El Cantante is a 2006 American film released in the United States on August 3, 2007. The biopic stars singer Marc Anthony and actress-singer Jennifer Lopez (she also served as an executive producer for the film). The film is based on the life story of salsa legend Héctor Lavoe (played by Marc Anthony). In the film, Marc Anthony portrayed a music legend and "Anthony's personal tribute to Lavoe was his imitation of not just Lavoe's style, but his voice, his delivery, his timing – well, it was quite amazing and true to Lavoe."^[1]

The film debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 2006. The film runs 106 minutes and has an R rating due to scenes depicting drug use, pervasive language and some sexuality. The film chronicles Héctor Lavoe's rise to fame, his battle with drugs, his attempted suicide, and his death from AIDS.

Critical reception[link]

"Ms. Lopez brings a lot of fight to her performance, a hard, skeptical edge that makes Puchi a more interesting and plausible character than her husband."^[2] Some film critics have expressed their surprise at the relatively high profile given to the Puchi character in the film (as compared to Nilda Perez's relatively subdued influence over Lavoe's career). The film was criticized for its formulaic writing and hollow character development.^{[citation needed]} It received a 22% "rotten" certification from the entertainment website Rotten Tomatoes with the consensus being it "adheres to the most basic conventions of the musical biopic, rendering it indistinguishable from others of its ilk".

Principal cast[link]

• Marc Anthony – Héctor Lavoe
• Jennifer Lopez – Nilda Georgina "Puchi" Roman
• Federico Castelluccio – Jerry Masucci
• Vincent Laresca – Ralph Mercado
• Víctor Manuelle – Rubén Blades
• John Ortiz – Willie Colón

Soundtrack[link]

Box office[link]

The film opened at #12 at the U.S. Box Office, grossing over US$3,254,000 on its three-day weekend, with a total gross of US $7,556,712. The film was screened in only 542 theaters throughout the United States, a substantially small number of theaters compared to number of theaters that The Bourne Ultimatum, which opened #1 at the U.S. Box office during its opening weekend, was screened in nearly 4,000 theaters. El Cantante made about US$6,004 per theater in its opening week. The films distributor, Picturehouse, has rearranged how the film is distributed in an attempt to target the film to its audience. Each film print cost Picturehouse US$2,000. Picturehouse removed El Cantante from theaters which showed softer sales while opening in more theaters where demand was high.^[3]

DVD release and sales[link]

Released on October 30, 2007 El Cantante became a DVD hit. Peaking at #8 in the DVD chart, it grossed $16.61 million on DVD.^[4]

Criticism[link]

Willie Colon, Lavoes' long time friend and musical partner, was critical of the film, writing on his web site:

The Creators of El Cantante missed an opportunity to do something of relevance for our community. The real story was about Hector fighting the obstacles of a non-supportive industry that took advantage of entertainers with his charisma and talent. Instead they did another movie about two Puerto Rican junkies. The impact of drugs in the entertainment industry is nothing new; look at Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and Whitney Houston today.^[5]

Fans of the film point out that the film did cover briefly the issue about Lavoe not getting paid by Jerry Masucci. Eddie, played by Manny Perez, says to Hector:

"Jerry (Jerry Masucci) used to be a cop, then a lawyer, now he's a thief, robbing every Latin musician blind – but, he's all we've got."^[6]

Lopez responded to the criticism when interviewed by the Los Angeles Times : "I don't know what movie they want to see, because this is the truth."^[7]

Another controversy is the amount of screen time Jennifer Lopez has in the film.^{[citation needed]} Critics of the film say that Puchi played a small role in Hector's musical life, while fans say the story is told from Puchi's point of view so she had to be shown as present in much of the film.^[8]

When commenting on the film, Lopez felt her performance should have earned Oscar nomination and blamed the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for overlooking both the film and her performance.^[9]

Awards and nominations[link]

• ALMA Awards: nomination for Outstanding Performance of a Lead Latino /a Cast in a Motion Picture.^{[citation needed]}
• Premios Juventud: nomination for Best Movie and Best Actress (Jennifer Lopez)
• Latin Grammy Awards: Won Best Salsa Album, Marc Anthony (El Cantante soundtrack) (see Latin Grammy Awards of 2008)

References[link]

Puerto Rico portal

External links[link]

• Official site
• El Cantante on the Internet Movie Database
• El Cantante at Rotten Tomatoes

