CLNC

I'm not sure he really counts. For one thing he's never been close to his father and there's been bad blood between them for years. Enrique has even legally waived any right to his father's inheritance (which given him owning shares in Punta Cana and the nearest airport is huge). Enrique felt so strongly he didn't want his father involved in his career he promoted his demo tape under a pseudonym. I'm not sure being the child of a famous star is much of a boost of success. Most flop heavily, always being compared to their famous parent and never measuring up. For every Liza Minelli and Miley Cyrus, there's tons more Ziggy Marleys and Sean Lennons and...Enrique's brother Julio Jr.

An artists biggest haters are always disillusioned former fans.

Yes to all the reasons above but I also think tyere's a contrarian streak in US culture right now. Remember his polling also took dives after both assassination attempts, something you think would have helped him.

He first said it in an interview in '05. He said he was going to endorse extra small condoms because he has one of the smallest ***** in the world. It was clearly a self effacing joke and it he obviously didn't expect it to blow up the press. It didn't help this was in period he wasn't getting Top 40 hits and he'd largely been written off so for a while it was all people talked about when his name came up. He struggled for a bit how to deal with that ranging from "guys I was just kidding can we drop the questions about my ***** size" to embracing it "sure I got a small ***** who cares" which seemed to be his best and most consistent strategy until his resurgence in mainstream popularity when everyone seemed to forget about it. As for him as an artist. He's probably the most consistent pop male. Probably also the most consistent Latin crossover, like your average person could probably name more English language Enrique songs across the years than Ricky Martin or Shakira even if other than Hero her fewer English hits are bigger. He was also a lot savvier adapting to trends. He's always been a straightforward pop boy but can incorporates other genres at just the right time and just the right way. He also had a better sense of perserverance than some of his peers. I'm sure after Seven he was told it was best to stick to the Latin market but kept releasing English music until he scored a comeback. When Interscope flatly told him people would never accept him doing EDM music or mixed language albums he kept pitching it until he eventually fulfilled his contract and left them for a label that would let him do both.

So in even more baffling turns Enrique has put out the solo version of Space In My Heart and the remix of La Botella which was being teased around this time last year. I'm starting to wonder if Enrique's promise to still release standalone singles I wonder if instead new original tracks he was going to release unused stuff from Final Vol. 2 he had laying around. It is interesting to hear the solo version of Space In My Heart and makes me think even more; Enrique would it have killed ya to do some promo performances of this song the week that album dropped. He didn't even need Miranda Lambert or a stand in for her, he could have done it alone. As far as I know there is no collab with Ricky Martin. As for not releasing the songs with Maluma and Rauw Alejandro it's not really surprising when Sony's strategy with Enrique since he signed with them is to pair him with up and coming acts and Enrique's star power would give them a hit. That was fine back then, Enrique has always been big in the Latin market and in the 2014-2018 period he was riding an big wave of Latin hits but him having a break and the market changing so much in they needed to change that strategy and release songs with some bigger names attached but they didn't.

I've often heard people be shocked that this did so little in the US when Enrique was coming off a #1 with Be With You. The thing is the single release was handled by Whitney's team for her Greatest Hits campaign. At the time Whitney wasn't getting a strong radio push and her singles were charting high due to physical releases. I remember when Arista cancelled a the cd single a week before it was supposed to be released a lot of her fans were pissed. The single remix is the only version that got play in Europe.

I don't know how true it is but it was reported in the Spanish press that Enrique has a Greatest Hits coming out this year. If it's a proper release, say a compilation of the hits he's release under Sony then I hope he includes a couple of new tracks and hopefully it's these songs as that's the only way I can see us hearing them. Sadly I think it's more likely Greatest Hits is code for some Spotify 'Essentials' playlist his people will put together.

