Mónica Naranjo

Mónica Naranjo
Naranjo on her "Tarántula Tour" of 2009.
Background information
Birth name	Monica Naranjo Carrasco
Born	(1974-05-23) May 23, 1974 (age 42)
Origin	Figueres, Spain
Genres	Pop, Rock
Years active	1994–present
Labels	SonyMusic
Website	http://www.monicanaranjo.com

Mónica Naranjo (born May 23, 1974) is a Spanish singer born in Figueres, Catalonia, Spain of Andalusian parents. She has sold over nine million albums worldwide.

She started singing at a very young age. Cristobal Sansano became her first producer.

In 1994, she recorded her debut album, the self-titled Mónica Naranjo, after signing with Sony Music. The album resulted in the hit singles "Sola", "Sólo se vive una vez", "El amor coloca", "Óyeme!" and "Fuego de pasión". She was nominated for Eres Awards.

In 1997, taking advantage of her popularity, she released her second album, Palabra de Mujer. The album was a hit, managing to sell more than 2,000,000 copies in the United States, Latin America and Spain, thanks to singles such as "Entender el amor", "Desátame", "Pantera en libertad" and "Las campanas del amor".

In 2000 she released her third album, Minage, a tribute to the Italian singer Mina. In an interview that year, she mentioned that the album was like nothing her producers expected:

They were expecting another Palabra de Mujer album, but more than just a hit, I wanted something to let the world know that I am also a fanatic, and that there are many great artists/singers out there who deserve more recognition. An example of such an artist is Mina Mazzini.

In 2001, she released Chicas Malas, an album with several collaborations, among them Diane Warren, Gregg Alexander, John Reid, Cliff Masterson, Sam Watters, and many more. Having such worldwide-known influences, the commercial dance album sales were disappointing, having sold only 120,000 copies in its first year, making it the lowest-selling studio album in her Spanish-singing career.

In 2002, she decided to make a big leap into the English language public by recording the English version of "Chicas Malas" named "Bad Girls". The international push met very little support, although the song "I Ain't Gonna Cry" did get Mónica some recognition in continental Europe.