Ricky Martin: Stoking Latin Fires
The manic level of success that Ricky Martin has experienced since releasing his first English-language album this year is perhaps best exemplified by his May 15 feat with "Livin' La Vida Loca."
In just the course of a month, the uptempo Latin jam set a record by topping four Billboard singles charts simultaneously: The Billboard Hot 100, Hot Latin Tracks, Top 40 Tracks, and Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales.
His eponymous album, meanwhile, rang the No. 1 bell on The Billboard 200 the same week. Martin is undoubtedly the biggest breakout performer of 1999. He scored back-to-back top five hits on C2/Columbia; moved 5 million units of his album, the biggest-selling Latin artist album in history; graced the cover of every consumer magazine known to corner newsstands; and started a radio revolution that paved the way for other Latin artists like Marc Anthony, Enrique Iglesias, and Jennifer Lopez, possibly helping to rejuvenate the career of rock stalwart Carlos Santana in the process.
Overall, Latin music sales in the U.S. were up 6.5 million units, an 18% increase over the previous year, as of October.
Martin's upcoming performance at the Billboard Music Awards caps a year that has garnered a sold-out fall worldwide tour, graced him with staple status at MTV and VH1, and earned the Puerto Rican artist three Billboard Music Video Awards nominations and the award for Best New Artist clip in the dance categories. "Needless to say, I can't complain," Martin told Billboard. "This has been a hell of a journey so far. I am truly blessed."
On the eve of the Billboard Music Awards, the third single, "Shake Your Bon-Bon," is riding the charts, accompanied by a music video that brings his signature hip-swaying, broad-smile antics into clear view. Martin is slated to perform the song live at the Billboard Music Awards.
It was through a February performance of "La Copa De La Vida" (The Cup Of Life) at the Grammy Awards that Martin ignited America's passion for the electrifying entertainer. In the week following, his previous album, the Spanish "Vuelve," increased 500% in sales over the week before, according to SoundScan.
"Two and a half years ago, I was crossing over in Europe," he says. "Then I crossed over in Asia. Now, it's America. Crossing over has pretty much been a part of my career since the beginning." Martin has also sung in French and Portuguese.
For 2000, C2/Columbia will continue to work various singles from his album as Martin continues his whirlwind tour of the world.
In the meantime, Martin is still trying to absorb the phenomenal level of success he has lived over the past year. "I've always had dreams of this kind of success, but I never knew how exhilarating it would be," he says. "It's been an insane life so far, but it's been a great opportunity to get to know myself fully."
Chuck Taylor is Radio Editor of Billboard.
A number of top acts are already planning tours for early 2000. Ricky Martin will tour for most of next year, according to his agent, Rob Prinz at Principal Artists Group. The Latin pop superstar will hit the road in March, playing North America, Europe, Asia, Japan, and South America. Details of the itinerary are being worked out now, Prinz says.
Ricky Martin, Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers are set to perform at the 10th annual Billboard Music Awards, to be held Dec. 8 at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas.
Other artists scheduled to appear at the final Billboard awards show of the century include 98 Degrees, Christina Aguilera, Mary J. Blige, Blink 182, Juvenile, 'N Sync, Aerosmith, and Emmylou Harris, who will receive this year's Century Award, Billboard's highest honor for artistic achievement.
The awards honor the top artists and recordings of the year as determined exclusively by the year-end Billboard charts. This year's show will air live on FOX at 8-10 p.m. ET.
Ricky Martin won three trophies at the Ritmo Latino Music Awards -- El Premio De La Gente, presented yesterday at L.A.'s Universal Amphitheatre. Martin's "Vuelve" (Sony Discos) won in the album of the year and male pop artist or group categories, and "Livin' La Vida Loca" won as music video of the year.
Martin's labelmate Shakira also won big: The Colombian singer was named artist of the year, and her album "D��nde Est��n Los Ladrones?" won in the female pop artist or group category. Juan Gabriel, who won in the artist or group regional Mexican category, was given the lifetime achievement award, La Opini��n Tributo Nacional.
The awards were the first based on winners chosen by popular vote; fans filled out ballots at Vons Grocers, Red Lobster restaurants, and record stores owned by Ritmo Latino, the U.S.' largest Latino indie retailer. The ceremony was produced by L.A. marketing company Uno Productions and U.S. Spanish television network Telemundo; the latter will broadcast the show Nov. 7.
-- John Lannert, L.A.
More details have emerged about Ricky Martin's forthcoming Pepsi television commercials. The first spot featuring the Latin pop star will begin airing next week on Spanish-language channels Univision, Telemundo, and Galavision; the ad will feature Martin performing the new "Goza El Sabor" ("Joy Of Cola") theme song in front of a sold-out crowd.
