Juan Esteban Aristizábal Vásquez (born 9 August 1972), known professionally as Juanes (), is a Colombian musician and singer, a former member of the rock band Ekhymosis. Since releasing his solo debut album Fíjate Bien in 2000, Juanes has won 26 Latin Grammy Awards and sold more than 15 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling Latin music artists of all time.
Born and raised in Colombia, Juanes began playing piano at age two. When Juanes was 17, he started his first band, Ekhymosis, in 1988, which went on to release eight albums, achieving recognition in his native Colombia. The track "Solo" from the album Niño Gigante in 1992 was very popular. In 1997 after the band broke up, Juanes continued solo and in 2000 he released the album Fíjate Bien which earned him three Latin Grammys. His follow-up album, Un Día Normal, was released in 2002 and was later certified platinum throughout America. Juanes' third album, Mi Sangre (2004), became an international bestseller, managing to position well in a number of countries around the world. It achieved success due to the single "La Camisa Negra".
He has since released La Vida... Es Un Ratico (2007), P.A.R.C.E. (2010), Loco de Amor (2015), Mis planes son amarte (2017), Más Futuro Que Pasado (2019), Origen (2021), and Vida Cotidiana (2023).
Juanes has won 26 Latin Grammy Awards and three Grammy Awards. He received the BMI President's Award at the 2010 BMI Latin Awards. Juanes is also known for his humanitarian work, especially with aid for Colombian victims of anti-personnel mines through his NGO Fundacion Mi Sangre. In April 2013, Juanes released an autobiography titled Chasing The Sun in which he tells his story through narratives and pictures. He is one of the best-selling Spanish-language artists.
Early life and career Juanes was born in Medellín, Colombia. When he was seven years old, his father and brothers began to teach him how to play guitar. His passion for the instrument led him to discover simple genres of music such as traditional sounds such as tango and vallenato, as well as Russian folk music.
He grew up in Medellín during the height of drug kingpin Pablo Escobar's reign, when the city had the highest homicide rate in the world. During his childhood, Juanes witnessed a civil war in which hundreds were killed. His cousin was killed by kidnappers, and gunmen also executed a close friend. To add further to Juanes' grief and desperation, his father died from cancer. This period shaped Juanes' social consciousness, saying "Colombia has suffered so much that the only way to go forward is to imagine a better country."
As a teenager, Juanes was greatly influenced by rock and metal acts such as The Beatles and Metallica. He started the rock band Ekhymosis in 1988, and it released its debut album, Niño Gigante, that same year.Bonacich, Drago. [ "Ekhymosis > Biography"]. Allmusic. Retrieved 23 January 2007. The band released seven studio albums during its career and shared the stage with acts including Alejandro Sanz, Aterciopelados, and Ricky Martin;"Hechos en la vida musical de Juanes". Eskpe.eltiempo.terra.com.co Retrieved 2 January 2007. however in Juanes' words, the band "couldn't get out of Colombia" and remained "very local and confined to the Colombian market."Kamin, Azhariah. "Latin to the core" . The Star Online. 29 May 2006. Retrieved 23 January 2007. Juanes disbanded the group in 1998 so that he could pursue a solo career.
Solo career 2000–03: Fíjate Bien and Un Día Normal
In 2000, Juanes released his solo debut Fíjate Bien (Take a Good Look), produced by Gustavo Santaolalla. The album fared well in Colombia, spending ten weeks at the number one position, but was unsuccessful in other countries. The album earned him three Latin Grammys for Best New Artist, Best Rock Solo Vocal Album, and Best Rock Song, and Juanes performed at the award show. Later that night, Juanes brought demos for over forty new songs to Santaolalla's studio, ready to begin work on another album.
The follow-up, Un Día Normal (A Normal Day), also produced by Gustavo Santaolalla who signed him with his first solo album, was released in 2002 and was highly successful in America. The album was certified gold in Colombia during its first day of sales and was certified platinum and multi-platinum in countries including Colombia, Mexico, and Spain."Juanes Biography" . Rockero.com. Retrieved 24 January 2007. The album spent 92 weeks in the top ten of Billboards Top Albums chart, setting a new record, and spent a total of two years on the chart. The album was released after the eligibility deadlines for the 2002 Latin Grammy Awards, but the advance airdate for the lead single, "A Dios le Pido" ("To God I Pray"), allowed it to be nominated for three awards and win Best Rock Song.Susman, Gary. "Trophy Time" . Entertainment Weekly. 19 September 2002. Retrieved 28 January 2007.
"A Dios le Pido" topped the singles charts of twelve countries and spent 47 consecutive weeks on the Billboard Hot Latin Tracks. The album also featured "Fotografía" ("Photograph"), a duet with Portuguese Canadian pop singer Nelly Furtado about the isolation between lovers. Juanes later worked with Furtado on a remix of "Powerless (Say What You Want)", the lead single from her 2003 album Folklore, and on "Te busqué" ("I Looked for You"), a single from her 2006 album Loose. Juanes won the most awards at the 2003 Latin Grammy Awards, where he won each of the 5 awards for which he had been nominated, including Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and Album of the Year."Juanes on Top with 5 at Latin Grammys" . BMI. 3 September 2003. Retrieved 28 January 2007.
