Ricardo Arjona

Ricardo Arjona
Ricardo Arjona
Background information
Birth name	Edgar Ricardo Arjona Morales
Born	19 January 1964 (1964-01-19) Guatemala
Genres	Latin pop, Ballad
Occupations	Musician
Instruments	Vocals, Guitar, Piano
Website	www.ricardoarjona.com

Ricardo Arjona in Laredo, Texas during 5to Piso Tour

Edgar Ricardo Arjona Morales, (born 19 January 1964, in Jocotenango near Antigua, Guatemala), known as Ricardo Arjona (Spanish pronunciation: [arˈxona]), is a Guatemalan singer. He has won two Grammy Awards from three nominations: The 2007 Grammy for Best Latin Pop Album and the 2006 Latin Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Album, both for his album Adentro, (2005).

Biography and career

Edgar Ricardo Arjona Morales was born on January 19, 1964 in Jocotenango, Guatemala, to parents Ricardo Arjona Moscoso and Mimi Morales de Arjona. He lived most of his childhood and began his musical instruction in Jocotenango.

At the age of 8, young Ricardo could already play the guitar. He kept studying and went through a teenage rebel phase which became a problem for him at school, but never put music aside, the only thing that he enjoyed. Time went by and he never forgot the idea of becoming a professional singer.

At 21, Ricardo Arjona got the opportunity to record his first album, Déjame Decir Que Te Amo. The recording turned out to be a bad experience for him and he decided to leave the music business and moving to Buenos Aires. He spent some time as a teacher at a rural primary school (called Santa Elena III), where he reputedly said he spent six hours giving lessons and the rest of the day playing soccer. This earned him a visit from a Ministry of Education representative, who was sent to evaluate the level of education amongst Arjona's pupils. The representative found that the students' level of education was actually above average.

Ricardo Arjona was a talented basketball player, and he played for the team Leones de Marte and TRIAS. He also toured Central America as a member of the Guatemalan national basketball team. Until recently, he held the record for the most points scored (78) in a single game by a Guatemalan player.

Music was always in him and he decided to try again with the launch of his second album, His musical stamp Jesús, Verbo No Sustantivo, was his definite consolidation as composer and singer. The album was the best-selling album on the Latin market for some Central American countries; but is still not known internationally.

Although he initially enrolled in architecture and engineering subjects, he eventually graduated with a degree from the School of Communication Sciences at the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC).

At USAC there is a library hall that bears his name. There is also a street named for him in his birthplace, Jocotenango, Guatemala.

In the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina, he met Puerto Rican Leslie Torres and had two children with her: Adria and Ricardo. Later in 2005 they separated.

Recently, Arjona has been dating venezuelan model Daisy Arvelo, with whom he has a child.

Discography

Main article: Ricardo Arjona discography

Studio albums

• Déjame Decir Que Te Amo (1985)
• Jesús, Verbo No Sustantivo (1990)
• Del Otro Lado del Sol (1991)
• Animal Nocturno (1993)
• Historias (1994)
• Si El Norte Fuera El Sur (1996)
• Sin Daños a Terceros (1998)
• Galería Caribe (2000)
• Santo Pecado (2002)
• Adentro (2005)
• 5to Piso (2008)
• Poquita Ropa (2010)
• Independiente (2011)

Live albums

• Vivo (1999)

Compilations

• 12 Grandes Exitos (2003)
• Lados B (2003)
• Solo (2004)
• Canciones (2005)
• Quién Dijo Ayer (2007)
• Simplemente Lo Mejor (2008)
• Trópico (2009)
• Lo Esencial De Ricardo Arjona (2010)

References

• This page has been translated from the Spanish Wikipedia article Ricardo Arjona

External links

• Official site