Juanes

In the wake of the crossover mania that characterized the Latin music industry at the end of the '90s came Juanes (born in Medellin, Colombia), a Latin artist so great he didn't need to calculate crossover approaches to attain international recognition; he simply needed to write, sing, and play his own songs in his own language, which was enough to make him the biggest and most important Latin artist throughout the world. Granted, his solo debut, Fijate Bien, released in 2000, didn't exactly sweep the world off its feet, but he did exactly that with his second one, Un Día Normal, released in 2002. The album rode the Billboard Latin chart for two straight years, remaining in the Top Ten for a record-breaking 92 weeks. It also notched numerous hit singles, Grammy nominations (eight), Grammy awards (five), and various other accolades too numerous to list. In short, it was a phenomenon, and not just in Latin America but also in the United States and throughout the world. When Juanes returned in 2004 with his third album, Mi Sangre, expectations were high to say the least. Yet the album was another remarkable accomplishment -- not quite as remarkable as Un Día Normal, granted, but remarkable all the same -- again racking up all kinds of commercial success and critical acclaim, proving once again that Juanes was the biggest and most important Latin artist in the world following the turn of the century.