Enrique Iglesias rings up on a cell phone from Miami.
He’s in the middle of his first big international tour and selling out some of the largest stadiums (including Mexico City’s Plaza del Toros) in the Americas.
His newest single, “Solo En Ti” (a reworking of Yaz’s “Only You”), is No. 1 on the Latin music charts. Just last month, he celebrated his 22nd birthday by accepting some of Latin America’s highest music honors at the Nuestro Lo Premio Awards, which will no doubt look good on the mantle next to the Grammy he won last February.
And he is calling, incidentally, from backstage at the Miss Universe Pageant, where he is rehearsing a Spanglish version of “Solo En Ti” to be performed among some of the world’s most beautiful women.
So why is he complaining?
Despite all these accomplishments, this son of Julio Iglesias is still finding it nearly impossible to escape his dad’s extra large shadow.
“It’s pathetic. Even after I won the Grammy, I heard this girl say, `Oh, you won a Grammy because your dad is Julio Iglesias’ and you know the funny thing is that last year my dad was nominated for a Grammy and he didn’t win,” he recalls with exasperation. “I don’t like to get into it but I’m tired of hearing, `Do you think you sell records because of your dad?’ Well, right now in the U.S., I sell more records than my father. So it would seem a little contradictory that people are buying the records only for who may dad is.”
Such is the life of the artist who follows in his famous father’s footsteps. From Julian Lennon to Jakob Dylan to Frank Sinatra Jr., successful sons have rarely been able to carry on careers without the inevitable comparisons.
Still, few have ever embarked on world tours at the same time as their father, and even fewer have managed to upstage dad in the course of those tours. But that’s what Enrique is doing this weekend as he follows up Saturday’s sold-out show at the 18,000-seat Rosemont Horizon with another performance Sunday. (His dad Julio will play the 4,500-seat Rosemont Theatre Friday and Saturday, June 6 and 7.)
So, will the two globe-trotters use the occasion to stop, have a father-son dinner and chat about what it’s like to be international superstars?
“I don’t think so because I have a concert the same day (as Julio’s show) in New Jersey in the Continental Arena,” says Enrique.
“I don’t think that will happen because I am coming to Chicago straight from Paris,” explains Julio.
In fact, their schedules are so hectic (some might even say competitive) right now that this near brush in Rosemont is about as close as the two have been in a long time.
And while this has long been the case for Julio, who has been performing for 28 years, it’s a new world for 22-year-old Enrique, one of the fastest rising stars in Latin music–or any music for that matter–today.
With the current No. 1 single and album on the Latin charts, the younger Iglesias is one of the few musical performers to make his Chicago-area debut at the Horizon and fill it for one, much less two, nights.
This, after only two albums and two years on the market, is an incredible feat for any performer, and one that is finally getting some critics to look at more than his last name.
“When Enrique first came out, we thought that he would rise on the basis of his name alone,” explained Fernando Jaramillo, music director for Chicago’s Latin American music radio station WOJO-FM. “But when we paid close attention to him, we discovered that he had a lot of talent and that was what was making him go to the top of the charts. Not because he was the son of Julio Iglesias but because the kid has talent.”
Drawing comparisons between the two is not as easy as it might seem. Although they’re both handsome swains who have become international stars with their romantic ballads, they have contrasting styles.
Julio, 53, navigates interviews with the ease and humor of an old pro, while Enrique speaks in often-emotional fits and starts.
While Julio has always been a sharp dresser, Enrique wears jeans and a T-shirts to perform.
Julio speaks primarily in English to his American audience and has put out several English-language songs; Enrique (who has lived in the United States since he was 8 and speaks perfect English) has recorded exclusively in Spanish.
Julio appeals to his more mature audience with traditional sounds (as on his latest “Tango” album), while Enrique attracts scores of young girls with his rock guitar-laced ballads.
And finally, while Julio has been quoted as having had more than 1,000 sexual conquests, Enrique has never been officially linked with a woman.
“I hate that (Julio’s Casanova reputation). But people actually don’t think that about me,” Enrique protested. “My dad and I are completely, completely different, in every way.”