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Marc Anthony
Marc Anthony performs at the White House's "Fiesta Latina", South Lawn, October 13, 2009.
Background information
Birth name	Marco Antonio Muñiz
Born	(1968-09-16) September 16, 1968 (age 43) New York City, New York, U.S.
Genres	Latin, salsa, pop, Latin pop, dance-pop, freestyle (early)
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, actor
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1989–present
Labels	RMM Records & Video, Columbia, Sony Music Latin
Website	www.marcanthonyonline.com

Marco Antonio Muñiz (born September 16, 1968), known professionally by his stage name Marc Anthony, is an American singer-songwriter, actor and producer. Anthony is the top selling tropical salsa artist of all time. The two-time Grammy and three-time Latin Grammy–winner has sold more than 12 million albums worldwide. He is best known for his Latin salsa numbers and ballads.

Anthony has won numerous awards and his achievements have been honored through various recognitions. He was the recipient of the 2009 Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) Chair's Award. He also received the "2009 CHCI Chair's Lifetime Achievement Award" on September 16, 2009.^[1] Anthony holds the record having the most number-one singles on the Billboard Tropical Songs.^[2]

Anthony is a minority owner/limited partner of the Miami Dolphins NFL team.^[3]

Early life[link]

Marco Antonio Muñiz, known professionally by his stage name Marc Anthony, born in New York City to Guillerminna, a housewife, and Felipe Muñiz, a musician and hospital lunchroom worker.^[4] Anthony is of Puerto Rican descent, and his parents named him after Mexican singer Marco Antonio Muñiz. Anthony grew up in East Harlem as the youngest of 7 children.^[5][6] He was raised Roman Catholic.^[7]

Singing career[link]

Muñiz began his career as a session vocalist for freestyle and Underground New York house music acts. After changing his name to avoid confusion with his namesake, Anthony worked as a songwriter and backing vocalist for pop acts including Menudo and the Latin Rascals. His first album was a freestyle music record, "Rebel", in 1988 on Bluedog Records. That same year he wrote and produced "Boy I've Been Told" for fellow freestyle artist Sa-Fire. Then in 1989, he sang backup vocals for Ann-Marie on the freestyle club hit, "With or Without You" produced by Little Louie Vega and Todd Terry. A year later, 1990, with Little Louie Vega and Todd Terry, Marc wrote and whispered a duet with Chrissy I-eece, called "You Should Know By Now". In 1991, he sang backing vocals on another freestyle track by Edmond^{[disambiguation needed ]} titled "Come Back To Me". In 1992, still working with Todd Terry, he provided vocals for "Love Change" which is on the flip-side of a 12" vinyl released by Elan and The Powermachine titled "Here's Your Hat", production of Todd Terry. At the same time, he collaborated with music producer Little Louie Vega, who featured the singer on many another freestyle-flavored club hits "Ride On The Rhythm" and the "When The Night Is Over" album, which featured the Freestyle classic "Time". In 1992, Vega and Anthony opened for Latin bandleader Tito Puente at New York's Madison Square Garden. After 1992, he changed his style from freestyle to salsa and other Latin styles.

RMM Records[link]

Otra Nota (1993) Anthony was initially reluctant to become a salsa musician and declined an offer to make a salsa album when Ralph Mercado, president of RMM Records, asked him. Anthony was in a taxi when he heard Juan Gabriel's hit song, "Hasta Que Te Conocí" which influenced him to change his mind and ask Mercado if he could record it as a salsa tune.^[8] Inspired by the music of Tito Puente, Rubén Blades and Juan Gabriel, Anthony released his Spanish-language debut, Otra nota, in 1993. Anthony performed at the Radio y Musica Convention hosted by Alfredo Alonso.^[9] "Si Tu No Te Fueras", "El Ultimo Beso", "Palabras Del Alma", The album also included a cover of Bread's song, "Make It with You". Subsequent tours throughout the Americas, including an opening slot for Blades, established Anthony as one of the new stars in salsa. In 1994, he was featured in La India's album Dicen Que Soy, on the song "Vivir Lo Nuestro".

His 1995 follow-up, Todo a su tiempo, won Anthony a Billboard award for Hot Tropical Artist of the Year. The album was also nominated for a Grammy with songs like "Te Conozco Bien", "Hasta Ayer", "Nadie Como Ella", "Se Me Sigue Olvidando", "Te Amare", and "Llegaste A Mi". The album has sold more than 800,000 copies and has become established gold in the US and in Puerto Rico.

