Luis Alfonso Rodríguez López-Cepero (born April 15, 1978), known by his stage name Luis Fonsi (Spanish pronunciation:[ˈlwisˈfonsi]), is a Puerto Rican singer. He is known for his soulful and dance oriented songs, most notably 2017's "Despacito".
As of 2018, Fonsi has broken six Guinness World Records and sold more than 11 million records with "Despacito",[1] whose music video was the most-watched YouTube video of all time until November 2020, with over 8 billion views.[2]
Early life
Fonsi was born on April 15, 1978, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the oldest child of Alfonso Rodríguez and Delia López-Cepero. He has two younger siblings: Jean Rodríguez, who also is a singer, and Tatiana Rodríguez.
At the age of 10, his family decided to move from Puerto Rico and relocated to Orlando, Florida.[5] He attended Westridge Middle School and Dr. Phillips High School, both in Orlando. During his high school years, he participated in an a cappella group called "The Big Guys".[6] They sang at school parties and local festivals. One of the members of the group, Joey Fatone, later joined *NSYNC.
In 1997, Fonsi recorded his debut album, Comenzaré (I Will Begin), released in 1998. The record peaked at number 11 on Billboard's Top Latin Albums chart and contained the singles "Si Tú Quisieras", "Perdóname", "Dime Como", and "Me Iré".[12]Comenzaré became a hit in Puerto Rico and across Latin America, with Fonsi doing well in markets like Colombia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Mexico, and Venezuela. His 2000 follow-up, Eterno, was even more successful. Around this time, Fonsi also recorded a duet with Christina Aguilera for her 2000 Spanish-language album, Mi Reflejo. On May 1, 2000, Fonsi performed at the Great Jubilee Concert for a Debt-Free World, an outdoor concert in Rome, attended by Pope John Paul II. That same year, Ednita Nazario won a Latin Grammy Award for a song composed by Fonsi. He also performed, with other artists, at the White House in honor of the victims of the September 11 attacks.
In 2002, Fonsi was the opening act for Britney Spears' Dream Within a Dream Tour in the US and Mexico. In the same year he debuted his English album "Fight The Feeling" trying to do a crossover with the first single "Secret" featuring Joey Fatone in the video. In 2003, Luis Fonsi performed to billions of viewers across the globe at Miss World 2003 in China.
His fifth CD, Abrazar la vida, sold very well, which opened new markets in Europe. "¿Quién Te Dijo Eso?" reached number one on the Billboard Latin charts. During his time in the studio for the next album, Fonsi recorded "Amazing", a duet with Spice GirlEmma Bunton for her 2004 album Free Me. His sixth CD, Paso a Paso, debuted at number one and sent him into international markets. "Nada Es Para Siempre" also reached number one on the music charts, and was a nominee for the Latin Grammy Awards. In 2006, he contributed to El Piruli, a tribute album honoring Víctor Yturbe, singing a classic bolero, "Historia de un Amor".
2007–2015: Palabras del Silencio, Tierra Firme, and 8
In 2007, Luis Fonsi was selected to be part of the jury of the new version of the Latino boy band Menudo.[13] The band would be a fusion of urban, pop and rock music in English and Spanish to produce several albums with the label of Sony BMGEpic Records. Several auditions were held in different cities such as Los Angeles, Dallas, Miami, New York, among others. Fonsi was a part of the Dallas competition where along the side of radio announcer Daniel Luna they chose various contestants and in their pickings, rising star JC Gonzalez was 1 of the 25 selected. His sound producer was named Mariano Zunino from Argentina but moved to Florida.
His seventh CD, Palabras del Silencio, debuted and stayed in the number one position for many weeks. Luis Fonsi entered the US Billboard Hot 100 for the first time in September 2008 with his song "No Me Doy por Vencido", debuting at number 98 and peaking at number 92. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot Latin Tracks chart, one of his biggest hits to date. "No Me Doy por Vencido" became Billboard's "Latin Pop Song of the Decade", and spent 21 weeks at number one on the Hot Latin Songs chart.