If he sounds defensive about the connection, it’s because he is. And he’s been preparing his defense since day-one of his singing career. The youngest of Julio’s three children, Enrique claims not only to have never sought career advice from dad, but that he sent his original demo tapes to record studios under an assumed name.
Does he think Julio had any influence on his career choice?
“I’m not sure in a way because ever since I was small, I always wanted to be a singer,” the Miami resident said. “I mean, even if my dad wasn’t a singer, I just remember praying to be a singer.”
Enrique, who was born in Spain to Madrid socialite Isabel Preysler, was sent to live in the United States when he was 8 years old, reportedly to learn English and for security reasons. Reared by his paternal grandmother, and nanny Elvira Olivares, Enrique had been studying singing and songwriting with childhood friends in Miami for several years before either of his parents knew. In fact, his self-titled debut album was dedicated to Olivares “because we grew up with her and she was always there for us,” he explained.
“I didn’t want my parents to say, `Oh, no.’ They were surprised but they understood my position. It’s not a matter of being supportive or not. I was going to do it anyway. I have always been independent about the choices in my life.”
And while Julio was reluctant to comment about Enrique early on in his career, he has since come out as the proud dad.
“I think it’s amazing. He is amazing that kid. He has a lot of class, a lot of charm, a lot of talent. He is young, he is nice looking. He has everything. Sometimes I look at him and I don’t believe this guy is so young and so successful. I adore him,” he said during a recent tour stop in Las Vegas.
“He never sang for me, but I have another kid (Enrique’s older brother, Julio Jose, 23) now who is going to have an album. So I am going to have a family of singers, like the Von Trapp family.”
While Julio is considered a loving father, he is also “one of the biggest workaholics you will ever meet,” says Itziar Bilbao, entertainment editor for Exito magazine in Miami.
“The first thing for him is his job. Even though he takes care of his children, he is also very competitive. He says for him, Enrique’s success is like a motivation for him, something that makes him run faster.”
But if the two aren’t working on father-son bonding it could be because their careers are so busy.
Julio is continuing an intense schedule of recording and touring that began 28 years ago, shortly after a serious car accident ended his dreams of becoming a soccer star and lead him to take up the guitar as a therapeutic exercise.
Despite cool critical reviews, Julio’s latest album “Tango” sold well all over Latin America.
While still a notorious flirt during interviews, Julio defends himself when confronted with the infamous quote about having slept with 1,000 women.
“A thousand women? No, no that was in ’76, darling,” he replies with a laugh. “No, no, that is not true. That’s a sense of humor. You know, I listen very much to women. I adore women. I’m having my companion for seven years. I was married for another eight years. I am in the studio six months a year. I did 71 albums. When do I have time to make love, darling. I’m not a promiscuous man. I’m just a skinny guy who tries to enjoy himself singing and expressing himself with music.”
On the other hand, Enrique is the virginal anomaly who claims he’s too shy to meet girls.
Still, that hasn’t dampened the passions of his world-wide Latina fan base, who make an odd following for a guy who cites his biggest musical influences as Fleetwood Mac, Dire Straits, Foreigner, Journey and the Police.
But today the former University of Miami business administration major not only has a firm grasp on the Latin music market, he dominates it–although some say unfairly as the Spanish pop star is marketed as a Mexican regional musician for maximum radio play. Could a crossover, English-language foray be far behind?
“On this album I have a song that was sung in the ’80s called `Only You’ and that melody was so simple that when I put Spanish lyrics to it, it sounded good,” he explained. “But I think it’s very seldom that you find songs like that, that just works well both ways. If I sang my Spanish songs in English they would sound real corny and vice versa. But I will sing in English some day. I just have to find the right song and my style.”
Although Julio has never seen his son perform and Enrique has no plans to catch his dad on his current tour, there is an upcoming event that could bring the family together.
“My girlfriend (Miranda Ryneburger) is pregnant and we are having a baby,” Julio says. “We don’t know if it’s going to be a guy or a girl, we are just very grateful for what happened to us.”
When asked if he knew about the baby, Enrique responded in possibly the kindest words about his father during the whole conversation.
“Yes ma’am, I’ve heard,” he replies. “It’s cool. I’m happy for my dad. If he’s happy, I’m happy.”