Wayne Isham, who lensed Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca" clip, directed the 30-second commercial, which will be the first of two Pepsi TV ads featuring Martin.
The star will also soon appear in a major print, radio, and in-store advertising campaign for the soft-drink retailer.
Martin's self-titled C2/Columbia set is No. 23 on The Billboard 200. The artist will kick off his first North American tour Wednesday in Miami; Pepsi will sponsor the outing.
Madonna and Ricky Martin lead the music nominees for the VH1 Vogue Fashion Awards, with two mentions each. Madonna earned nods for most fashionable female artist and most stylish video for "Beautiful Stranger." Martin was nominated for most fashionable male artist and most stylish video for "Livin' La Vida Loca."
The VH1 Vogue Fashion Awards will be telecast live Dec. 5 from the Armory in New York. It is the first year VH1 has partnered with the fashion magazine for the show.
-- Carla Hay, N.Y.
Ricky Martin may have received five honors yesterday at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards, but Lauryn Hill was the evening's big winner, garnering prizes in four key categories.
Hill's Ruffhouse/Columbia clip for "Doo Wop (That Thing)" won best female video, best R&B video, and best art direction. It also received the video of the year honor, presented to Hill by Madonna and surprise guest Paul McCartney.
Martin, who again proved the power of his hips during his live performance of "Livin' La Vida Loca," took home five awards. The clip for the Columbia/C2 song snagged best pop video, best dance video, and three international viewer's choice honors from MTV Latin (North Service), MTV Latin (South Service), and MTV Russia.
A surprise winner was Fatboy Slim's "Praise You" (Skint/Astralwerks), which scored honors in the breakthrough video, best direction, and best choreography categories.
Other notable winners included Immortal/Epic act KoRn (best rock video and editing, "Freak On A Leash"); Columbia artist Will Smith (best male video, "Miami"); LaFace/Arista trio TLC (best group video, "No Scrubs"); Def Jam rhymers Jay-Z Featuring Ja & Amil-Lion (best rap video, "Can I Get A..."); and Grand Royal/Capitol rappers Beastie Boys (best hip-hop video, "Intergalactic").
Eminem bagged plaudits for best new artist in a video for "My Name Is" (Web/Aftermath/Interscope), while Madonna earned her 18th moonman statuette for best video from a film for her clip to "Beautiful Stranger," featured on the Maverick/Warner Bros. soundtrack to "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me."
In addition, the awards, which were held at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, featured numerous surprise musical groupings. Among the most notable were Run-D.M.C., Aerosmith, and Kid Rock, who offered a reprise of the former's 1986 crossover hit "Walk This Way." Eminem, Dr. Dr��, and Snoop Dogg also performed together in a reunion that paired producer Dr�� with two of his former prot��g��s.
Comedian Chris Rock hosted the event, which will be repeated throughout the weekend on MTV.
CBS is planning a holiday season hat-trick with new entertainment specials by Celine Dion, Shania Twain, and Ricky Martin. All of the hour-long shows, which will be held on consecutive nights in November, will begin at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
Dion will kick off the string of programs Nov. 24 with a concert at New York's Radio City Music Hall. Numerous guests will join the diva, who will perform past hits and several new songs.
Country/pop singer Twain will appear the following night in her second special for CBS; her first, "Shania Twain's Winter Break," was one of the channel's highest-rated programs of last season.
Martin will wrap up the run Nov. 26 with his first network entertainment special. The Latin superstar -- whose electrifying performance on this year's Grammys was a highlight of the show -- will be joined on stage by several guests.
Ricky Martin has emerged as a touring superstar this summer, with promoters pleading for dates and concerts selling out as quickly as they go on sale. Unlike other sensations like Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync, Martin's appeal extends well beyond the teen demographic.
And Martin is not just a Latin phenomenon, either. "There is very, very limited Hispanic programming in the Detroit market, and Ricky Martin sold out here in 38 minutes," says promoter Rick Franks. "We're happy they found room to put a date in here. Believe me, we were begging."
Bob Roux of PACE Concerts in Houston is promoting November shows in Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. All three were "pretty much instantaneous sellouts," Roux says. "I can tell you this, based on the number of people we left standing in line at the outlets and the percentage of phone orders we had, we could have done at least two, maybe three more shows in Houston, and another show or better in Dallas." He adds, "Ricky Martin is about as big as any act I've worked with at PACE in terms of demand."
Ticket prices in Roux's markets, which he says were slightly below the national average, were $75, $50, and $35, with a $25 ticket added in San Antonio. Martin's guarantee is "substantial," Roux says, adding, "The business he's doing has proved he's well worth it."