In 2011, Fonsi released the album Tierra Firme, and went on tour to promote it throughout Latin America.[16]
On July 9, 2011, Billboard named Fonsi "Leader of Latin Music's New Generation".[17]
In 2014, Fonsi released his album 8, a reference to his eighth career album. He then did a tour named "Somos Uno" in 2014–15. He also mentioned that acting would be on his career path and that he wouldn't mind acting with Mexican actors and actresses.
2017–present: "Despacito" and international success
Fonsi in concert
In January 2017, "Despacito" featuring Daddy Yankee was promoted and released. On April 5, 2018, the music video reached five billion views on YouTube, with the song becoming number one in nearly every Latin Billboard chart, and the most viewed video in the world. In April 2017, the song was given an English remix featuring Canadian singer Justin Bieber. The remix featuring Bieber reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 for the week ending May 27, 2017, becoming both Fonsi and Yankee's first number one on the chart, and Bieber's fifth. Bieber promoted the remix at one of his shows in Puerto Rico, inviting Fonsi onto stage to perform the duet with him. The song remained number one for 16 consecutive weeks, tying One Sweet Day, by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men as the longest reigning top song in the chart's history.
On August 15, 2017, Fonsi was named the tourism ambassador of Puerto Rico.[18]
After five years since 8, on February 1, 2019, his 10th studio album, Vida was released. The track list contains "Despacito (Remix) ", "Échame la Culpa" and "Sola".[26] The album topped the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart and Spanish albums chart, and entered at number 18 on the Billboard 200.[27][28]
In 1992, Fonsi made a brief cameo in the romance film Como Agua Para Chocolate in which he played the friend of the male lead, Pedro Múzquiz.
In 2004, Fonsi made his second acting appearance on the Mexican telenovela named Corazones al límite in which he played Roy. He also had a special appearance in 2001 on the Nickelodeon television series Taina. Fonsi joined the cast of Broadway's Forever Tango for a two-week engagement in August 2013
Personal life
In 2003, Fonsi started to become romantically interested in actress Adamari López, who, as a Univision artist and fellow Puerto Rican, constantly found herself near Fonsi.[33] That same year, Fonsi released the song "Abrazar la vida" ("To Embrace the Life"), off the eponymous album. The song would later become one of López's favorites.[33]
During 2005, Fonsi was in the middle of an international tour that was abruptly cancelled when López was diagnosed with cancer. Fonsi promised to stay by her side, and traveled with her to Mexico, Miami, and Puerto Rico for various treatment and work-related trips.[33] She had been in remission since 2006.
On June 3, 2006, Fonsi and Adamari López were married in a religious ceremony in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, attended by many celebrities including Joey Fatone, Charytín Goyco, Ednita Nazario and Carlos Ponce, as well as his brother Jean Rodríguez. On November 8, 2010, they officially divorced.[34]
Fonsi and Spanish model Águeda López were married on September 10, 2014, after three years of living together.[35] They had their first child together, a daughter, in December 2011 in Miami.[36] On December 20, 2016, they welcomed their second child, a son.[37]
After Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic in 2017, the singer became one of the major helpers to raise the islands from the devastation.[40] For his contribution, he was honored with the Global Gift Philanthropy Award.[41]
He is also a supporter of spreading Latin culture around the world.[42]
The Swiss Music Awards are presented the Press Play Association in conjunction with Media Control Switzerland to national and international musicians in over ten categories.[56]
^Bailyn, Evan (April 15, 1978). "Artists – Fonsi, Luis". Music of Puerto Rico. Archived from the original on July 6, 2017. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
^"Biografia de Luis Fonsi". www.biografiasyvidas.com (in Spanish). Retrieved February 23, 2017.
^"Swiss Music AwardsSwiss Music Awards". Press Play Association. Archived from the original on February 11, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2014. Note: User must visit the "Award" and "Kategorien" section.
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