Ricky Martin

Enrique "Ricky" Martín Morales (born December 24, 1971) is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his discography incorporating a wide variety of many elements, such as Latin pop, dance, reggaeton, salsa, and other genres. Born in San Juan, Martin began appearing in television commercials at age nine and began his musical career at twelve, as a member of Puerto Rican boy band Menudo. He began his solo career in 1991 while in Sony Music Mexico, gaining recognition in Latin America with the release of his first two studio albums, Ricky Martin (1991) and Me Amaras (1993), both of which were focused on ballads. Martin's third album, A Medio Vivir (1995), helped him rise to prominence in European countries. The chart-topping single "María" incorporated a mixture of Latin music genres and became his first international hit. His international success was further solidified with his fourth album, Vuelve (1998). The album, which earned Martin his first Grammy Award, spawned songs "Vuelve" and "La Copa de la Vida". Martin performed the latter at the 41st Annual Grammy Awards. His first English album, Ricky Martin (1999) became his first US Billboard 200 number one. The lead single "Livin' la Vida Loca" topped both the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart. Martin's success in the late 1990s is generally seen as the beginning of the "Latin explosion". He has been credited for propelling the Latin pop music genre to mainstream recognition, paving the way for a large number of Latin artists to achieve global success.