Happy Birthday to The Guy Who Lit The Latin Fuse
Today we celebrate Enrique Martin Morales, more commonly known as Ricky Martin! The pop singer is 54 today!
Martin is widely credited with igniting the “Latin explosion” in music, paving the way for artists like Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony, Santana, and Shakira.
Martin started out as a member of the boy band Menudo from 1984 to 1989. He then got into acting and eventually started a solo career in the ’90s. He had some success with his 1995 album, A Medio Vivir, and was approached by FIFA to create a song as the 1998 FIFA World Cup anthem. That song was “La Copa de la Vida,” and it was a big hit around the world.
Still, Martin was mostly unknown in the United States, until the 41st Annual Grammy Awards in 1999. Martin’s performance of that song was his breakthrough! He mesmerized the audience in the Shrine Auditorium, and viewers at home, with his high-energy dance moves, 15-piece band, and dancers in a conga line up and down the aisles! One industry insider said it was “the single biggest game-changing moment for any artist in the history of the Grammys.”
It was not only a big deal for Martin, but also for Latin music. Martin’s first English-language album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart three months after the Grammys, and in the year 2000, he embarked on the worldwide Livin’ la Vida Loca Tour, which was the highest-grossing tour of 2000 by a Latin artist.
It’s hard to deny the effect Ricky Martin has had on music – so to celebrate, CLICK HERE to revisit his groundbreaking Grammy performance! Plus, we’ve included the video of his biggest hit, “Livin’ la Vida Loca!”
Happy 54th birthday to Ricky Martin!
