Rubén Blades facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rubén Blades
Blades in 2019
Born	Rubén Blades Bellido de Luna (1948-07-16) July 16, 1948 (age 77) Panama City, Panama
Occupation	Musician singer composer actor activist politician
Years active	1974–present
Spouse(s)	Luba Mason ​ (m. 2006)​
Musical career
Origin	New York City
Genres	Salsa Latin jazz Latin pop world Latin rock Pop rock
Instruments	Vocals maracas guitar
Labels	Fania Elektra Sony Columbia
Associated acts	Willie Colón Fania All-Stars
Minister of Tourism of Panama
In office 2004–2009
President	Martín Torrijos

Rubén Blades Bellido de Luna (born July 16, 1948), known as Rubén Blades, is a talented person from Panama. He is a musician, singer, songwriter, actor, activist, and even a politician! He is most famous for his music in the salsa and Latin jazz styles.

Rubén Blades is known for writing songs that make you think, often with important messages. He has created many hit songs, including "Pedro Navaja" and "El Cantante". He has won many awards for his music, including twelve Grammy Awards and twelve Latin Grammy Awards.

His acting career started in 1983. He has appeared in many movies like Predator 2 (1990) and Safe House (2012). He also played a main character, Daniel Salazar, in the TV series Fear the Walking Dead.

In 1994, Rubén Blades tried to become the president of Panama. Later, in September 2004, he became the Minister of Tourism for Panama for five years. He has also worked with many other famous artists like Usher and Elvis Costello.

Early Life and Family

Rubén Blades was born in Panama City, Panama. His mother, Anoland Díaz, was a Cuban musician and actress. His father, Rubén Darío Blades Sr., was a Colombian athlete and musician. Rubén's younger brother, Roberto Blades, is also a musician.

In 2025, it was discovered on the TV show Finding Your Roots that Rubén Blades's grandfather was actually the poet Ricardo Miró. This was a new discovery for him! His great-aunt was Amelia Denis de Icaza, the first Panamanian woman to publish her poems.

When he was young, Blades sang in a band called Los Salvajes del Ritmo. He was also a songwriter and guest singer with Bush y sus Magníficos. He was greatly inspired by the Joe Cuba sextet and singer Cheo Feliciano.

Music Career

Starting in Music

Rubén Blades studied political science and law at the Universidad Nacional de Panamá. He even worked at the Bank of Panama while he was a law student.

His first recording in the United States was a solo album called De Panamá a New York in 1970. He then went back to Panama to finish his degree.

In 1974, he moved to the United States and started working in the mailroom at Fania Records. Soon, he began working with famous salsa musicians like Ray Barretto and Larry Harlow. He also started working with trombonist Willie Colón. They made several albums together.

Big Hits and Famous Albums

Blades's first big hit was "Pablo Pueblo" from the 1977 album Metiendo Mano. This song was about a working-class father. It later became an unofficial song for his presidential campaign. Another hit from the same album was "Plantación Adentro," which talked about how native people were treated long ago.

In 1978, Blades wrote "El Cantante". Willie Colón suggested he give the song to Héctor Lavoe, who was known as "the singer of singers." Lavoe recorded it, and it became his most famous song.

The album Siembra (1978), made with Willie Colón, became the best-selling salsa record ever. It sold over 3 million copies! Most of its songs were hits. The most famous song from this album was "Pedro Navaja". This song tells the story of a street thug who gets into a fight and seems to die. Later, in 1985, Blades wrote a sequel song called "Sorpresas," which revealed that Pedro had actually survived.

Blades later left Fania Records and signed with Elektra in 1984. He formed a new band called Seis del Solar (or Son del Solar). Their first album together, Escenas, won Blades his first Grammy Award in 1987 for Best Tropical Latin Album. This album included a duet with Linda Ronstadt.

Music and Politics

In 1981, Blades released the song "Tiburón" (meaning "Shark") with Willie Colón. This song spoke out against military actions by the United States in Latin America. Because of its strong political message, it wasn't played much on US radio for many years. Blades has said he sees himself as a Panamanian and a Latin Americanist, inspired by Simón Bolívar.

In 1985, Blades earned a master's degree in international law from Harvard Law School. He was also featured in a documentary called The Return of Rubén Blades.

In the 1990s, he continued to act in films and make music. In 1994, he ran for president of Panama but did not win. He founded a political party called Movimiento Papa Egoró, which means "Mother Earth" in the Emberá language.

His 1999 album Tiempos was a change from his usual salsa style. It won a Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Album. In 2001, Blades was added to the International Latin Music Hall of Fame. His 2002 album Mundo mixed music from all over the world and won a Grammy Award for Best World Music Album.

From 2004 to 2009, Blades took a break from his music career to serve as Panama's Minister of Tourism. After his term ended, he went back to making music and touring.

Recent Years

Blades performing

In 2011, Blades received the Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award for his work helping others. His album Tangos won a Grammy in 2015.

From 2015 to 2023, Blades played the character Daniel Salazar in the TV series Fear the Walking Dead. In 2017, he was part of a charity song called "Almost Like Praying" to help victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

In 2021, Rubén Blades was honored as the Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year for his amazing contributions to Latin music and his activism. In 2024, he received an honorary degree from Princeton University. Lincoln Center in New York City also named him their Visionary Artist for the 2024-2025 season.

Personal Life

Rubén Blades has a Law degree from the University of Panama and a master's degree in International Law from Harvard University. He is married to singer Luba Mason.

Filmography

Film

Television

Discography

Live albums

Compilation albums

Awards and Nominations

Grammy Awards

Latin Grammy Awards

Note: At the 4th Annual Latin Grammy Awards, Mundo also received a nomination for Best Engineered Album, which went to engineers Walter Flores, Oscar Marín, Daniela Pastore and Edín Solís.

See also

In Spanish: Rubén Blades para niños