Menudo | |
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Origin | Caguas, San Juan, Puerto Rico |
Genres | |
Years active |
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Labels | |
Associated acts | MDO |
Past members |
First line-up (1977–1979) Last line-up (2007–2009)
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First line-up (1977–1979)
Last line-up (2007–2009)
Menudo was a Puerto Rican boy band that was formed in the 1970s by producer Edgardo Díaz. Menudo was also one of the biggest Latin boy bands in history, releasing their first album in 1977. The band achieved much success, especially during the 1980s, becoming the most popular Latin American teen musical group of the era. The group disbanded in 2009.
The band had several radio hits during its course. Their success led them to also release two feature films: Una Aventura Llamada Menudo and Menudo: La Película.
The band was a starting point for both Ricky Martin and Draco Rosa, who were members around the mid-1980s during their youth.
In the late 1970s, the group released several moderately-successful albums (including "Fuego", which yielded hits "Ella A-A", "Fuego" and "A Bailar!") and new members replaced the original ones. Then in 1981, the album Quiero Ser launched the group—now René Farrait, Johnny Lozada, Xavier Serbiá, Miguel Cancel, and remaining original member Ricky Melendez—into stardom. It included hit songs such as "Quiero Ser", "Súbete A Mi Moto", "Rock En La TV", "Claridad", and "Mi Banda Toca Rock".
Menudo became very popular throughout Latin America, from Mexico to Argentina, including Brazil; they also had a fan base in Spain and the rest of Europe. They also became the first-ever boy-band that had its own private jet: Diaz was able to afford a Lockheed JetStar that had belonged to American President Richard Nixon and the Shah of Iran and to get Menudo's name emblazoned on both sides of the fuselage.