Martin is booked by Rob Prinz at Creative Artists Agency in Los Angeles. The artist's U.S. tour begins Oct. 21 in Miami.
-- Ray Waddell, Amusement Business
British boy band Five is the latest act to be thwarted on the U.K. singles chart by the commercial staying power of Ricky Martin. Five's "If Ya Gettin' Down" (RCA) was ahead of Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca" in sales until late in the week, but Martin edged back into the lead just in time to retain the No. 1 position on the new list, published yesterday.
Elsewhere, the singles chart had a nostalgic feel this week, with the Pet Shop Boys coming in at No. 15 with their 29th top-20 entry, "I Don't Know What You Want But I Can't Give It Anymore" (Parlophone), and Madness popping in at No. 10 with "Lovestruck," the ska band's 17th U.K. top-10 hit and the first single from its upcoming Virgin reunion album, "Wonderful."
Elvis Costello, meanwhile, arrives at No. 19 on the chart with "She" (Mercury), his remake of Charles Aznavour's British smash from 1974. The tune, featured on the "Notting Hill" soundtrack, gives Costello his first visit to the top 20 in 16 years.
On the U.K. album chart, Boyzone's "By Request" compilation is still No. 1. Ricky Martin's eponymous Columbia debut scoots up a notch to No. 2, while Shania Twain's "Come On Over" (Mercury) drops to No. 3.
Will Smith's "Wild Wild West" (Columbia) is still Europe's favorite single, logging another week at No. 1 on Billboard sister publication Music & Media's Eurochart Hot 100 Singles chart. Ann Lee's "2 Times" (Energy Music/Off Limits), originally a hit in Italy, gets Sales Breaker status on that list, climbing to No. 10 partly due to top-10 placings in Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria, and Belgium.
On European Top 100 Albums, Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Californication" (Warner Bros.) vaults to the top of the list. Whitney Houston's "My Love Is Your Love" (Arista) is the Sales Breaker on that chart, moving back up to No. 5 in its 36th week on the survey.
-- Paul Sexton, London
BY LARRY FLICK
NEW YORK -- Interest in Ricky Martin's first English-language album is rising so fast that Columbia has decided to rush the Latin superstar's eponymous new disc to retail two weeks ahead of schedule. Originally slated for May 25 release, the project will now be issued worldwide May 11.
It's actually not getting into the market quickly enough for retailers, who have been fielding requests for the disc since Martin's show-stopping appearance on the Grammys in February.
Martin's transition into the English-language arena has been meticulously planned, starting with a well-crafted collection that includes collaborations with longtime writing/production partners Robi Rosa and Desmond Child, plus Diane Warren, Emilio Estefan, Walter Afanasieff, and Jon Secada.
Rounding out the set is an 11th-hour duet with Madonna, "Be Careful (Cuidado Con Mi Corazon)." Produced by the diva with William Orbit, the track came together shortly after the rest of the album was completed. "It's a dream come true to work with her," Martin says. "She sets such a high creative standard for herself."
As for the rest of the project, he says it "reflects me today. I'm happy that I was able to be faithful to my background and culture while progressing forward."
Martin has been tireless in his bid to "touch as many people as humanly possible" since he started his career in 1984. The timing of his first English-language set has been a personal, sensitive issue. "The truth is that the label wanted it a long time ago," he says. "But I wanted it to be perfect. I needed the extra time to fine-tune the material."
Safeguarding against offending Martin's formidable Latin following has been a top priority from the inception of his first English-language disc. For starters, the disc will include Spanish translations of two tunes: "She's All I Ever Had" and "Livin' La Vida Loca." Martin says he has no fear of backlash from his core Latin following. "I've already made records in French and Portuguese. I don't think there's any danger of anyone being offended. In fact, I think there'll be a tremendous amount of pride in the Latin community that one of their own is doing well."
Doing well is nothing new to Martin. He comes to his first mainstream pop effort having already sold 15 million albums worldwide, according to the label. His most recent recording, "Vuelve," is platinum in 20 countries and has sold 1.7 million in the U.S. alone, according to SoundScan. "Needless to say, I can't complain," Martin says. "It's been an insane life so far, but it's been a great opportunity to get to know myself fully."
"Ricky Martin" is preceded by the single "Livin' La Vida Loca," which is released in the U.S. on Tuesday. Since being serviced to radio April 6, the rock-etched uptempo tune has topped Billboard's Hot Latin Tracks Chart, and it's quickly gathering the support of top 40 programmers, who say it's "a natural hit." The track has also gotten strong attention from video outlets like MTV and VH1, thanks to Wayne Isham's high-tech, ultra-sexy clip.
Martin launches a worldwide tour in the fall.
