Juanes

About Juanes

Juan Esteban Aristizábal Vásquez started playing guitar at seven in Medellín, Colombia, which makes sense when you hear how comfortable he sounds with the instrument. He spent his teenage years in a metal band called Ekhymosis, singing in Spanish when most Latin American metal acts were defaulting to English. That band lasted from 1988 to 1998, long enough to build a following but not quite long enough to break through internationally.

Going solo as Juanes in 2000 turned out to be the right move. His debut album "Fíjate Bien" hit differently than what was dominating Latin pop at the time. The title track dealt with Colombian violence and displacement, not exactly standard radio fare. But "Podemos Hacernos Daño" showed he could write a straightforward rock song that connected. The album won three Latin Grammys, which announced him as more than just another guy with an acoustic guitar.

"Un Día Normal" in 2002 made him unavoidable. "A Dios le Pido" became one of those songs that gets played at every gathering for years afterward. "Fotografía," his duet with Nelly Furtado, did the heavy lifting of introducing him to non-Spanish-speaking audiences. The album moved five million copies, won five more Latin Grammys, and established his formula of mixing rock guitar with Colombian rhythms in a way that didn't feel forced.

He kept that momentum going with "Mi Sangre" in 2004. "La Camisa Negra" went massive in Europe, hitting number one in multiple countries and getting remixed and covered until you couldn't escape it. The song's about heartbreak dressed up in an upbeat package, which probably explains why it worked in clubs and on adult contemporary radio simultaneously. "Nada Valgo Sin Tu Amor" and "Volverte a Ver" rounded out an album that sold four million copies.

"La Vida... Es un Ratico" in 2007 showed he could collaborate without losing himself. Colbie Caillat appeared on an English version of "Hoy Me Voy." The album earned him two Grammys, including Best Latin Rock Album, on top of the usual Latin Grammy haul.

Since then he's stayed consistent without chasing every trend. "P.A.R.C.E." in 2010 experimented more with electronic elements. "Loco de Amor" in 2014 leaned into cumbia and other Colombian styles more explicitly. "Mis Planes Son Amarte" in 2017 felt like a return to the guitar-forward approach that made him in the first place.

He's stayed visible through collaborations, working with everyone from Alessia Cara to Sebastián Yatra. His most recent album "Vida Cotidiana" came out in 2023, and he's still filling arenas across Latin America and pulling decent crowds in Europe. Twenty-plus years in, he's basically the template for Latin rock that appeals beyond the Spanish-speaking world without sanding off all its edges.

Juanes plays like he's still proving something. High energy, lots of guitar work, crowd sings every word to the ballads. People come for nostalgia but get engaged by how much he clearly cares about the performance. Feels more intimate than you'd expect from someone of his stature.

Known for A Dios le Pido, Me Enamora, La Camisa Negra, Fotografía, Bonita Morena

See Juanes Live