Kriti Mehrotra
Although Norma Monserrat Bustamante Laferte, aka Mon Laferte, has unfortunately experienced more than her fair share of ups and downs in life, music has been her sole constant. As explored in Netflix’s ‘Mon Laferte, te amo,’ her grandmother was the one who had first introduced her to this world of creative expression, and her interest in it then never wavered. It thus comes as she decided quite early on she wished to be a musician, just for her style to span several different genres, including pop, rock, bolero, cumbia, salsa, plus many more.
How Did Mon Laferte Earn Her Money?
Mon was reportedly merely 9 when she realized her dreams were backed by talent as she won first prize in a local school-organized contest, resulting in her whole life turning upside down. This Viña del Mar, Chile, native was actually gifted a guitar, on which she began composing original music shortly thereafter without any care for her formal education or technical skills. The truth is she subsequently earned a scholarship to study music at her hometown’s conservatory, yet she turned it down in order to hone her skills through first-hand work experience.
In other words, at the tender age of 13, Mon began busking on the streets, playing in local bars, and affiliating herself with other street performers to land different event opportunities too. The fact her boyfriend at the time was a 34-year-old professional clown also played a role in the kind of gigs she landed, only for him to then begin acting as her “manager,” per the documentary. This man allegedly took 50% of her earnings for everything he claimed to do for her, but nobody really interfered since the school dropout was at least making enough money to make ends meet.
It was when Mon was 18 that she reportedly parted ways with this “boyfriend” upon realizing he had taken pure advantage of her over the past five years, yet she didn’t let it slow her down. Instead, she expanded her wings by not only entering a Chilean reality singing competition series by the name of ‘Rojo’ but also releasing her debut studio album ‘La Chica de Rojo’ (2003). The commercial success she earned through these led her to remain a part of the television series for a total of four seasons, all the while also landing a spot on the 2006 ‘Rojo, La Pelicula’ film.
Then came Mon’s stint in the Chilean version of ‘Dancing with the Stars’ in 2007, just for her to later relocate to Veracruz, Mexico, for good and officially take up the stage name Mon Laferte. It was then that she began singing in nightclubs, recording cover songs, as well as experimenting with various styles to showcase her versatility, which paved the way for all her ensuing albums; they are: ‘Desechable’ (2011), ‘Tornasol’ (2013), ‘Mon Laferte Vol.1’ (2015), ‘La Trenza’ (2017), ‘Norma’ (2018), ‘Seis’ (2021), ‘1940 Carmen’ (2021), and ‘Autopoiética’ (2023) — she didn’t release her second album until 2011 as s he was battling thyroid cancer in her hiatus.
Mon Laferte’s Net Worth
Considering Mon’s incredible national as well as international success, it goes without saying she has managed to secure a great fortune and is arguably the epitome of a rags-to-riches story. The fact she has nine studio albums under her belt and even debuted as a painter/visual artist in a solo exhibit titled Gestures in 2020 before blending both her passions together also plays a significant role in how fans across the world positively perceive her. Plus, if her experience, 17 Latin Grammy Award nominations, four wins, two Grammy Awards nominations, over 1.5 million digital record sales, and several successful tours are any indication, this Universal-signed artist has an estimated net worth of $10 million.
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