2006–07: Mi Sangre
Mi Sangre (My Blood), was released in September 2004 and debuted at number one on the Billboard Top Latin Albums.Zahlaway, Jon. "Juanes to visit the states in early 2006" . LiveDaily. 1 November 2005. Retrieved 28 January 2007. The album produced three consecutive number one singles, which held the top chart position for a combined 6 months. The album's third single, "La Camisa Negra" ("The Black Shirt"), was used in Italy in support of neo-fascism by relating it to the uniform used under the regime of Benito Mussolini.Martínez, Daniel. "Juanes en medio de polémica italiana" . BBC Mundo. 3 September 2005. Retrieved 25 January 2007. In response, left-wing media network Indymedia called for a boycott of the song."Neofascistas adoptan como himno 'La camisa negra' de Juanes" . Reuters. 1 September 2005. Retrieved from Colombian Indymedia 25 January 2007. Juanes later stated that "'La Camisa Negra' has got nothing to do with fascism or Mussolini... People can interpret music in all kinds of ways I guess."Wilson, Scott. "From Colombia, Encouraging Sounds". Washington Post. 14 October 2003: page C01."Rubio, Juanes Earn Billboard Latin Awards" . Yahoo! Music. 28 April 2005. Retrieved 7 February 2007.
At the 2005 Latin Grammy Awards, Juanes won three additional awards to his nine previous Grammy awards. He took the award for Best Rock Song for "Nada Valgo Sin Tu Amor" ("I am Worthless Without Your Love"), Best Rock Solo Album for Mi Sangre and Best Music Video for "Volverte a Ver" ("To See You Again").Chris Morris. "Juanes, Sanz, Bebe Win Latin Grammys" . The Hollywood Reporter. 4 November 2005. Retrieved from Billboard 12 February 2007. On 9 December 2005, Juanes performed "La camisa negra" at an international gala in Germany celebrating the 2006 FIFA World Cup Final Draw evening."Final draw: TV coverage to be broadcast in 145 countries" . 2006 FIFA World Cup. 17 November 2005. Retrieved 12 February 2007. In 2006, he recorded a duet of "The Shadow of Your Smile" with Tony Bennett for Bennett's Duets: an American Classic.
2006–09: La Vida... Es Un Ratico
In June 2006, Juanes began a year-long sabbatical to spend time with his wife, model Karen Martínez, and their daughters Luna and Paloma."Juanes invited Paul McCartney to Colombia". Quepasa. December 3, 2005. Retrieved January 24, 2007. He was working on an album that was released on October 23, 2007. When asked about the possibility of recording an album in English, Juanes responded, "singing in Spanish is very important because it's the language in which I think and feel. I respect people that sing in English, but for now I'll keep my Spanish." Juanes planned to launch his own music label, named 4J, in October 2007, to be distributed by the Universal Music Group."Juanes Takes Over the World!" . Latina.com. Retrieved 25 January 2007. He was also working on a new album, titled La Vida... Es Un Ratico (Life is a Little Moment)."Juanes's New Album Has a Title" . VOY Music. 29 January 2007. Retrieved 29 March 2007.
La Vida... Es Un Ratico was released on 23 October 2007, with the first single being "Me Enamora" (I fall in love). The second single was "Gotas de Agua Dulce" (drops of sweet water), and the third single became the vallenato fusion of "Tres" (three).
On 11 December 2007, Juanes performed at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo, Norway together with a variety of artists, which was broadcast live to over 100 countries.
On 24 November 2008, Juanes re-released the album as "La vida... es un ratico (en vivo)" [Deluxe Edition][2 CD/DVD Combo]" The album aside the 14 original songs, contains two previously unreleased songs: "Falsas Palabras" (false words) and "Odio Por Amor" (hate for love) which is also the current single. This new re-edition also includes seven live versions of songs played during his U.S. La Vida Tour. As another bonus added, Juanes also included a duet of his song "Hoy Me Voy" (today I leave) with singer Colbie Caillat. The DVD contains the music videos of the four singles of the cd as well as a few live video recordings of the US tour.
2010–2013: P.A.R.C.E and his Juanes MTV Unplugged
In 2010, Juanes performed in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Kickoff Concert, as well as the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York. In addition, he released his album P.A.R.C.E. which featured the No. 1 Billboard hit Yerbatero and the top-ten hit Y No Regresas. 17 February, Juanes performed live on the third single from their fifth studio album Regalito in the delivery of the Premios Lo Nuestro. The album has sold 1 million copies worldwide. In February 2012, the Colombian singer Juanes took the stage at Juanes MTV Unplugged to record a live album at the direction of Juan Luis Guerra. On 6 March, Juanes will release "La Señal" as an unreleased song from his Unplugged.
2014–2015: Loco de Amor On 11 March 2014, Juanes released his sixth studio album by Universal Music Latino Loco de amor. It is his first studio album since P.A.R.C.E. (2010). At the Latin Grammy Awards of 2014, the album won the Best Pop/Rock Album. Loco de Amor was nominated for Lo Nuestro Award for Pop Album of the Year. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Album in 2015.
2016–2017: Mis planes son amarte