I remember a behind the scenes video of this that shows Enrique and Weezy were there together but yeah Usher was there another day. Arguably he'd sold his soul well before this. If you ever listen or read an Enrique Iglesias interview it's kinda strange how different his own music taste is to most of his own music. He likes his 80s rock and pop and you can certainly hear that here and there in his music but overall you wouldn't think that of the guy made famous with the likes of Bailamos and Rhythm Divine. I remember how vocal he (and Shakira) were back in the day that they were pop stars who happened to be Latin, not Latin Pop stars and yet they still went full throated in the Latin Pop direction because that was the trend at the time. I don't think his EDM phase was too much of a stretch giving most of his English material had a dance oriented production. He also pushed heavily for it when Interscope told him that the public would never accept this sound from him. I doubt this is what he thinks of as the material that best represents him as an artist but I actually think he enjoyed this direction a lot at the time. It strikes me he had to have his arm twisted to even try reggaeton but with this he was the one pushing for it.

I have nothing against Yotuel or any of the artists that Enrique collaborated with on Final Vol. 2 but when you hear that he recorded songs with the likes of Maluma and Rauw Alejandro, artists that would no doubt have made these songs huge on Latin radio you have to wonder who is making these decisions to forego these tracks and why.

Surprised at Snoop being in the top 10. Not surprised but disappointed at Chris Brown being there. Otherwise the list seems right to me.

Hardly any of those singers are gone or will be going anywhere any time soon.

So are we allowed to like her again? I feel she's only disliked when she's with him.

So much time has passed since this album has released that you'd think that they have probably given up on it. If Sony hasn't released another single by now then surely the album campaign is dead, right? Well no they actually are still releasing new singles from this album and it's....another Fria remix. This time a Dutch version. I almost admire their determination to make this song a hit no matter what if there wasn't La Botella or Llorame Un Rio that scream late Summer hits. Anyway enjoy the hundredth version of Fria.

So it turns out that Enrique had a collaboration with Rauw Alejandro for either Vol. 1 or 2 but it was discarded. Obviously we've never heard the song or know why it didn't make the final cut but I'm just going to assume but it certainly would do better commercially than the likes of Fria. I'm starting to see a narrative among her critics that Shakira is only scoring hits right now because they are collaborations with artists currently huge in the Latin world. While the singles Enrique is releasing from his current album will not go down as his biggest hits (although if they ever release La botella that could be a contender) but no one can accuse Enrique of only getting a hits because of his collaborators. A song with Rauw Alejandro would almost certainly be huge. I have slightly more faith after those Sirius XM interviews he did. He seemed to be much more confident that we'll hear new standalone singles. Prior to that his tone seemed to more a case of him having to say that and we'll only get new music if he feels like it.

As others have already pointed out whole idea of Enrique being a nepo baby is kinda debatable when he was never close to his father. He felt so strongly that he didn't want any help from his last name that he shopped his demo tapes around under a pseudonym with a falsified backstory. I've never really gotten the big deal about nepo babies when it comes to the music industry anyway. For every MIley Cyrus and Liza Minelli there are way more Sean Lennons, Ziggy Marleys and Julio Iglesias Jrs. Yeah the best argument for Enrique's career is comparing it to his brother who came into the industry with all the advantages Enrique didn't and has failed despite multiple attempts. Coming from a famous family has some advantages but ultimately you only really succeed if the public feels you've got something about you worth buying your music. I'm also not sure I agree with the idea that he's talentless either. He's written huge Spanish songs like Enamorado Por Primera Vez and Nunca Te Olvidare completely on his own. Many of his co-writers have praised his songwriting and even these days with a few exceptions if his name appears on the songwriting credits it's because he genuinely contributed to it. He's also been incredibly savvy too. More than once he's pushed for specific songs and artistic directions that were hugely successful and resisted others that weren't. It's how he's been able to come back to relevancy so many times across multiple genres over three decades. In regards to his vocals and performance I think people have been way too harsh. Like he was never a power house vocalist but his voice was more than fine for the kind of material he sang. You'd think a board dedicated to pop music would be more sympathetic to the idea that you don't have to be an opera singer to be a successful performer. Up until 2013 almost every major network US TV performance was completely live and it always sounded good to great. The idea he was always bad but somehow hypnotized people into thinking otherwise is more than a little silly. I don't think his vocals and performing ability would face anywhere near the kind of scrutiny if he wasn't the son of Julio Iglesias. Certainly having a famous father has been more a hindrance in this regard. Sure his voice is not for everyone particularly when he has an audible Spanish accent (something that had dogged all the Latin crossover artists) but can people honestly day that these were bad performances: It's true that his voice has deteriorated over the years due to his near constant touring. In a sad way it's kinda become a self fulfilling prophecy. For decades people said he couldn't sing and now he can't...at least somewhat. Personally I think he sounds okay for 90% of his concert sets particularly during the acoustic songs. More concerning to me is that he doesn't look entirely well. You could tell around 2017 he was starting to look a little emaciated and zoned out. Clearly he's not 100% physically and it should be noted he's had two big respitory illnesses in as many years and was even hospitalized for the latest one. Personally I don't think he should be doing more than two shows a week and hope during the semi retirement that's what he does. One thing that no one seems to comment on in the current pile on is that in all of these videos of his recent concerts people still seem to be having a good a great time and going crazy. There are many legacy acts that are no longer at the top of their game but if you have gained a loyal fanbase over the years fans will still go to see your shows because they want to see their favourite artist performing their favourite songs live. With the music blaring and everyone having a good time no one cares if they flat at times or hit a bum note. One thing that really does puzzle me is the asserion he's bad at audience interaction. That's the one thing he has always been great at. So...yeah leave Enrique alone.

