Ricky Martin

Enrique Martín Morales, known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer of Latin pop and actor, born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on December 24, 1971.

In 1984, he joined the popular musical group Menudo, which was already well-known in Latin America and other countries around the world. Starting in 1991, when the group, formed in 1977, began to decline, Ricky launched his solo career. In Mexico, he appeared in several theater productions, and in 1986, he made his acting debut in the Argentine telenovela Por siempre amigos, alongside the other members of Menudo. In 1991, he acted in the Mexican telenovela Alcanzar una estrella II.

In 1991, with his debut studio album, Ricky Martin reached number 5 on the Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart and sold over 500,000 copies of the record in just one month. Singles like "Fuego contra fuego," "Dime que me quieres," and "El amor de mi vida" made him very popular in Cuba, where many of his songs defined the music Cubans listened to during the 1990s. His third album, "A medio vivir" (1995), featured hits such as "Te extraño, te olvido, te amo," the title track "A medio vivir," and the phenomenon "María," which marked a turning point in the singer's career. The remix, with Spanglish lyrics and Afro-Caribbean rhythms, achieved great success in Europe and became the second best-selling single in the world that year. The true meaning of the lyrics to this song was highly controversial in the '90s and contributed to its popularity. Although Ricky has always stated that his song is about an attractive woman named María, many have interpreted it as a clear allusion to cocaine, particularly through its catchy chorus: "Así es María, blanca como el día, pero es veneno si te quieres enamorar. Así es María, tan caliente y fría, que si te la bebes, de seguro te va a matar."

With a career already solidifying in Latin pop, Martín managed to perform the official song in both English and Spanish for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. His performance at the 1999 Grammy Awards was viewed by millions in over 40 countries, earning him a Grammy for Best Latin Pop Performance. This song is included in his single. Later that same year, he would dominate the charts with his next album, Ricky Martin, which achieved number one in the United States and features another one of his global hits, "Livin' la Vida Loca."

In 2010, the singer publicly came out as gay, sparking a significant reaction and becoming an idol within the LGBTQ community that he has always supported and defended. His fight for their rights earned him the Peace Summit Awards in 2019, granted by the global summit of Nobel Peace Prize laureates.

Since 2016, she has been sharing her life with the Swedish-Syrian painter Jwan Yosef, with whom she has four children.

In 2018, he was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for his role as Versace's lover, Antonio D'Amico, in "American Crime Story: The Assassination Of Gianni Versace."

As a philanthropist, Martin has a foundation, the Ricky Martin Foundation, through which he provided homes in the municipality of Loíza in Puerto Rico in 2018 to those affected by Hurricane Maria, which devastated the island a year earlier. He raised funds through the sale of t-shirts featuring the faces of his children. Additionally, he joined a protest regarding the unallocated donations sent from abroad.

As a Puerto Rican, he is deeply connected to his community, and in 2019 he spoke out against the religious freedom bill approved by the Puerto Rico House of Representatives. That same year, on June 9, the day of the National Parade, he had the honor of wearing the "Grand Marshal" sash at the celebration in New York City.

In 2019, after a chat from Puerto Rico's governor Ricardo Rosselló was leaked, containing messages with homophobic and misogynistic comments mentioning politicians, journalists, and public figures, the singer called for the unity of Puerto Ricans to bring about a change in direction and traveled to Puerto Rico to join other artists in a protest.

His Latin American sentiment extends beyond Puerto Rico, and at the end of 2019, he made headlines when, following the protests in Chile, he used his social media to send a message to Chilean President Sebastián Piñera: "President Sebastián Piñera, know that the will of the people must be respected, obeyed, and fulfilled. Listen to your people who are speaking to you boldly," the Puerto Rican wrote on his Instagram account.

In September 2020, Luis Fonsi and Ricky Martin expressed their support for the Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden during an event held in Florida.

In 2015, Ricky Martin and Cuban artist Yotuel Romero, from the popular group Orishas, released the song "La mordidita," whose music video has surpassed one billion views on YouTube. Behind the song is Beatriz Luengo, the wife of the popular Cuban musician, who is the author of the track. In September 2020, Luengo announced that she and Yotuel had composed the song "Quiéreme" for the album "Pausa," which the Puerto Rican artist performs alongside the renowned Spanish flamenco singer Diego "El Cigala."

In September 2020, his nomination for the Latin Grammy Awards was announced in the categories of Album of the Year for "Pausa," Best Pop Vocal Album, and Best Urban Fusion/Performance for the song "Cántalo."