Carlos Vives

Young actor and pop musician Carlos Vives stunned the music world in 1993 when he released an album of traditional vallenato folk music, which he had grown up with, and mostly, music that was viewed as old-fashioned and obscure by urban Colombians. Prior to the release of Clásicos de la Provincia, Vives was known primarily as a telenovela (soap opera) star. Since his successful rise as a pop and rock singer, he has climbed to international stardom, receiving several GRAMMY awards and nominations.

Vives first emerged on the pop music scene fresh out of his soap opera career, so it was naturally assumed he would become a singer primarily of the style known as balada, a slow and romantic ballad form tinged with American pop-music influences. Vives chose to go with a more rock 'n' roll approach, being that it was certainly more accessible as a genre. (Colombia is one of the largest producers of rock en Español in South America). However, his own musical tastes were much more diverse, having grown up in a region surrounded by the wealth of Colombia's musical tapestry, from the Caribbean sounds of the northern coast to the mestizo traditions of the plains. Vives soon began to fuse the sounds of traditional cumbia with blues into his sound, and it was his discovery of the vallenato tradition that most caught his ear.

Vives' blend of the regional vallenato form with modern instruments and harmonies catapulted his career, and the genre, to international recognition. His subsequent performances and recordings continued to embrace the concept of cultural mixture, earning Vives traditional and Latin Grammies, and his musical explorations continue to garner the admiration of international fans. —Rebeca Mauleon