Jerry Rivera | |
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| Background information | |
| Also known as | The baby of salsa |
| Born | Gerardo Rivera Rodríguez (1973-07-31)July 31, 1973 (age 52) Humacao, Puerto Rico |
| Genres | Salsa |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1988–present |
| Labels |
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Jerry Rivera (bornGerardo Rivera Rodríguez[note 1] on July 31, 1973[1]) is aPuerto Ricansalsa singer and songwriter.
Rivera was born inHumacao, a town located on the eastern coast of Puerto Rico. He moved with his family toLevittown in the town ofToa Baja, where he received his primary and secondary education. His entire family consists of musicians, including tropical recording artistsEdwin Rivera [es] and younger sisterSaned. Two other brothers, Ito and Jose, are professional instrumental musicians.[2] His parents, also musicians, inspired him to become a musician and as a child he would oftenaccompany his mother Dominga, a singer, and father Edwin, a guitarist and director ofLos Barones Trio, during their shows.
In 1986, when he was 14 years old, he accompanied his father who was performing at a hotel inIsla Verde, San Juan.Frankie Ruiz, who was a guest at the hotel, appeared and sang a couple of songs with them and had his picture taken alongside Rivera. In 2003, this picture was used by Rivera to make thealbum cover for his tributeCanto a mi Idolo... Frankie Ruiz ('I sing to my Idol... Frankie Ruiz'), who had died in 1998.[3]
In 1988,Tommy Olivencia heard Rivera sing alongside his father and recommended that he sing solo. When Rivera was 16, his father made a demo and presented it to theCBS music department. They signed Rivera.[4]
Rivera began to be known as "El Bebé de la Salsa" (the baby of salsa) after recording his first album,Empezando A Vivir, . This project generated the hit,De La Cabeza A Los Pies ("From Head to Toe"). His second album,Abriendo Puertas ('Opening Doors'), produced the hit songsEsa Niña ('That Girl'),Dime ('Tell Me'),Nada Sin Ti ('Nothing Without You'), andComo un Milagro ('Like a Miracle') becamenumber onehits first inPuerto Rico, then among theHispanic populations in the United States and finally across Latin America.
His third album,Cuenta Conmigo ('Count on Me'), won threePlatinum Record awards in the United States, Puerto Rico,Venezuela andColombia. It became the most-sold salsa album in history, a record previously held byWillie Colón,[5] and held the number-one spot in theLatin American Billboards for three consecutive months. Its hit songs included theCuenta Conmigo,Me Estoy Enamorando ('I'm Falling in Love') andCasi Un Hechizo (Nearly A Charm). The number one hit for the album wasAmores Como El Nuestro (written by Panamanian songwriter Omar Alfanno) (Love like ours) which is considered by some to be the best song by Rivera. Rivera was awarded two PremioLo Nuestro Awards for "Singer of the Year" and "Album of the Year" andSony Records presented him with three Crystal Awards.[6]
The introduction ofAmores Como El Nuestro has been sampled twice in hip hop, first byLord Tariq & Peter Gunz, also used as the introduction for their 1997 song "Deja Vu (Uptown Baby)", and byWyclef Jean in his 2004 song "Dance Like This" from the soundtrack ofDirty Dancing: Havana Nights which would later become the worldwide number-one 2006 hit "Hips Don't Lie" by Wyclef andShakira. The introduction of "Amores Como El Nuestro" can also be heard on MTV's animated seriesDaria episode "Fair Enough' of its second season.
In 1993, he releasedCara de Niño ('Baby Face') with¿Qué Hay De Malo? ('What's Wrong About This?'),Cara de Niño,No Hieras Mi Vida as being major hits of the year. In 1994, as his popularity was rising, he released his first compilation album,Lo Nuevo y lo Mejor (The New and the Best), and contained the single hitMe Estoy Enloqueciendo Por Ti ('I'm Going Crazy For You'). The following year, "Magia" was released with the self-titled album andAhora Estoy Solo (Now That I'm Alone) In 1996, Rivera released "Fresco" andUna y Mil Veces (One Thousand and One Times) andLloraré (I Will Cry) were the album hits.Ya No Soy El Niño Aquel was released in 1997. In 1999, Rivera recordedDe Otra Manera ('Another Way'), his first attempt at ballad music, which featured theboleroEse (Him). Jerry sang the song with his father at theRoberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan.[4]
In 2000, Rivera recordedPara Siempre ('Forever'). This was his last album onSony Latin records.[4] In 2001, he released his self-titled albumJerry Rivera and the year after, he recordedVuela Muy Alto (Fly High) which brought him a new fanbase all over Latin-America and the U.S., with the title track hit the top spot and the top 10 in many charts along withHerida Mortal (Mortal Wound). The following year he returned to his salsa roots and releasedCantando A Mi Idolo... Frankie Ruiz ('Singing to My Idol... Frankie Ruiz'), a tribute album to one of his idolFrankie Ruiz. The album gain him aLatin Grammy nomination, made up for the poor sales of his previous ballad albums, and his major album hit was Ruiz'sMi Libertad featuringJulio Voltio .
