the place to reach as it was a World Cup on those afternoons in Chubut, the former soccer player says that in his view “destiny is no longer in the goal but on the path.” .
“Life taught me that the important thing is not where you arrive but in the path you are going to build.
Obviously, being a few blocks from Luna Park or the Gran Rex excites you, but if you ask me, the goal is to continue enjoying music and friends,” Juan closes with his eyes forward, ready to start his second half. .