Anthony's next Spanish language album, Contra la Corriente, was followed by the television special Marc Anthony: The Concert from Madison Square Garden, broadcast on HBO on Valentine's Day 2000. The special was nominated for Music Special of the Year from TV Guide. The album's song "Y Hubo Alguien" became his first number-one single on the Billboard Hot Latin Tracks Chart and the first by a salsa musician.^{[citation needed]} The album became the first salsa album to enter the English language Billboard 200 chart.^{[citation needed]} After an ongoing battle with RMM, he severed ties with Ralph Mercado and left the label in 1999.^{[citation needed]}

Move to Sony[link]

Anthony subsequently recorded the duet "No Me Ames" with Jennifer Lopez on her album On the 6, giving her an assist in her Spanish language crossover attempt.

In 1999, riding the crossover wave of Enrique Iglesias and Ricky Martin in the Anglophone market, Anthony, working with producers Walter Afanasieff, Cory Rooney, Dan Shea, and Rodney Jerkins, released an English-language, self-titled album with the US Top 5 single "I Need to Know", and the Spanish version, "Dímelo". His song "You Sang To Me" was featured in Runaway Bride. A dance version was remixed by Dutch producer Rene Van Verseveld. The album debuted at number eight on the Billboard album chart, and six weeks later went platinum; it eventually was certified triple platinum.The song "I Need To Know" earned a Grammy nomination for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.

	"¿Ahora Quién?" (2004) noicon Sample of the first single from his 2004 album "Amar Sin Mentiras".
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

In 2001, he debuted another salsa album, Libre, which was certified gold with songs like "Celos", "Este Loco Que Te Mira", and "Viviendo". The album spent 14 weeks at the number-one spot on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart. The year after that, he made another English-language album, Mended.

In June 2004, Anthony released a Latin pop album, Amar Sin Mentiras. The following month, he reintroduced its songs with a danceable salsa rhythm in another album, Valio La Pena. The song "Escapémonos" was a duet with Jennifer Lopez. In the 2005 Latin Grammy Awards, his Amar Sin Mentiras won best Latin Pop Album of The Year, and his Valió La Pena won Best Tropical Album of the Year. Lopez and Anthony performed "Escapémonos" at the 2005 Grammy Awards.

Marc Anthony in 2006

On July 11, 2006, Anthony released Sigo Siendo Yo, a Spanish greatest-hits album. On May 2010 realized "Iconos" – as tribute of old Latin songs by artists such as José Luis Perales, Juan Gabriel and José José.^[10]

Acting career[link]

Anthony played supporting roles in projects including 1995's Hackers, and 1996's Big Night and The Substitute. He appeared with Rubén Blades and Puerto Rican pop singer Ednita Nazario in Paul Simon's 1998 stage musical, The Capeman, which ran for 68 performances. He had a role in Martin Scorsese's 1999 drama Bringing Out the Dead, and in 2001, opposite Salma Hayek, was in the film In the Time of the Butterflies. In Man On Fire (2004), Anthony, opposite Denzel Washington, played a wealthy businessman who hires a former U.S. Marine to protect his daughter from kidnappers in Mexico City. In 2007, Anthony starred in El Cantante, a biographical drama about the life of salsa music legend Héctor Lavoe, who died in 1993 from AIDS complications. Anthony's then-wife, Jennifer Lopez, narrated the story and portrayed Lavoe's wife. The film, released in August 2007, received strong reviews. In 2010, Anthony guest-starred in two episodes of the TNT medical drama "HawthoRNe" as a detective and the title character's (Jada Pinkett Smith) love interest. He was later named the executive music producer of the show.^{[citation needed]} Anthony worked with ex-wife Lopez and director-choeographer Jamie King in late 2011 on a Latin talent series created by Simon Fuller, called Q'Viva! The Chosen. It follows Lopez and Anthony as they travel across 21 countries to find new talent.^[11]

Appearances[link]

This section, except for one claim, needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2010)

He appeared at the Movies Rock concert along with his wife Jennifer Lopez in 2007 where he performed Simon & Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson".

Anthony sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" when Oscar De La Hoya fought Floyd Mayweather Jr. for the WBC Super Welterweight title.