Rivera played a small role in the movieI Like It Like That and appeared as himself in a Latin American soap opera titledMi destino eres tu ('You are my destiny') which aired onUnivision in the US during November 2005. Rivera has also appeared in variousBanco Popular de Puerto Rico productions, includingAl Compas de un Sentimiento (dedicated to the late Puerto Rican composerPedro Flores) andCon la musica por Dentro. The same year, he releasedAy Mi Vida (Oh My Life) which had received mixed reviews.[4] In 2007, he releasedCaribe Gardel, a tribute to Argentine singer,Carlos Gardel with Gardel'sCuesta Abajo (Downhill) being one of the major salsa hits of the year. In 2011, he releasedEl Amor Existe, withSolo Pienso En Ti being one of the major salsa hits of 2011.
Rivera has performed inVenezuela,Colombia,Honduras,Panama, the United States, Spain,Ecuador,Argentina,Peru, Mexico, Sweden, France, and Japan.
In 2011 he was one of the four judges for Idol Puerto Rico. (The Puerto Rican Version of American Idol).
On August 25, 2018, Rivera suffered a fall during a concert inMilagro, Ecuador, a city nearGuayaquil. Rivera was performing on top of an elevator when it broke, causing him to fall underneath the concert's stage. He broke a quadriceps tendon on his right leg and was hospitalized at a nearby hospital.[7] He later underwent surgery in the United States.
| External audio | |
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 You may listen to Jerry Rivera'sCuenta Conmigohere. |
| Year | Single | Chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Latin | U.S. Latin Pop | U.S. Latin Trop | |||
| 1991 | "Esa Niña" | - | - | - | Abriendo Puertas |
| "Dime" | 26 | - | - | ||
| "Nada Sin Ti" | - | - | - | ||
| "Mas Que Tu" | 35 | - | - | ||
| 1992 | "Casi un Hechizo" | 22 | - | - | Cuenta Conmigo |
| "Amores Como El Nuestro" | 16 | - | - | ||
| "Cuenta Conmigo" | 24 | - | - | ||
| 1993 | "Me Estoy Enamorando" | - | - | - | |
| "Una en un Millón" | 22 | - | - | ||
| "Que Hay de Malo" | 4 | - | - | Cara de Niño | |
| 1994 | "Cara de Niño" | 14 | - | - | |
| "No Hieras Mi Vida" | 11 | - | - | ||
| "Dia y Noche Pienso en Ella" | 31 | - | - | ||
| "Me Estoy Enloqueciendo Por Ti" | 33 | - | 2 | Lo Nuevo y Lo Mejor | |
| 1995 | "Magia" | 16 | - | 2 | Magia |
| "Ahora Que Estoy Solo" | 23 | - | 2 | ||
| 1996 | "Un Amor Verdadero" | - | - | 20 | |
| "Suave" | 16 | - | 1 | Fresco | |
| "Loco de Amor" | 11 | 11 | 1 | ||
| "Una y Mil Veces" | 23 | - | 1 | ||
| 1997 | "Fresco" | - | - | 7 | |
| "Lloraré" | 29 | - | 7 | ||
| "Te Recordaré" | - | - | 10 | ||
| "Ya No Soy el Niño Aquel" | 20 | 20 | 8 | Ya No Soy el Niño Aquel | |
| "El Amor Nunca Pregunta" | 27 | - | 10 | ||
| "Vuela Libre" | - | - | - | ||
| 1998 | "Ese" | 1 | 2 | 1 | De Otra Manera |
| 1999 | "De Que Vale Ser un Rey" | 24 | 29 | 7 | |
| "Si Tu Me Faltas" | 17 | - | 3 | ||
| 2000 | "Amor de Novela" | - | - | 28 | Para Siempre |
| 2001 | "Quiero" | 1 | 1 | 1 | Rivera |
| "Muero" | 13 | 12 | 7 | ||
| "No Me Olvidarás" | - | - | 18 | No Me Olvidarás | |
| 2002 | "Vuela Muy Alto" | 3 | 4 | 1 | Vuela Muy Alto |
| 2003 | "Herida Mortal" | 7 | 10 | 3 | |
| "Mi Libertad" (FeaturingVoltio) | 20 | 28 | 1 | Canto a Mi Idolo...Frankie Ruiz | |
| 2004 | "Puerto Rico" | 48 | - | 7 | |
| 2005 | "Ay Mi Vida" | - | - | 4 | Ay Mi Vida |
| "Rios de Dolor" | - | - | - | ||
| 2007 | "Cuesta Abajo" | 42 | - | 1 | Caribe Gardel |
| 2008 | "Yira Yira" | - | - | 25 | |
| 2009 | "Quien de Los Dos" | - | - | 2 | single release only |
| 2011 | "Solo Pienso En Ti" | 25 | - | 1 | El Amor Existe |
| "Solo Con Un Beso" | 34 | - | 1 | ||
| 2012 | "El Amor Existe" | - | - | 2 | |
De La Cabeza A Los Pies ("From Head To Feet").
| International | |
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| National | |
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| People | |