To be fair Fria is still getting quite a bit of radio play in various Latin markets. One thing you can give the singles from these final two albums; they may not be his biggest or career defining hits but they have quite a bit of chart longevity. Still it seems late in the day to start pushing the song in European countries. Much better to sync it up a release of La Botella. Sadly I'm starting to have my doubts that song is coming as radio in Spain is playing Llorame Un Rio. That's not a bad choice of single but it's annoying as La Botella definitely has both Latin and Summer international hit potential.

Enrique fans: We want La Botella as a single. Sony Latin: Fria Enrique fans: La Botella next? Sony Latin: Fria Enrique fans: La Botella soon? Sony Latin: Fria Remix Enrique fans: Guys this isn't funny. You should release La Botella now. Sony Latin: Another Fria remix. Enrique fans: I...I mean...(sigh)...fine.

I disagree. I think Biden will be the last Democrat president (assuming Trump doesn't win and dismantle democracy not allowing for one) that will give this level of support to Israel. Biden comes from the generation were the political class has it drummed into them that Israel is always right and must be supported at all costs. This issue could cost Biden the election and yet he has barely budged an inch on his unwavering support. I think social media and 24 hour news coverage means people are watching a genocide happen in real time. It's altered the perception of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict with joe public and younger Democrats will definitely take notice. Potential future Dem presidents will still support Israel but I doubt any will ever be this adamant that it can do no wrong. That's kinda the problem with Biden stance on the war in Gaza. He has a fairly good list of domestic but not only is it being overshadowed by the Gaza conflict but it's turning off voters that could swing the election.

Honesty the guy is an excellent hype man with a lot of natural stage presence. There is a reason why he does very well as a touring act. His reign may have been comparatively short but he packed in a ton of hits during his time and I wouldn't discount him having some resurgence in the future.

It seems late in the day to be pushing remixes of Fria. I know I'm far from alone hoping he'd release La Botella as a single with a video already. I assume they would given El Alfa saying that the song is one of the three priorities for Sony Latin but it seems they are intent on getting all they can from this song first. For what it's worth I do prefer this version of the video over the original.

I thought they'd be moving on to La Botella by now since that song seems to be pretty popular but it seems Sony and/or Enrique's people think there is steam left in Fria given they have dropped a remix for it with Yng Lvcas.

