Raphael

Spanish pop star Rafael Martos (born Miguel Rafael Martos Sánchez and globally as "Raphael") is one of Spain's best-known singers. His wide, multi-octave range and flamboyant stage persona have entertained and engaged people worldwide since 1959. He is also a widely recognized movie and television actor. Raphael adopted a particular live performance style from the beginning -- he acts out each song to high dramatic effect, sometimes wearing themed costumes, and engages in folk dances or emulates the moves of flamenco dancers, athletes, or bull fighters on-stage. His record company, Hispavox , awarded him with the world's one and only "uranium disc" for his 1982 compilation album Ayer, Hoy y Siempre due to the impossibility of presenting him with more than 350 gold and 50 platinum discs -- it sold more than 50 million copies. His catalog contains more than 60 albums, all of which charted in Spain. 1989's Maravilloso Corazon not only registered platinum sales and topped the charts in Spain, but went Top 20 in America, too, as did 2014's De Amor & Desamor. In 2018, Raphael issued the globally charting Resinfonico. Produced and arranged by Lucal Vidal, the singer performed his hits with a classical orchestra and modern electronics. In 2020 Raphael celebrated 60 years in music with Raphael 6.0, a collection of previously unrecorded classic songs recorded in duet with major artists from across the Latin world, including Manuel Carrasco , Pablo Alborán , Mon Laferte , Luis Fonsi , Alejandro Fernández , and Natalia Lafourcade among others.