Enrique Martín Morales, known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican Latin pop singer and actor born in San Juan, Puerto Rico on December 24, 1971.
In 1984, he joined the popular musical quintet Menudo, which was already famous in Latin America and other countries around the world. Starting in 1991, when the group, formed in 1977, began to decline, Ricky embarked on 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 achieved the number 5 position on the Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart, selling over 500,000 copies within just a 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 that Cubans listened to during the 90s. His third album, "A medio vivir" (1995), produced hits on the island 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, featuring Spanglish lyrics and Afro-Caribbean rhythms, became a hit in Europe and was the second best-selling single worldwide that year. The real meaning of the lyrics to this song was quite 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 seen a clear reference to cocaine 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 that was already solidifying within Latin pop, Martín managed to perform the official song in both English and Spanish for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. His rendition of the song at the 1999 Grammys was watched by millions of people in over 40 countries, and it won him the Grammy for Best Latin Pop Performance. This song is featured in his single. Later that same year, he would go on to dominate with his next album, Ricky Martin, in both English and Spanish, which reached number 1 in the United States and included another of his major global hits, Livin' la vida loca.
In 2010, the singer publicly came out as homosexual, triggering a significant reaction and becoming an idol within the LGTB community, which he has always supported and defended. His advocacy for their rights earned him the Peace Summit Awards in 2019, presented 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 the Ricky Martin Foundation, through which he provided houses in the municipality of Loíza in Puerto Rico in 2018 to those affected by Hurricane María, which devastated the island a year earlier, raising funds through the sale of T-shirts featuring his children's faces. Additionally, he joined a protest regarding the amount of donations sent from abroad that had not been distributed.
As a Puerto Rican, he is very supportive of his people, and in 2019 he raised his voice against the religious freedom bill passed by the Puerto Rico House of Representatives. That same year, on June 9, the day of the country's National Parade, he was the one to wear the "Grand Marshal" sash at the celebration held in The Big Apple.
In 2019, after a chat from Puerto Rico's governor Ricardo Rosselló was leaked, which included homophobic and misogynistic comments and mentioned politicians, journalists, and notable figures, the singer called for the unity of Puerto Ricans to bring about change and traveled to Puerto Rico to participate in a protest alongside other artists from the country.
His Latin American sentiment extends beyond Puerto Rico, and at the end of 2019, he also made headlines when, in light of 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 a people must be respected, acknowledged, and fulfilled. Listen to your people who are speaking to you emphatically," the Puerto Rican wrote on his Instagram account.
In September 2020, Luis Fonsi and Ricky Martin showed their support for the Democratic presidential candidate of the United States, Joe Biden, during an event held in Florida.
In 2015, Ricky Martin and the Cuban 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 the wife of the well-known Cuban musician Beatriz Luengo, who is the author of the song. In September 2020, Luengo announced that she and Yotuel had composed the song Quiéreme, which is part of the album Pausa and is performed by the Puerto Rican artist along with the renowned Spanish 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 Vocal Pop Album, and Best Urban Fusion/Performance with the song "Cántalo."
