History

The Singing Man of Mount Pleasant (Adams Morgan and elsewhere) “His name is Margarito.”

By Prince Of Petworth

Last month I heard the famed singing man of Mount Pleasant (though I was in Van Ness at the time, I also heard him a couple weeks ago in Mount Pleasant, where I took the photo above.) After hearing him in Van Ness it brought me great joy so I tweeted:

Lisa was kind enough to reply with more info she had previously shared on the Adams Morgan listserv:

“Hola a todos,

My name is Lisa, and this is my first post since joining the online community. There was some recent discussion about a loudly singing man who has provoked an understandable reaction of intimidation, distress, and concern among some of his neighbors.

I just encountered this man for the first time since I moved to Adams Morgan a few months ago. He was indeed singing extremely loudly. I recalled our collective exchange and some specific questions about his mental health and safety. I approached him in that spirit, as well as to be neighborly.

When I did, he immediately stopped singing and we talked for about 15 minutes. Two relevant facts are 1) our conversation was entirely in Spanish, which I speak at a B-minus level, and 2) I’m a clinical psychologist who has some expertise in quickly assessing danger to self and others.

The gist of that exchange that I’d like to humbly share:

His name is Margarito.

Margarito works in several restaurants and has a safe place to live in the neighborhood. When I asked him if he sang as a way to feel strong, he beamed and agreed.

I wanted to share my impression that he is a very friendly and clearly intelligent guy who, quite frankly, seems more at peace than most of us (self included).

If you see him around and can speak a little Spanish, I’m guessing he’d be happy to talk to you. Word to the wise: Margarito is pronounced will a tilde over the R, so Marrrrrgarito’s the word (as he kindly corrected me until I got it right).

Regards to all, Lisa”