On September 21, 2001 he also sang the national anthem at Shea Stadium in the first game after the attack on the World Trade Center. On September 28, 2008, he sang the national anthem again at Shea Stadium for the New York Mets final regular season game. Also in 2001 he appeared in the 30th anniversary concert celebration 30 years of Michael Jackson's music. On September 11, 2011, he once again sang the national anthem at Citi Field in remembrance of the 10 year anniversary of the attacks.

On October 12, 2009, Anthony sang the national anthem as the Miami Dolphins played their fifth regular season game against the New York Jets.

In 2010, Anthony appeared alongside Pitbull on the Cypress Hill single "Armada Latina" for their latest album, Rise Up.

On June 25, 2010, Anthony performed as part of a tribute concert to Michael Jackson on CBS News' The Early Show.^[12]

In August, 2010, Anthony guest-starred in two episodes of the television series HawthoRNe as Detective Nick Renata.

On November 11, 2010 Anthony performed his cover of "Y Como Es El" along with the original singer José Luis Perales at the Latin Grammys.

On June 12, 2011 Anthony performed "The Star Spangled Banner" before Game 6 of the 2011 NBA Finals.

On July 22, 2011 Anthony appeared on the Pitbull single "Rain Over Me" for Pitbull's latest album, PlanetPit

Personal life[link]

In 1994, Anthony's ex-girlfriend Debbie, a NYC police officer, gave birth to their daughter Ariana.

Marc married former Miss Universe Dayanara Torres on May 9, 2000 in Las Vegas. They have two sons, Cristian Marcus Muñiz (February 5, 2001) and Ryan Adrian Muñiz (August 16, 2003). There were many problems in the marriage, and the couple separated in early 2002. They later reconciled and renewed their vows in a formal ceremony on December 7, 2002 at San Juan's Cathedral in Puerto Rico. The rocky marriage came to an end in October 2003 with Dayanara filing for divorce in January 2004. To help in her recovery from the divorce, Dayanara traded her engagement ring for a diamond-encrusted Cartier watch and wrote the book Married to Me: How Committing to Myself Led to Triumph After Divorce.

When his divorce proceedings began, Anthony was spotted with long-time friend Jennifer Lopez. Prior to his first marriage and her second, they had briefly dated. Lopez and Anthony recorded a duet in 2004, for Lopez's film Shall We Dance?. Lopez and Anthony married on June 5, 2004, less than a week after his divorce was finalized. Guests had been invited to an "afternoon party", unaware they were attending a wedding.^[13] In February 2005, Lopez said about the marriage, "Everyone knows. It's not a secret."^[14] Months later, Anthony's daughter appeared in Lopez's video^[15] "Get Right".

Lopez gave birth to their children, twins Emme Maribel Muñiz and Maximillian David Muñiz on February 22, 2008. People (magazine) paid $6 million for the first photos of the twins.^[16][17] As of at least January 2008, Anthony and his family reside in Brookville, New York, on Long Island.^[18]

In 2009, Anthony and Lopez purchased a stake in the Miami Dolphins. They joined several personalities in buying small stakes in the club, including Gloria and Emilio Estefan, Venus and Serena Williams, and Fergie.^[19]

Anthony and Lopez separated in July 2011, and Anthony filed for divorce on April 9, 2012.^[20] Even though they are separating, their upcoming international talent show, "Q'Viva! The Chosen" and Kohl's fashion and home lines will go as planned.^[21]

Discography[link]

External audio
	You may listen to Marc Anthony's interpretation of Hernandez' "Preciosa" here
	and "Lamento Borincano" here

Studio albums[link]

• 1991: When the Night is Over
• 1993: Otra Nota
• 1995: Todo a Su Tiempo
• 1997: Hasta Que Te Conoci
• 1997: Contra la Corriente
• 1999: Marc Anthony
• 2001: Libre
• 2002: Mended
• 2004: Amar Sin Mentiras
• 2004: Valió la Pena
• 2006: Sigo siendo yo
• 2007: El Cantante
• 2010: Iconos

Filmography[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

See also[link]

	Puerto Rico portal
	Biography portal
	Music portal
	Latin America music portal
	Film portal

• List of famous Puerto Ricans
• List of Number 1 Dance Hits (United States)
• List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Marc Anthony

• Official Website
• Marc Anthony at Billboard.com
• Marc Anthony at the Internet Movie Database