Omar Alfanno

Omar Enrique Alfanno Velásquez, better known as Omar Alfanno, is a Panamanian singer-songwriter of Latin music who is most active in the salsa and merengue genres.

Reuters noted him as "one of Latin music's premiere songwriters and the man behind countless hits".

He has composed for musicians like Tony Vega, Luis Enrique, Melina Leon, Jerry Rivera, Victor Manuelle, Gilberto Santa Rosa, and Marc Anthony. His most successful song, "A Puro Dolor" performed by the Son by Four, reached the Billboard Hot 100. The song was awarded a Lo Nuestro Award, the Billboard Music Award, and a Latin Grammy Award nomination in 2000. His song "Amores Como el Nuestro" which was written for Jerry Rivera was sampled by Shakira and Wyclef Jean on the song "Hips Don't Lie".

In April 2013 he performed with many of his collaborators in a concert in Panama.

Alfanno was born January 4, 1957, in Santiago de Veraguas, Panama, and lives in Panama City, Panama today. He studied to be a dental surgeon in Mexico but his true passion was music. Once he graduated, he pursued a career as a singer in 1987 when he debuted professionally under the prestigious company RCA Records. His first album in the salsa genre was titled "Cosas de Barrio." The next year he moved to Puerto Rico where he made the productions "Joe de Barrio" and "Cuerpos al Calor." In 1990, he signed a contract with CBS, where he made "En Torno Al Amor", his fourth and last album in his short but blooming career as a singer. His career as a composer started right there in Puerto Rico where artists such as Willie Colon, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Tony Vega, Luis Enrique, and Jenny Rivera recorded songs by Alfanno who made history and marked his career as a composer forever. He moved to Miami in 1993 where Omar decided to internationalize his music. A year later he worker with Marc Anthony, where he recorded three songs for his album "Todo A Su Tiempo." After that his career took off immensely, where he composed many hits. He also worked with Victor Manuelle. Alfanno's success is credited with 16 gold records, 39 platinum discs which included 9 double platinum, 4 triple platinum, 1 quadruple platinum and 3 quintuple platinum. He continues to compose with many greatly known artists and continues to win awards that recognize his huge talent and success as a composer. Today, he is married to Carmen Alfanno and they have three children: Giancarlo, Gianna and Giovanna.

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