Biography of Juan Luis Guerra

Juan Luis Guerra-Seijas (born June 7, 1957) is a Dominican singer, songwriter, and self-producer who has sold 20 million records, and won numerous awards including nine Latin Grammy Awards, two Grammy Awards, and two Latin Billboard Music Awards. He won 5 Latin Grammy awards in 2007 tying him with Juanes for the record of most Latin Grammys won in one night. He was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and is the son of Olga Seijas and Gilberto Guerra, a basketball player. He is one of the most internationally recognized Dominican artists in decades past. His pop style of merengue and bolero and Afro-pop/Latin fusion have garnered him considerable success outside the Dominican Republic. Juan Luis Guerra is sometimes associated with the popular Dominican music called bachata, and while this association is partially true, he actually uses the basics of Bachata rhythm with a more bolero feel to the melodies in some of his songs. He does not limit himself to one style of music, instead, he incorporates diverse rhythms like merengue, bolero-bachata, balada, salsa, rock and roll, and even gospel as in the song "La Gallera". "Ojalá Que Llueva Café" ("If Only It Rained Coffee") is one of his most critically acclaimed self-written and composed pieces. A remix of "La llave de mi corazón" ("The key to my heart") with Taboo from the Black Eyed Peas is also an example of his fusing of different genres.