Gilberto Santa Rosa

Gilberto Santa Rosa’s musical elegance and style has made him one of the most prominent figures in popular music.

Santa Rosa’s countless accolades in the recording industry have reaffirmed his validity through the years, among them the 2002 ASCAP Latin Heritage Award and seven Grammy awards, including a recent Lifetime Achievement Award. His rewarding musical path and consistency as one of the most listened to recording artists on the radio (14 number one hits on Billboard’s Tropical Airplay chart, a multitude of Gold, Platinum and Multi-Platinum album certifications, and the Guinness World Record Holder of the most #1s on Billboard’s Tropical albums chart — 12 in total) make him one of the most successful Latin music vocalists in the world.

His presence with La Grande orchestra for two years, as well as his participation with the groups Don Perigñon, Fantasía Boricua of Manolito Rodríguez, and the Puerto Rican all-star Tommy Olivencia, placed the young Puerto Rican on an important pedestal in the Salsa movement of the 70s. Guided by his musical desires, he joined the Willie Rosario orchestra in 1981, which added musical hits like “Lluvia” and “Botaron la Pelota” — songs that have transcended through time. At this point he was widely recognized as one of the new voices of the Salsa movement in Puerto Rico as well as around the world.

His path as a solo singer was established in the second half of 80s — a period where he became known as the “Caballero de la Salsa.” Gilberto’s unique style as a tropical artist appeared in early albums Salsa en Movimiento, Keeping Cool, Good Vibrations, and De Amor y Salsa for Combo Records.

After 1990, Santa Rosa became part of multinational record label Sony Discos (currently Sony Music Latin), recording almost twenty albums including Perspectiva (1991), A Dos Tiempos de un Tiempo (1992), En Vivo Desde Carnegie Hall (1995), Esencia (1996), Expresión (1999), Intenso (2001), Sólo Bolero (2003), Auténtico (2004), Directo al Corazón (2006), Contraste (2007), Una Navidad con Gilberto (2008), Irrepetible (2010), Gilberto Santa Rosa (2012) and Necesito Un Bolero (2015). Billboard Magazine named Gilberto Santa Rosa Tropical Artist of the Decade in 2010 through his successful streak of hit albums and singles.