InstagramHappy 35th birthday, Romeo Santos!
Today is singer's big day, and we think there is a lot to know about this artist. We dug deep to learn about the very beginning of his career to some very personal aspects of his life. Here are some the things you need to know about Santos:
1. The Beginning: Anthony Santos was born on July 21, 1981, in the Bronx, New York. "I grew up in a neighborhood that had a lot of things to offer, good and bad," He said in a Vevo interview on his channel. "I never really got permission to be in show business, and I understand why. They [parents] feared that their good boy was going to end up doing drugs, or God knows what. But I grew up with so many good principles and morals that it just stayed in my system."
2. He's Got Some Serious Carribbean Swag: His mother is Puerto Rican, and his father is Dominican.
3. Rock Nation Is Home: Raper and mogul Jay Z along with Roc Nation added a new division, Roc Nation Latin, and they named Romeo as CEO.
4. It All Started in the Church Choir: Although, he admits that at first he only joined because of all the pretty ladies, it was the place that helped him become a true artist. "I started singing one day along with my cousin, and I didn't take it too seriously. The people started telling me, 'Hey, you have a nice voice.' and I was like, 'Really?' I always had a passion for writing but I always visualized other artist singing my lyrics, I never visualized myself," Santos said. "It just got to the point where everyone would ask me, 'Why don't you just sing this yourself?' And I always made fun of my voice and I would say that I sounded like a girl when I would sing, my voice is raspy when I speak, and when I sing my pitch is too high. It just got to a point where I said, 'OK, I'll give this a shot.'"
5. He's a Proud Father: Meet the singer's teenage son, Alex Damian Santos, from a previous relationship. Romeo admits that when he learned about the news of his son, he didn't quite welcome the idea and that he "ran like a coward." 'Today I enjoy being with my son and I love him, but at the moment I was so young, and the only thing that I could think of was the music and my career," he said to Rashel Díaz during an interview with Telemundo. "It's like a problem that you're like, 'OK, let me distance myself from this' as if it's going to go away. At that moment, that's what I felt. At this moment, I have a lot more maturity, and I know that he was never a problem. I was the problem, because of my actions. I admit it. I was a coward, and I wouldn't recommend anyone to do that."
6. He's Shy: At the beginning of his professional career, Santos had to tackle his shyness—and it wasn't easy. "I was extremely shy. I am still shy, but I won't show it on stage. When I began my music career, I couldn't even look at the crowd, it was so bad. I would look at the floor. If I had to interact with someone in the audience or say anything to them...I would fear it so much," Santo said in a video on his YouTube channel . "This was the most difficult thing for me being an artist. I didn't have a problem singing. I didn't have a problem writing music. I had a problem performing, and I didn't know how to interact with the people. I felt like, 'They're looking at me like I'm not good.' I was very shy and very insecure."
7. Girls Once Hid Under His Bed: The singer orecalled going to Ecuador and being surprised by unexpected guests in his hotel room. "One time we performed and once I got to the hotel, I heard giggles. I was pretty exhausted, so I thought, 'OK it's probably me.' But then I hear more and more giggles, and I'm like, 'This is not me, I'm not hallucinating. It's not just me.' There were these three fans under the bed, and this was the first time that I had ever experienced anything like that," he during an interview with Pura Música. "I'll never forget that, to the point that I think I was more excited than them, to think that people would hide under the bed just to see me. It was a beautiful moment."
8. Romeo Likes to Kiss His Fans: It's no secret that if you get brought on stage at a Romeo Santos or Aventura concert, your odds of kissing the heartthrob just skyrocketed. Like this year when he kissed a fan whose boyfriend was in the crowd. It was kind of awkward. Thankfully the significant other was a good sport, and the fan got her kiss.
9. He's Got Some A Lot of Views: The singer's video "Propuesta Indecente," featuring actress Eiza Gonzalez, just hit 1 billion views on YouTube.
10. Romeo and Marc Anthony Once Loved the Same Woman (In a Music Video): Santos featured model Irina Shayk in his video for "Yo También" which featured Marc Anthony as a drug dealer who was in love with Shayk. The singer played an agent that was investigating Marc, but they both fell for her Shayk, because who wouldn't?
11. Acting Is Also on His Resume: The Bronx native had his Hollywood debut with the film Furious 7. "At first, I was a bit nervous, and they made me feel very comfortable. They created this character that wasn't too far in personality from what I act on, on stage," he said in a promotional trailer. "My character on stage is Romeo, and I'm Anthony, but when I get on stage my alter-ego is sort of arrogant and powerful, and this character is pretty much that."
12. He's Cool With the Obamas: The singer joined Mary J. Blige, Common, John Fogerty and Willie Nelson during the PBS special "In Salute to the Troops, In Performance at the White House."
13. Sold Out Yankee Stadium Twice: For the first time in 40 years, a Latin artist headlined the field. Marc Anthony, Prince Royce, and Bernie Williams were all guest stars at the historic concerts.
14. Aventura Wasn't His First Band: In the early '90s, Santos formed his first group called Los Teenagers de la Bachata, according to Billboard. He sang, composed and produced, and Lenny Santos assumed the role of guitarist and arranger. While playing at a local festival in New York, the group met Julio Cesar Garcia. They later asked him to join the group and they then renamed it Aventura.
15. Collaborations Galore: Romeo has teamed up with a lot of people from both markets, from Enrique Iglesias to Usher, Drake, Nicki Minaj, and P Diddy. Never once did he lose his essential sound by teaming up with any of these artists, on the contrary, he's featured them on Bachata tracks and even had them sing in Spanish.
We can't wait to see what's next for this talented artist.