Yeah, I remember a couple of years ago he was awarded 'Top Latin Artist of All Time' at the Latin Billboard Awards. Usually when artists win these lifetime achievement awards they perform a medley of their hits but he didn't. It was treated as a big deal that he even turned up to give a speech. Still if he did turn up and perform and made an effort with dancers and stage production it would be a very solid set:

I think a lot of it stems from how Ricky became a mainstream to begin with. If anyone has read Tommy Mottola's book he details how he saw that Ricky had huge mainstream potential and fought tooth and nail to get him to perform at the 1999 Grammy Awards. He then started using his influence in the media to push the narrative that Latin music was going to be the next big thing and Ricky was going to be the king of it. He even coined the term "Latin Invasion' to be reminiscent of the British invasion. You could very reasonably argue that a whole pop culture movement was artificially created just to push one guys career. It's clear that Mottola was right about Ricky having mainstream potential but I think it relied a lot on him being the face of Latin-pop. Once the trend faded out so too did Ricky's mainstream success. He might still have been a Top 40 presence even after his imperial phase if not a few factors; first how overexposed he was during this period and secondly if his crossover albums had been better. The first English album was rushed out to capitalize on the hype of the Grammy performance and the second to capitalize on the success of the first. He got lucky with a huge banger Livin' La Vida Loca but most of the rest of the original tracks on both albums are sub par. I don't think he developed a loyal fanbase for his English career. Most of them were there for when he was hyped as the 'in' thing and left when he wasn't. Even serving his core fans was difficult when he lost Robi Rosa as a song writer of those big Latin-pop anthems like Maria, La Copa de la Vida and Livin' La Vida Loca. He never quite replicated that sound with Tommy Torres or anyone else. Now take Enrique; a lot is made about how more successful than Ricky he was after the Latin-pop boom but he was also more successful than Ricky before it too. His success has always been much more consistent in both the Latin and mainstream markets. He was always in a stronger position to be the one with most longevity outside of the trend. I think that became obvious with how he approached his crossover...I wouldn't say Enrique (1999) and Escape are masterpieces but by taking his time making those albums he made products that lasted better in the public consciousness. Enrique by virtue of the fact of being a songwriter didn't rely too heavily on hit makers the way Ricky did. Even songs he didn't write he seems to have a good ear for hit when pitched to him. He's also been much savvier adapting to trends. Whether it was Latin-pop, EDM or reggaeton he almost always jumped on it at just right time and in a way that still felt like Enrique. I also think perseverance played a big part. Enrique just wanted to remain successful in the pop market. When Seven flopped he could have easily gone back to into just being a Latin star but it was important to him to keep at it until he scored a mainstream comeback. Ricky tried following trends too. Remember the Life album in 2005 when he tried go all r&b and hip hop. He's also tried edm and reggaeton even collaborated with Pitbull. He just hasn't had the same success adapting to current trends as Enrique has. I think a lot of it comes down to the quality of his attempts and how he approached marketing them. Like Ricky wholesale changed his sound and tried to make out in interviews he was always an urban singer deep down. I think it's for the best that era is forgotten Youtube views aren't always representative of how big a song is or how much it's known globally. In the late 2010s youtube was at it's peak and it's biggest demographic by far was Latin America. The dam broke with the mega success of Bailando and then reggaeton became the in thing and Spanish songs were getting billions of views left right and center. only a few would I say were truly global hits. Looking at La Mordidita chart stats it doesn't seem like it was anywhere near as globally big as any of the Enrique songs the OP listed. You have more of a case with Vente Pa'ca but even then it's still mainly Latin America and largely buoyed by Maluma's inclusion. I don't think you could reasonably make the case that Enrique's string of pop and latin hits in the 2010s was down to his collaborators.

There was a brief moment between the Cass Report being published and Streeting tweeting his response that Labour centrists were outraged at this clearly transphobic ill researched report. Then Streeting said he wanted to implement the findings and at the snap of a finger they changed to "well maybe trying to legislate trans people from existence is the sensible pragmatic approach".

El Alfa posted a behind the scenes pic of him and Enrique which people think is from the set of the video. Of course it could be from the studio when they recorded the song. Enrique did say that in between the legs of trilogy tour he'd be filming two videos and it seems those were for Fria and Space In My Heart. Hopefully they have a video in the can now the tour has wrapped but if they don't they'd better hurry up and do it.